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Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia

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A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 March 2020) | Viewed by 49263

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Kenneth Dean

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Guest Editor

Department of Chinese Studies, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119260, Singapore
Interests: Chinese religion; Chinese temples and networks in southeast Asia; Daoist studies; local communal religion; spirit possession; religion and ecology; material culture; ritual theory
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Chinese historical and epigraphic sources such as those collected in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia by Wolfgang Franke and his associates demonstrate the long process of the spread of Chinese temples and associations to the port cities of Southeast Asia (Franke and Ch’en 1980–85; Franke et.al, 1988–97; Franke, 1998). However only a few scholars have published studies on these temples and their rituals and communities, even though additional primary sources are now available (see shgis.edu.nus.sg) (Dean and Hue, 2017, Chinese Epigraphy of Singapore: 1810–1911, Singapore: NUS Press.). This special issue includes papers on different aspects of Chinese temples (including Buddhist monasteries) across the countries of Southeast Asia, from a range of disciplinary perspectives. We include papers on architectural and iconographic features of temples; the ritual production of space within and around these temples; the economics of Chinese temples; the charitable activities of Chinese temples; accounts of individuals and their relationships with these temples – temple directors, everyday devotees, ritual specialists, archivists, photographers, tourists, etc. Some essays provide an overview of temple networks in one site or across Southeast Asia, or comment on the political conditions for Chinese temples in different locations.

Temples are sites through which flow crowds of sensations, people, gods, ideas, capital, food, and ritual artifacts – a great many kinds of movements and transformations – thus papers exploring mobility in relation to Chinese temples are included in this issue. Papers on religion and migration, on the circulation or the training of ritual specialists, opera troupes, craftsmen and ritual artifacts within transnational networks are included. Topics covered include spirit mediums and their roles in Chinese temples, processions and major and minor rituals, and typologies of temples. Some papers use social network analysis or GIS approaches to analyze Chinese temples in Southeast Asia. Other papers explore major religious events of Southeast Asia, such as the Nine Emperor God Festival, Chinese New Year rites and processions, or ritual activities during the Ghost Month, either through individual case studies or through comparative or network analyses. Papers cover locally invented cults and rites, hybrid ritual forms, and the interactions between Chinese temple rites and communities and other religious or ethnic groups. Some papers discuss the spread of particular Buddhist lineages, or sectarian religious movements, through the region. Others provide comparative studies of ritual change and its causes and effects, or of the different kinds of trust networks and state-society relations developed within and between Chinese temples in different parts of Southeast Asia. Taken together, this collection of papers marks a milestone in the study of the religious and ritual aspects of the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia.

Prof. Kenneth Dean
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Chinese temples in Southeast Asia
ritual events
trust networks
material culture
Buddhist lineages
sectarian movements

Published Papers (10 papers)

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13 pages, 1156 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ancestors Are Watching: Ritual and Governance at Peck San Theng, a Chinese Afterlife Care Organization in Singapore

by Chi-cheung Choi

Religions 2020, 11(8), 382; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11080382 - 24 Jul 2020

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4977

Abstract

Kwong Wai Siew Peck San Theng 新加坡廣惠肇碧山亭 (hereafter PST) is a non-profit organization registered under Singapore’s Societies Ordinance, founded in 1870 by Chinese immigrants from three prefectures of Guangdong province: Guangzhou 廣州, Zhaoqing 肇慶 and Huizhou 惠州. Until the mid-1970s, it managed more than 100,000 graves spread over 324 acres of land. After the Singapore government acquired its land for urban development PST continued its service to the departed by managing a columbarium that accommodates urns and spiritual tablets. PST’s governing body is formed by regional associations of the three prefectures although these associations receive neither dividends nor shares from PST. Besides annually celebrated activities such as ancestral worship at halls, grave sweeping at tombs every spring and autumn and the Hungry Ghost festival PST has, since 1922, organized irregularly a Grand Universal Salvation Ritual (the Wan Yuan Sheng Hui 萬緣勝會) for both ancestors and wandering spirits. The ritual was held not only to generate income but was also designed to serve the afterlife of the homeless overseas migrants and also as an informal sanction to regulate the behavior of committee members. Based on PST’s institutional archives and participant observations, this paper analyzes the ritual over a period of 90 years. It argues that formal institutional behavior is checked and balanced by informal sanction constructed in the form of ancestors watching from above. This paper further argues that while filial piety is an essential Chinese cultural value, the Chinese people of Singapore rely on institutions such as PST to integrate their ancestors with individual characteristics into collective ancestors taken care of by the institutions, releasing them from the burden of daily ancestral worship. Religious charity and filial piety are equally important. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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14 pages, 10234 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Live Streaming and Digital Stages for the Hungry Ghosts and Deities

