China's Living Houses: Folk Beliefs, Symbols, and Household Ornamentation 9780824845216

Citation preview

CHINA'S LIVING HOUSES

A' S BELIEFS,

WAT I

PRESS

LIVING HOUSES SYMBOLS, AND HOUSEHOLD ORNAMENTATION

HONOLULU

RONALD

G.

KNAPP

© 1999 University of Hawai'i Press

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

All rights reserved Knapp, Ronald G„ 1940-

Printed in Canada

China's living houses : folk beliefs, symbols, and household 11

10

09

08

07

06

6

5

4

3

2

o r n a m e n t a t i o n / Ronald G. Knapp. p.

cm.

Publication of this book has been assisted by grants from

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Furthermore, the publication program of the J . M . Kaplan Fund, and

ISBN-10: 0-8248-1998-5 (cloth : alk. paper).

T h e Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts.

ISBN-13: 978-0-8248-2079-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8248-2079-7 (pbk. : alk. paper)

University of Hawai'i Press books are printed on acid-free

1. Dwellings—China.

paper and meet the guidelines for p e r m a n e n c e and

3. Feng-shui—China.

durability of the Council on Library Resources.

life and customs. GT365.K6

Book design by Kenneth Miyamoto Printed by Friesens mvw.uhpress.hawaii.edu

1999

392.36'00951—dc21

2. Dwellings—Symbolic aspects—China. 4. House furnishings—China.

5. China—Social

I. Title 98-20653 CIP

For MA Y

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments / ix A Note on Chinese Names and Terms / xi

Part II

In Pursuit of Good Fortune

6. S u m m o n i n g G o o d Fortune / 81

1. Introduction / 1

7. Fu (Good Fortune) and Its Components

Part I

8. Narrative Tales /

In Quest of Harmony

2. Dwellings as Social Templates / 7

9. Resilience /

3. Fengshui: Siting and Mystical Ecology / 29

Bibliography /

4. House Construction: Craft and Ritual / 40

Index /

5. Building Sorccry and Defensive Measures / 52

183

158 173

133

/

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

As READERS WILL quickly see, the illustrations in China's Living Houses span nearly thirty years of fieldwork in C h i n a and, as a result, my debt to individuals and institutions is both complex and varied. While earlier support was acknowledged in other publications, it is appropriate to recognize here my accumulated debts to those who funded past travel and photographic documentation that are the basis for this book: the Association of American Geographers, S U N Y Research Foundation, National E n d o w m e n t for the Humanities, National Geographic Society, a n d S U N Y New Paltz Grants for Research and Creative Projects. Some of the illustrations a n d text in China's Living Houses appeared in my earlier University of Hawai'i publications. Especially valuable in broadening my knowledge of this vast subject has been participation in numerous vernacular architecture conferences in C h i n a over the years. As the only foreigner present, I had a b u n d a n t opportunities to learn from Chinese architects, architectural historians, and folklorists. Although China's Living Houses evolved from other f u n d e d projects, it was completed during a year's leave in 1996 m a d e possible by the generous support of a Senior Scholar Research Grant from the Chiang Chingkuo Foundation that was matched by Title F funds from the State University of New York. "China's Folk Architecture: Aesthetic, Architectonic, and Ecological Traditions," the title of the 1996 project, was intended to lead to a single book of synthesis and interpretation, a reconceptualization of materials first presented in my 1986 book China's Traditional Rural Architecture, now out

of print and its content overtaken by new research findings during the last decade. T h e emerging manuscript, however, became increasingly unwieldy and was ultimately rewritten as two books: China's Living Houses and a companion volume, China's Old Dwellings, which will be published by University of Hawai'i Press in 1999. China's Living Houses has benefited from the thoughtful criticism a n d generous help of Francesca Bray, Jeffrey Cody, David J o h n s o n , May Knapp, C a n d a c e Lewis, Richard J. Smith, and Joseph Wang. All of their comments have been carefully considered; what errors remain are mine. To fill some gaps in illustrative documentation, the generosity of J. Azevedo, Nancy Berliner, Arthur Cheng, Mareile Flitsch, J o n a t h a n H a m m o n d , Lee Chien-lang, Li Yuxiang, Pan An, and Zhu Chengliang is greatfully acknowledged. T h e support of Dean A. David Kline, Vice-President William W. Vasse, and especially my colleagues in the Department of Geography is appreciated. I owe special thanks to D e a n Gerald Benjamin, who assisted with a critical c o m p u t e r u p g r a d e w h e n my system was stretched beyond its capacity to deal with scanned images and Chinese text. At the University of Hawai'i Press, the continuing encouragement of Patricia Crosby, editor of two of my previous books, is much valued. Style and presentation have been improved by the fine copyediting of Victoria Scott. Ann Ludeman's careful guidance of a complicated illustrated manuscript through the production stages is gratefully acknowledged.

