13.30 Ancestral Temples in China: Between Tangible and Intangible
Ancestral temples (or ancestral halls 祠堂), which were historically spread all over China, are given increasingly more attention nowadays. Some dilapidated or abandoned temples have been renovated and reconstructed by local governments (instead of by families as in olden times) and then became tourism resources. However, it should be noted that the emergence of ancestral temples in Chinese history was related to the system of sacrifice. In that system, only an aristocratic family had the right to build an ancestral temple. But from the Han and Tang Dynasties, few aristocratic families had the financial resources and workforce required to maintain both the building and the sacrifice-offering ceremonies. A new situation arose in the tenth century: due to the increase of social mobility, families from non-aristocratic classes started building their ancestral temples and performing worship ceremonies. They even added new meanings to their newly built temples. Culturally, ancestral halls should be places where families solve all their problems instead of acting simply as symbols of social status. They also should be places where family members learn how to be good and polite individuals through ritual performance. Moreover, they should be places where families communicate and strengthen the very notion of being a family. It was in the process of the cultural construction that ancestral temples re-emerged in “common” people’s daily lives in the tenth century. Undoubtedly, they have acquired a profound cultural significance since then. As tangible cultural heritage, ancestral temples possess intangible cultural aspects. How can the old ritual system be maintained? How can people adjust to the new situation nowadays? How can we draw benefits from this intangible heritage for society at large?
"Mambo ya kihistoria ya China: ""Tangible na Intangible"" - Hekalu la kihistoria la China, ambalo kwa wakati mmoja lilikuwa limesambazwa kote China, linapewa uangalifu zaidi na zaidi leo." Baadhi ya mahekalu yaliyoharibika au yaliyokuwa yameachwa yamerekebishwa na kujengwa upya na serikali za mitaa (badala ya familia kama ilivyokuwa katika nyakati za kale) na kisha yakawa rasilimali za utalii. Hata hivyo, ni lazima ieleweke kwamba kuibuka kwa mahekalu ya mababu katika historia ya Kichina kulihusiana na mfumo wa dhabihu. Katika mfumo huo, familia ya kifalme tu ndiyo iliyokuwa na haki ya kujenga hekalu la mababu zao. Lakini katika enzi za Han na Tang, ni familia chache tu za watu mashuhuri zilizokuwa na uwezo wa kifedha na wafanyakazi waliohitajiwa kudumisha jengo hilo na pia sherehe za kutoa dhabihu. Hali mpya ilitokea katika karne ya kumi: kwa sababu ya ongezeko la uhamaji wa kijamii, familia kutoka madarasa yasiyo ya aristocratic zilianza kujenga mahekalu ya mababu zao na kufanya sherehe za ibada. Hata waliongeza maana mpya kwa mahekalu yao mapya yaliyojengwa. Kwa utamaduni, majumba ya mababu yanapaswa kuwa mahali ambapo familia hutatua matatizo yao yote badala ya kutenda kama ishara tu ya hadhi ya kijamii. Pia zinapaswa kuwa mahali ambapo washiriki wa familia hujifunza jinsi ya kuwa watu wazuri na wenye adabu kupitia utendaji wa kidesturi. Isitoshe, zinapaswa kuwa mahali ambapo familia huwasiliana na kuimarisha wazo la kuwa familia. Ilikuwa katika mchakato wa ujenzi wa kitamaduni kwamba mahekalu ya mababu yalionekana tena katika maisha ya kila siku ya watu wa "kawaida" katika karne ya kumi. Bila shaka, tangu wakati huo zimekuwa na maana kubwa sana ya kitamaduni. Kama urithi wa kitamaduni unaoonekana, mahekalu ya mababu yana mambo yasiyoonekana ya kitamaduni. Mfumo wa kale wa desturi waweza kudumishwaje? Watu wanawezaje kuzoea hali hiyo mpya leo? Tunawezaje kupata manufaa kutoka kwa urithi huu usioonekana kwa jamii kwa ujumla?