by Alvin Eng Hui Lim

Religions 2020, 11(7), 367; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11070367 - 17 Jul 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4066

Abstract

Many Chinese temples in Singapore provide live streaming of getai (English: a stage for songs) during the Hungry Ghost Month as well as deities’ birthday celebrations and spirit possessions—a recent phenomenon. For instance, Sheng Hong Temple launched its own app in 2018, as part of a digital turn that culminated in a series of live streaming events during the temple’s 100-year anniversary celebrations. Deities’ visits to the temple from mainland China and Taiwan were also live-streamed, a feature that was already a part of the Taichung Mazu Festival in Taiwan. Initially streamed on RINGS.TV, an app available on Android and Apple iOS, live videos of getai performances can now be found on the more sustainable platform of Facebook Live. These videos are hosted on Facebook Pages, such as “Singapore Getai Supporter” (which is listed as a “secret” group), “Singapore Getai Fans Page”, “Lixin Fan Page”, and “LEX-S Watch Live Channel”. These pages are mainly initiated and supported by LEX(S) Entertainment Productions, one of the largest entertainment companies running and organising getai performances in Singapore. This paper critically examines this digital turn and the use of digital technology, where both deities and spirits are made available to digital transmissions, performing to the digital camera in ways that alter the performative aspects of religious festivals and processions. In direct ways, the performance stage extends to the digital platform, where getai hosts, singers, and spirit mediums have become increasingly conscious that they now have a virtual presence that exceeds the live event. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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17 pages, 4095 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Cult of the Underworld in Singapore: Mythology and Materiality

by Dean Koon Lee Wang

Religions 2020, 11(7), 363; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11070363 - 17 Jul 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 5992

Abstract

Myths provide hagiographic and iconographic accounts of the gods, which shape rituals that are performed in cults associated with these gods. In the realization of iconographies and ritualization of narratives in myths, material objects play an active role. This article examines the pattern of worship in the cult of the Ah Pehs, a group of Underworld gods whose efficacy lies in the promise of occult wealth, and focuses on the material aspects such as offerings and paraphernalia associated with these gods. Though ritual texts and scriptures are absent in the Ah Peh cult, symbols in the form of material objects play a crucial role. These objects are also considered as synecdoche for the gods in certain cases. The first part of this paper presents a case study of the autonomous ritual of “Burning Prosperity Money”, which reveals the cycle of occult exchange between gods and devotees. The second part involves an imagery analysis of the material objects central to the cult, and argues that in the system of reciprocity with the gods, material objects common to the everyday life are reinterpreted and enchanted with a capitalist turn, resulting in the development of occult economies within the local Chinese religious sphere. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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13 pages, 4334 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Hungry Ghost Festival in Singapore: Getai (Songs on Stage) in the Lunar Seventh Month

by Hong Yin Chan

Religions 2020, 11(7), 356; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11070356 - 14 Jul 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 7206