A NOTE ON CHINESE NAMES A N D TERMS

and full-form Chinese characters are found in China's Living Houses, the use of which depends on how they were encountered during fieldwork. Since the Bibliography includes materials published in many parts of the world, Chinese characters appear as they do on the actual title of a book or article, with fullform characters generally used for books published in Taiwan and in H o n g Kong. Although simplified characters are customarily employed in books and articles published in the People's Republic of China, some pubB O T H SIMPLIFIED

lications there are now using full-form characters; this is reflected in several citations. T h e names of Chinese authors are generally romanized according to pinyin, except where a cited author has published in both Chinese and English and uses a romanization form that differs from pinyin. In the figure captions, Chinese terms for administrative units are used: cun, village; xiang, rural township; zhen, u r b a n township; qu, district; shi, city; and xian, county.

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Any study of Chinese building leads quickly to fascinating problems in the history of Chinese culture. A house is a living symbol; it is the focus of the aspirations—social and spiritual—of the people who made it. It shelters the family, and it is here in the courts of prescribed proportions, shaded by walls of prescribed heights, in its chambers for social intercourse, in its chambers for religious meditation and ceremony, and in its private chambers that occurs the slow elaboration of thought and ritual. These remarks were written nearly seventy years ago as part of the inaugural address of Zhu Qiqian, founder and president of the Society (later Institute) for Research in Chinese Architecture (Zhu 1930, 1-2). Because the accompanying Chinese text does not include a translation of these English remarks, one can only wonder whether they were inserted, without the knowledge of the aging classicist, by someone with a different and broader vision. Zhu's later comments, however, reveal that this may not have been the case. In both the Chinese a n d English versions, he points out that the Chinese n a m e chosen for the Society, Zhongguo yingzao xueshe '-I3 S ' t f ' j a i P i l i , does not include the word for "archit e c t u r e " — u n l i k e the English n a m e — b e c a u s e "we feared that if we called ourselves a Society for the Study of Architecture we would too strictly limit the scope of our work and thus be unable to carry on the investigations we plan into related fields." "Yingzao,"meaning "to construct" or "to build," Zhu reminded his audience, was used by the Song architectural genius Li J i e and is a much broader term than "jianzhu, "which means "architecture." Yingzao, according to Z h u , includes within its range "material arts: painting, sculpture as

1

used in decoration, silk, lacquer, metal work, earthen wares; and . . . non-material culture: traditions, beliefs, rituals, music, and dance" (1930,9-10). Unfortunately, many of these important subjects broached as worthy of study in these inaugural words are only n o w — a t the end of the century—beginning to be probed by Chinese architects as well as other scholars interested in seeing houses as more than physical objects. Before retiring a n d forming the Society, Z h u had been a well-to-do and capable administrator at the Ministry of the Interior, where his duties included supervising the repair of palaces, gates, and other structures from China's imperial past. Zhu had come not only to value this architectural heritage but also to appreciate the craftsmen, master and apprentice alike, who actively employed traditional techniques in maintaining structures from the Qing, Ming, and even earlier dynasties. Stimulated by historical questions raised by these ancient buildings and the artisans who still worked on them, Z h u and the scholars he assembled around him sought answers in literary sources written in classical Chinese, but were often frustrated in their efforts. Regrettably, he felt, "those who know the technique probably do not know its origins, [and] those who know the words probably do not recognize the thing described." Acknowledging the likely contributions of "folklorists, geologists, geographers and historians" to this understanding, Zhu expressed the "need of examining the customs, traditions, institutions—political and social—as they can be traced in our buildings" (1930, 4-7). Zhu's multidisciplinary approach to China's architectural history was b r o a d a n d ambitious, yet the

