Temple Fair

Ⅹ-84Folk CustomsShangqiushisuiyang, HenanBatch 5 (2021)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

From about the Song dynasty onward it gradually evolved into a folk temple fair, reaching its peak in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and has continued to the present. The core of the fair is the "court pilgrimage" (chaotai) activity. The chaotai ceremony helps promote exchange and communication among the people of the four provinces and strengthens social cohesion. The Shangqiu Fire God Terrace Temple Fair traces its origin to the sacrifice to Ebo, the founding ancestor of the Shang. "Heaven decreed the dark bird, and it descended and gave birth to Shang" — legend fixes Shangqiu as the birthplace of Shang civilization. Ebo, that is Xie, was the son of Emperor Ku; after death he was buried on the Fire God Terrace and was revered as the God of Fire. Ebo served as the fire official (huozheng) under Emperor Yao, overseeing the observation and worship of the great fire star (Antares, the Shang star), using the star's field allocation to mark the hours and seasons and set the farming calendar, and preserving the fire seed and managing the use of fire. The motive for the sacrifice thus goes beyond seeking protection: it contains a reverence for a body of astronomical calendrical knowledge and knowledge of the use of fire. The transition from official sacrifice to folk temple fair began about in the Song dynasty, reaching its peak in the Ming and Qing and continuing to the present. The core is the chaotai activity: three fairs a year. The fair on the seventh day of the first lunar month, the birthday of the God of Fire, is the largest; the fourth day of the fourth lunar month is the sacrifice to the great fire star; the twenty-third day of the sixth lunar month is the anniversary of Ebo's death. All three fairs are set according to the farming season: the first lunar month before sowing, the sixth after the summer harvest — one at each end of the year, the result of arranging both heavenly timing and farming work within the fair. The present-day fair is transmitted by society, with association heads (huishou) at every level playing an organizing role; the relevant knowledge and ritual procedures are transmitted from generation to generation through on-site demonstration and through legends, stories and songs. The huishou system in turn consolidates the fair: the small associations based on villages and lineages make contact with the chief association head through a formal reporting ceremony and confirm the relevant matters, then each carries offerings, lifts flower baskets, plays suona horns and sets off firecrackers, presenting incense and offerings with specific ritual procedures. Through this, the people of the four provinces gain a cross-regional organizational interface.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The Shangqiu Fire God Terrace Temple Fair is a large-scale folk activity held regularly at the Fire God Terrace in Shangqiu City, eastern Henan, for the purpose of sacrificing to Ebo, the founding ancestor of the Shang and the God of Fire. "Heaven decreed the dark bird; descending, it gave birth to Shang." Shangqiu is the birthplace of Shang civilization. Ebo, that is Xie, was the son of Emperor Ku and the founding ancestor of the Shang. Legend holds that Ebo was the "fire official" under Emperor Yao, overseeing the observation and worship of the great fire star (the Shang star), using the star's field allocation to mark the hours and seasons and set the farming calendar, and preserving the fire seed and managing the use of fire. After his death he was buried on the site of today's Fire God Terrace; he was revered as the God of Fire and received official sacrifices and popular worship in successive dynasties. It is held three times a year: the fair on the seventh day of the first lunar month, the birthday of the God of Fire; the fair on the fourth day of the fourth lunar month, sacrificing to the great fire star; and the fair on the twenty-third day of the sixth lunar month, the anniversary of Ebo's death. Of these, the fair on the seventh day of the first lunar month is the largest. At every fair, the people of Henan, Shandong, Jiangsu and Anhui mostly come in village and lineage groups, led by association heads. Through a solemn "reporting" ceremony, the association heads make contact with the chief association head and confirm the relevant matters; afterward they carry offerings, lift flower baskets, play suona horns and set off firecrackers, presenting incense and offerings with specific ritual procedures to pray for blessings and avert calamity. During the fair there are folk community-fire performances such as fire-dragon dances and torch races; there are performing arts such as Yuju opera and Henan zhuizi balladry; and there are all kinds of handicrafts and special local foods. It is also a famous goods-exchange fair, where the people sell and buy farming tools and local and general merchandise. The Shangqiu Fire God Terrace Temple Fair is an important present-day manifestation of Chinese fire culture, enriching the connotations and forms of that culture.

The main feast of the fire god's birthday

The god's birthday on the seventh is the largest of the three feasts, drawing the main body of the pilgrimage.

The rite of the great fire star

The fourth-month feast honours the great fire star, keeping alive the fire-officer's duty of watching the sky.

The death anniversary of Bo Bo

The third feast marks the god's death on the twenty-third of the sixth month, close to the harvest.

The leaders' formal report

Each local leader reports formally to the great leader, confirming arrangements — the joint that binds four provinces together.

Offering and prayer

Offerings, baskets, suona and crackers mark the sacrifice, prayer and appeasement running together in noise and smoke.

Fire-dragon dance and torch race

Fire-dragon dances and torch races, joined by Henan opera and zhuizi, make up the fair's entertainment.

The goods exchange fair

The fair doubles as a great market for implements and produce, giving the pilgrimage a practical pull.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

The core area of this heritage project is the Fire God Terrace in Suiyang District, Shangqiu City; the concentrated area is Shangqiu City and the borderlands of Henan, Shandong, Jiangsu and Anhui; and the area of influence can reach the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River. As an important cultural space, the Fire God Terrace Temple Fair also contributes to the protection of various intangible cultural heritage projects and to the development of the local economy, society and culture.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

This folk custom is transmitted by society, with association heads at every level playing an organizing role; the relevant knowledge and ritual procedures are transmitted from generation to generation not only through on-site demonstration but also through legends, stories and songs. The core element of this heritage project is the sacrifice to Ebo, the God of Fire. It has the primordial character of fire worship and star worship, the agrarian character of gathering according to the farming seasons, the comprehensiveness of the content it carries, and the breadth of its area of influence. It has historical value, in which official sacrifice and folk custom corroborate each other; literary value, represented by legends, stories and songs; artistic value, expressed in performing arts and handicrafts; and scientific value, in the astronomical calendrical knowledge and knowledge of the use of fire that it embodies.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Temple Fair (Shangqiushisuiyang, Henan) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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