Abstract

This paper examines the interaction between state power and the everyday life of ordinary Chinese Singaporeans by looking at the Hungry Ghost Festival as a contested category. The paper first develops a theoretical framework building on previous scholars’ examination of the contestation of space and the negotiation of power between state authorities and the public in Singapore. This is followed by a short review of how the Hungry Ghost Festival was celebrated in earlier times in Singapore. The next section of the paper looks at the differences between the celebrations in the past and in contemporary Singapore. The following section focuses on data found in local newspapers on Getai events of the 2017 Lunar Seventh Month. Finally, I identify characteristics of the Ghost Festival in contemporary Singapore by looking at how Getai is performed around Singapore and woven into the fabric of Singaporean daily life. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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9 pages, 796 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Hainanese Temples of Singapore: A Case Study of the Hougang Shui Wei Sheng Niang Temple and Its Lantern Festival Celebration

by Yiwen Ji

Religions 2020, 11(7), 350; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11070350 - 10 Jul 2020

Viewed by 4250

Abstract

Shui Wei Sheng Niang (水尾圣娘) Temple is located within a united temple at 109a, Hougang Avenue 5, Singapore. Shui Wei Sheng Niang is a Hainanese goddess, the worship of whom is widespread in Hainanese communities in South East Asia. This paper examines a specific Hainanese temple and how its rituals reflect the history of Hainanese immigration to Singapore. The birthday rites of the goddess (Lantern Festival Celebration) are held on the 4th and 14th of the first lunar month. This paper also introduces the life history and ritual practices of a Hainanese Daoist master and a Hainanese theater actress. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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18 pages, 2386 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Making Space for the Gods: Ethnographic Observations of Chinese House Temples in Singapore

by Shawn Goh Ze Song

Religions 2020, 11(7), 349; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11070349 - 10 Jul 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4268

Abstract

Space for religious use is highly regulated in Singapore. Specific plots of land are reserved for religious groups to bid for, and create, “official” spaces of worship. However, religious practices continue to exist within “unofficial” sacred spaces, such as house temples and wayside shrines, negotiating and resisting the overt management of religion by the Singapore state. Scholars, including Vineeta Sinha and Terence Heng, demonstrate how sacrality infused into everyday secular urban spaces defies neat binaries of “sacred/profane” and “legal/illegal”, and how Chinese house temples or sintuas—temples located within public housing flats—sustain sacred spaces, despite being technically illegal under housing regulations. Drawing upon a series of ethnographic observations conducted over a year of four sintuas and their activities in Singapore, this paper explores the different ways through which sintuas produce sacred space as a response to spatial constraints imposed by the state. These include (1) re-enchanting everyday urban spaces during a yewkeng—a procession around the housing estate—with the help of a spirit medium; (2) using immaterial religious markers (e.g., ritual sounds and smells) to create an “atmosphere” of sacredness; (3) appropriating public spaces; and (4) leveraging the online space to digitally reproduce images of the sacred. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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23 pages, 11753 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Chinese Temple Networks in Southeast Asia: A WebGIS Digital Humanities Platform for the Collaborative Study of the Chinese Diaspora in Southeast Asia

by Yingwei Yan, Kenneth Dean, Chen-Chieh Feng, Guan Thye Hue, Khee-heong Koh, Lily Kong, Chang Woei Ong, Arthur Tay, Yi-chen Wang and Yiran Xue

Religions 2020, 11(7), 334; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11070334 - 06 Jul 2020