2

realities of C h i n a in the 1930s made it impossible to mobilize the necessary resources even to begin to pursue the kind of comprehensive endeavor he envisaged. Joining the Society in its formative years, two trained architects—Liang Sicheng, educated at the University of Pennsylvania, and Liu D u n z h e n , educated at Tokyo Engineering C o l l e g e — c a m e to play m a j o r roles in defining the emerging field of Chinese architectural history, a domain so vast in range and complex in content that it is not surprising that important topics appear to have been slighted by Chinese scholars. Liang and Liu's pathbreaking achievements, however tentative, are well known a n d varied. Significantly, they were marked by a scholarly approach that involved both difficult fieldwork and documentary research. T h e comparable limited scope of western scholarship on Chinese architectural history because of war and politics during this period has been surveyed by Steinhardt (1990). Although much of the Society's (now Institute's) research focused on m o n u m e n t s — p a l a c e s , temples, pagodas, tombs, gardens, and bridges—that had never been adequately described or rendered in measured drawings, many of its published reports are replete with casual observations about c o m m o n dwellings encountered during fieldwork in remote villages and towns far from the seats of imperial authority. Wartime migration from the developed areas of northern and eastern C h i n a to the less-developed a n d remote m o u n t a i n ringed areas of China's southwest after 1937 "opened the eyes of the Institute staff to the special architectural significance of Chinese dwellings. T h e distinct features of such dwellings, their relationship to the life-styles of the occupants, and their variations in different areas of the country were suddenly obvious and interesting" (Fairbank 1994, 110). For the most part, however, the Institute's leading staff focused only on documenting representative vernacular building forms and generalizing a b o u t types without examining the nature of dwellings as "living" structures—as habitats of people. T h e Institute staff's experiences provided the background for the long-delayed publication, in 195 7, of Liu D u n z h e n ' s xjiongguo zhuzhai gaishuo [Introduction to Chinese dwellings]. By taking tentative steps away from mere description a n d toward assessing building types,

INTRODUCTION

Liu singlehandedly opened up the study of Chinese vernacular architecture. Although his book highlighted the development of the Chinese house from neolithic times through the Q i n g period, his approach was less historical and social than it was morphological. H e classified dwellings into nine categories according to their plans and shapes, augmenting his presentation with useful measured drawings and photographs that should have stimulated much additional research by others. However, as will be discussed at length in the first chapter of China's Old Dwellings, a companion volume to be published in 1999, the subsequent study of Chinese vernacular architecture by Chinese scholars was frequently hampered by political movements (Knapp, forthcoming). It is not surprising that scholars are only now turning seriously to topics suggested in the tumultuous times of more than a half century ago, yet for the most part subsequently slighted because of other concerns. Going beyond structure, form, and plan, some scholars today are trying to better understand the cultural elements that are embodied in dwellings of many types. T h r o u g h these efforts it will become increasingly possible to see dwellings as more than mere structures. As Zhu Qiqian suggested, each house is a "living symbol" endowed with meaning and resulting from conscious action. It is these sentiments that undergird my excursion in this book into "China's living houses." Besides the meaning and significance of physical space in guiding normal social relationships, certain practices were employed with the intent of warding off misfortune a n d securing benefits for those living within a Chinese house. Documenting the means by which misfortune is to be avoided and good fortune beckoned is the focus of this book, which is thus divided into two parts: one on the quest for spatial harmony, and the other on the pursuit of good fortune. T h e evidence of a household's quest for h a r m o n y lies, of course, in the form a dwelling ultimately takes. As discussed in C h a p t e r 2, the layout of any Chinese house has a form that serves as a template for guiding and marking both the behavior and the values of the family that lives within its walls. This chapter focuses on several of the significant rooms of general Chinese dwellings. T h e application of fengshui in the selection

Introduction

of building sites, with its mystical and cosmological concerns, is addressed in Chapter 3. Scripting an auspicious site for a dwelling using a fengshui model is a critical step in ensuring overall good fortune as a family journeys through life. Fengshui is a vast and complex subject, a n d only its essential elements are presented in this chapter. H o u s e construction itself traditionally was taken quite seriously, as seen in C h a p t e r 4. Indeed, the sequence a n d timing of building tasks are even today a c c o m p a n i e d by ritualized "building magic." Attention to p r o p e r orientation, appropriate proportion, and precise measurements contributes to a remarkable aesthetic quality even in c o m m o n dwellings. Offerings, charms, a n d talismans whose purpose is to ensure harmony, prevent adversity, and s u m m o n good fortune are described in this chapter. Chapters 5 through 8 are at the core of China's Living Houses. Each focuses on the a b u n d a n t ornamentation that is found on and about Chinese dwellings. Far from being simply decorative, most Chinese household ornamentation is purposeful and serves to make dwellings inviolate from external danger and welcoming to the f u n d of good fortune that exists. C h a p t e r 5 surveys a range of calligraphic a n d noncalligraphic totems used as preemptive measures to gain an advantage over hostile forces and to guarantee spatial harmony. M o r e o r n a m e n t a t i o n focuses on summoning good fortune than on warding off misfortune, however. While much o r n a m e n t a t i o n can be enjoyed strictly on the basis of its aesthetics of line, form, a n d color, as C h a p ter 5 shows, most of it is also purposeful in its m e a n i n g and rich in its vocabulary. Aesthetics play only a supportive role. M u c h of the o r n a m e n t a t i o n — w h e t h e r using words or pictures—involves a powerful symbolic language found both in folk culture a n d a m o n g those who are well educated, in traditional and in contemporary

