Pemujaan komunal pada Dewa

Aliran kepercayaan Tionghoa dalam ekspresi komunalnya melibatkan pemujaan terhadap dewa-dewa yang merupakan kekuatan generatif dan roh pembimbing dari sebuah lokalitas atau aspek tertentu dari alam (misalnya dewa air, dewa sungai, dewa api, dewa gunung), atau dewa-dewa yang merupakan nenek moyang dari sebuah desa, identitas yang lebih besar, atau bangsa Tionghoa (Shennong, Huangdi, Pangu).

Struktur sosial dari agama ini adalah shénshè (神社; secara harfiah berarti “masyarakat dewa”), yang bersinonim dengan shehui (社會), di mana shè (社) pada mulanya berarti altar dewa bumi suatu komunitas, sedangkan 會; huì berarti “asosiasi”, “perkumpulan”, “gereja”, atau “pertemuan”. Jenis kepercayaan religius ini dapat didedikasikan untuk dewa yang terikat pada satu desa atau kuil atau untuk dewa yang memiliki pengikut yang lebih luas, di beberapa desa, provinsi atau bahkan kepentingan nasional. Mao Zedong membedakan “asosiasi dewa”, “komunitas desa”, dan “asosiasi kuil” dalam analisisnya mengenai kepercayaan agama. p. 353-354 Dalam kata-katanya: “setiap jenis dan tipe dewa [shen] dapat memiliki asosiasi [hui]“, misalnya Asosiasi Zhaogong, Asosiasi Guanyin, Asosiasi Guangong, Asosiasi Dashen, Asosiasi Bogong, Asosiasi Wenchang, dan sejenisnya.” Di dalam kategori hui, Mao Zedong juga membedakan asosiasi pengorbanan (醮會; jiàohuì) yang melakukan pengorbanan untuk menghormati para dewa.

Perkumpulan-perkumpulan ini mengorganisir pertemuan dan festival (廟會) yang diikuti oleh anggota seluruh desa atau komunitas yang lebih besar pada saat-saat yang diyakini sebagai hari ulang tahun para dewa atau peristiwa-peristiwa lainnya, atau untuk mencari perlindungan dari kekeringan, wabah penyakit, dan bencana-bencana lainnya. Festival-festival semacam itu memohon kekuatan para dewa untuk tujuan praktis untuk “memanggil berkah dan mengusir bahaya.” Aliran-aliran kebaktian khusus dalam kerangka kerja ini dapat diidentifikasi dengan nama-nama tertentu seperti Mazuisme (媽祖教; Māzǔjiào),. Quote: "At present, major religions practiced in Fujian include Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism and Protestantism. In addition, Fujian has its folk belief with deeply local characteristic, such as Mazuism, the belief in Mazu, (which) is very influential". pemujaan Wang Ye, atau pemujaan terhadap Bunda Ulat Sutra.

Jenis agama ini lazim di Tiongkok utara, di mana agama garis keturunan tidak ada, bersifat pribadi, atau secara historis hanya ada di dalam keluarga yang berasal dari selatan, dan ikatan patrilineal didasarkan pada senioritas,. Quote: "... southern China refers to Fujian and Guangdong province and in some cases is expanded to include Guangxi, Zhejiang and Jiangxi provinces. Historically speaking, these areas had the strong lineage organizations and the territorial cult, compared to the rest of China in the late imperial period. These areas not only were the first to revive lineage and the territorial cult in the reform era, but also have the intensity and scale of revivals that cannot be matched by the other part of China. This phenomenon is furthered referred as the southern model, based on the south-vs.-north model. The north model refers to the absence of landholding cooperative lineages that exist in the south." Note 16: The south-vs.-north model comparison has been the thrust of historical and anthropological research. Cohen's article on "Lineage organization in North China (1990)" offers the best summary on the contrast between the north model and the south model. He calls the north China model "the fixed genealogical mode of agnatic kinship". By which, he means "patrilineal ties are figured on the basis of the relative seniority of descent lines so that the unity of the lineage as a whole is based upon a ritual focus on the senior descent line trace back to the founding ancestor, his eldest son, and the succession of eldest sons." (ibid: 510) In contrast, the south China model is called "the associational mode of patrilineal kinship". In this mode, all lines of descent are equal. "Access to corporate resources held by a lineage or lineage segment is based upon the equality of kinship ties asserted in the associational mode." However, the distinction between the north and the south model is somewhat arbitrary. Some practices of the south model are found in north China. Meanwhile, the so-call north model is not exclusive to north China. The set of characteristics of the north model (a distinctive arrangement of cemeteries, graves, ancestral scrolls, ancestral tablets, and corporate groups linked to a characteristic annual ritual cycle) is not a system. In reality, lineage organizations display a mixture between the south and the north model." dan desa-desa terdiri dari orang-orang yang memiliki nama keluarga yang berbeda. Dalam konteks ini, masyarakat dewa atau masyarakat kuil berfungsi sebagai kutub organisme sipil.: "As for the physical and social structure of villages on this vast flat expanse; they consist of close groups of houses built on a raised area, surrounded by their fields, with a multi-surnamed population of families who own and cultivate their own land, though usually not much more than twenty mou or about three acres. ... Families of different surnames living in one small community meant that lineages were not strong enough to maintain lineage shrines and cross-village organizations, so, at best, they owned small burial plots and took part only in intra-village activities. The old imperial government encouraged villages to manage themselves and collect and hand over their own taxes. ... leaders were responsible for settling disputes, dealing with local government, organizing crop protection and planning for collective ceremonies. All these factors tended to strengthen the local protective deities and their temples as focal points of village identity and activity. This social context defines North China local religion, and keeps us from wandering off into vague discussions of 'popular' and 'elite' and relationships with Daoism and Buddhism." Sering kali masyarakat dewa menggabungkan seluruh desa; inilah alasan mengapa di Tiongkok utara dapat ditemukan banyak desa yang diberi nama sesuai dengan nama dewa dan kuil mereka, misalnya Léishénmiào (雷神廟; “[Desa] Kuil Dewa Petir”) atau Mǎshénmiàocūn (馬神廟村; “Desa Kuil Dewa Kuda”).

 Referensi 

 Daftar Pustaka 




Kategori:Kepercayaan tradisional Tionghoa