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 6715

Abstract

This article introduces a digital platform for collaborative research on the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia, focusing on networks of Chinese temples and associations extending from Southeast China to the various port cities of Southeast Asia. The Singapore Historical Geographic Information System (SHGIS) and the Singapore Biographical Database (SBDB) are expandable WebGIS platforms gathering and linking data on cultural and religious networks across Southeast Asia. This inter-connected platform can be expanded to cover not only Singapore but all of Southeast Asia. We have added layers of data that go beyond Chinese Taoist, Buddhist, and popular god temples to also display the distributions of a wide range of other religious networks, including Christian churches, Islamic mosques, Hindu temples, and Theravadin, which are the Taiwanese, Japanese and Tibetan Buddhist monasteries found across the region. This digital platform covers a larger area than the Taiwan History and Culture in Time and Space (THCTS) historical GIS platform but is more regionally focused than the ECAI (Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative) By incorporating Chinese inscriptions, extensive surveys of Chinese temples and associations, as well as archival and historical sources, this platform provides new materials and new perspectives on the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia. This paper: (1) outlines key research questions underlying these digital humanities platforms; (2) describes the overall architecture and the kinds of data included in the SHGIS and the SBDB; (3) reviews past research on historical GIS; and provides (4) a discussion of how incorporating Chinese epigraphy of Southeast Asia into these websites can help scholars trace networks across the entire region, potentially enabling comparative work on a wide range of religious networks in the region. Part 5 of the paper outlines technical aspects of the WebGIS platform. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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21 pages, 3816 KiB

Open AccessArticle

State Regulations and Divine Oppositions: An Ethnography of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival in Singapore

by Jie Lin Chia

Religions 2020, 11(7), 330; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11070330 - 03 Jul 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4749

Abstract

Studies of popular Chinese religions in Singapore have mostly focused on the relationship between Chinese religious practitioners and state regulations delimiting land for religious uses. Local scholars have also studied the state’s active construction of a domain within which local religions can operate, often rationalized as a means of maintaining harmonious relations between ethnic and religious groups. However, little attention has been paid to the symbolic spatial negotiations that exist between the gods and the Singaporean state. Through an ethnographic study of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival as organized by the Choa Chu Kang Dou Mu Gong (蔡厝港斗母宫), I analyze the tensions between the impositions of state authority upon the temple’s annual festival and the divine authority of the Nine Emperor Gods, as reproduced in the festival’s rituals and in the bodies of their spirit mediums. Borrowing Marshall Sahlins’ idea of inclusive “cosmic polities,” I argue that the Nine Emperor Gods, devotees, and state actors do not exist in separate “secular” and “divine” dimensions but rather, co-participate in the same complex society. By serving as a fertile ground upon which the divine bureaucracy of the Nine Emperor Gods is reproduced, the festival’s articulations of divine sovereignty provide a potent challenge to state-imposed imaginations of space and expand devotees’ understandings of agency from state-defined and into the larger cosmological order. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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19 pages, 2245 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application of the Kano Model and DEMATEL Technique to Explore Sustainable Promotion Strategies for Thai-Chinese Temples as Tourist Attractions

by Bo-Wei Zhu, Zheng Huang and Lei Xiong

Religions 2020, 11(4), 199; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11040199 - 17 Apr 2020

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3811

Abstract

With the development of the modern social economy, temple tourism has become a lucrative industry. Because of their distinct architecture, rituals, and history, temples have become an important part of the sustainable development of temple economies. Thailand, a tourism-rich country in Southeast Asia, has many Chinese temples, most of which have developed into well-known tourist attractions. However, little research has explored attraction factor categories of Thai-Chinese temples as cultural tourist attractions, and also the relationships among these factor categories. This knowledge is important for assessing and developing improvement strategies of Thai-Chinese temples for achieving a sustainable temple economy. Thus, this study aims to identify appropriate ways to identify the constituent attraction factor categories of Thai-Chinese temples as cultural tourist attractions and how they are prioritized, considering the complex interaction relationships among them. The research findings show that 12 main factor categories under the three dimensions, three attributive classifications with different priorities to which the 12 categories belong, and the complex interaction relationships among factor categories are identified. Combining the priorities on attributive classifications and the priorities on interaction relationships, the sustainable improvement strategies of Thai-Chinese temples are established. This paper extends previous research on Chinese temples, offers insights into the theoretical investigation of Thai-Chinese temples as tourist attractions, and provides decision makers with an integrated and practical way to establish priorities of multiple attraction factor categories, in order to make sustainable improvement strategies of Thai-Chinese temples under the consideration of rational allocation of resources. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chinese Temples and Rituals in Southeast Asia)

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