3 C h i n a alike. Chapters 6 and 7 provide a b u n d a n t evidence that the pursuit of good fortune, or happiness, continues to be a predominant sentiment in Chinese life. As the sinologist Edouard Chavannes observed at the beginning of the century, "If the Chinese write their good wishes everywhere, it is because they believe in their efficacy. T h e y think that the formula of benediction, like that of malediction, can be followed by effect, and that in repeating these desires for happiness . . . one will multiply around oneself the chances for happiness. . . . It seems to me that no other people in the world has so intense a feeling regarding the intrinsic value of life" (1973, 34-35). An important component of household ornamentation is the use of didactic narrative tales to communicate moral principles as well as to express the elements of a happy family life. As shown in C h a p t e r 8, these admonitory tales are drawn from a rich repertoire of legends and historical events that express orthodox neoConfucian values such as filial piety as well as the spectrum of Chinese life represented by folk heroes, such as the fabled Baxian, or Eight Immortals. In spite of periodic efforts throughout the twentieth century to eliminate "superstitious" practices, as reviewed in Chapter 9, Chinese folk beliefs and symbols remain a persistent c o m p o n e n t of China's cultural landscape, even though many people no longer fully appreciate their meaning or comprehend their origins. T h e marshalling of fengshui and defensive amulets continues to provide many families with the sense of spatial h a r m o n y a n d protection they believe they need. Auspicious emblems—employed purposefully and not simply as ornamentation—continue as motifs on and around Chinese dwellings, resilient vehicles for assisting a family as it pursues "good fortune" in its efforts to ensure well-being and happiness.

PARTI

In Quest of Spatial Harmony

CHAPTER 2

Dwellings as Social Templates

VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE in m u c h o f the world is

seen as the "unselfconscious" expression of people's ideas. In the case of Chinese buildings—even common houses—it is important to acknowledge the "selfconscious" way in which space traditionally was shaped

told by the eye. As a rule, a house is favourable if it is square and straight, plain and neat, and pleasing to the eye. If it is too high and large, or too small and tumbledown, so as to be displeasing to the eye, then it is unfavourable, (quoted in Ruitenbeek 1993, 38)

and ornamented. Throughout China, techniques of

T h e pursuit of such seemingly ordinary qualities, accord-

construction and the methods of raising structures have

ing to Klaas Ruitenbeek, "comes close to a theory o f

always been viewed as more than mere building, or

architecture and its aesthetics." Crucial decision making

the application o f craft to materials. Besides revealing

was not left to chance or the vagaries of individual

a conservative building tradition that results in similar

memory. Instead, relevant technical information was

designs, Chinese buildings—whether palaces, temples,

provided by craftspeople as well as ritual specialists who

or houses—clearly embody and communicate striking

drew upon oral tradition as well as upon voluminous

elements of the Chinese people's cosmological beliefs,

written materials that were accessible to literate and

fears and aspirations, and social norms. These beliefs,

illiterate alike. Ritual accompanied each stage of house

fears, aspirations, and norms are manifested even today

construction, both for cosmological reasons and to

in decisions and rituals associated with the selection of

counteract the craftsmen's literally unsettling actions

a building site, the determination of a structure's orien-

in the course of building a house. What took shape was

tation and proportions, the timing and ordering of

a structure, a dwelling, a habitat in which space was

specific construction tasks, the spatial form that a dwell-

organized as a template that would help mold the family

ing takes, and the inclusion of structural and seasonal

living within it. Ethics-shaping messages were encoded

ornamentation that is at once decorative and mean-

in the very framework of the dwelling's layout, then re-

ingful. Whereas some of these building efforts produce

inforced by meaningful applied ornamentation. Rituals

outcomes that are conspicuous and tangible, many

tied to the calendar, which were observed once the house

others are subtle and elusive, even as they contribute

was occupied, helped connect the dwelling and its resi-

to the beauty of a dwelling and its suitability as a home

dents to the dynamic web linking the past and the

for a family. T h e Bazhai zaofu zhoushu [Complete book

present, as well as the world of the living and that o f

of creating good fortune in houses of all directions], a

the otherworldly. Calligraphic and noncalligraphic

seventeenth-century manual, tells us:

charms of many types were marshaled to protect the

T h e shape of a house is of the highest importance. If the shape (xingxiang fó is unfavourable, the house will be hard to live in definitively. Whether a house is favourable or unfavourable, unlucky or lucky, can be

7

family from misfortune. To ensure well-being and happiness, prodigious amounts of ornamentation whose purpose was to summon good fortune came to be added on and about dwellings of all types. These themes are

8 central to this book, in that they help animate structures into "living" dwellings. Chinese traditional practices and folk ornamentation were certainly more c o m m o n in late imperial C h i n a than they are today. Yet, as this book shows through its photographs and text, one can still observe an enormous variety of practices and ornamentation that echo those of earlier times. T h a t so much ornamentation and so many practices are prevalent in H o n g Kong, Taiwan, and the prosperous areas of the southeastern mainland suggests that the cascading pace of development is as likely to resurrect elements from the past as to expunge them. "Each culture has different expectations of its dwellings," Paul Oliver tells us, "and makes demands on them which are related to its social structure a n d to the ways in which its m e m b e r s organize their daily lives" (1987, 128). In traditional C h i n a , a house or h o m e was a humanized space, structured to shape family organization, and an instrument for weaving the web of Chinese social and ethical norms. T h e layout of fully formed Chinese dwellings creates a matrix in which space is designated according to a patriarchal system in which there are hierarchies defined by generation, gender, and age. T h e degree to which spatial divisions are apparent in any dwelling is a function of its scale as well as the wealth and status of the household living within it. T h e diverse sizes and forms, even the eccentricities, of Chinese dwellings at any place and at any time generally reflect actual differences in household composition that themselves result from a variety of vital circumstances. Smaller dwellings throughout C h i n a still pulse with occupancy patterns that echo those of earlier times, even though the rhythm of familial life associated with the archetypal siheyuan—the classic courtyard house with its hierarchical plan—has long since been muted. N o dwelling is static and fixed in time; rather, each dwelling mutates as fortune and h u m a n circumstances change. Whenever one encounters a complex dwelling, one must generally see it as an accretion of elements formed over a period of time that may be quite long. T h e conditions affecting a newly established domicile in a frontier area differ significantly from those affecting a well-established household with a lengthy history in a long-settled area. A new dwelling all too often appears relatively sterile and detached from the cultural context

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

in which it takes form, whereas a very old one is packed with layers of meaning that current residents frequently cannot fully comprehend. U n d e r frontier conditions, humble and makeshift huts m a d e of b a m b o o or grass matting that serve as mere shelter are transformed over time into structured domiciles as households take shape and their fortunes improve. O v e r the centuries, w h e n Chinese males migrated into frontier areas on China's cultural periphery, for example, family f o r m a t i o n was not hastily accomplished because migrants usually saw themselves as mere sojourners (Knapp 1986, 88-107). However, once conjugal units were formed, rough tributary communities of simple structures were created that stood for long periods of time before being recast into normative forms like those found in the hearth areas the migrants h a d left. O f t e n clashing with indigenous groups, frontiersmen cleared wilderness, reclaimed land, and eventually accumulated the resources necessary for building fully formed—if often only modest— dwellings. U n d e r frontier conditions and in areas of new settlement, a Chinese family [ jia emerged initially as a conjugal unit of both production and consumption. Changes in the size and composition of a two-person household came about through the birth of children and, later, through the marriages of sons. Family organization usually moves from a nuclear form to a stem form, perhaps even a joint family form, before division of family property [ fenjia /rf restarts the cycle with the advent of new nuclear family forms. Empirical studies by anthropologists show the internal and external forces that generally act on Chinese families as they navigate from one family organizational f o r m to a n o t h e r (Cohen 1976). As summarized by Arthur Wolf, Differences in family size and complexity cannot be explained with reference to rules, norms, or ideals. Basically, the Chinese family is the same everywhere; all that varies are the conditions that make large families more or less advantageous. If the families of the wealthy are larger than those of the poor, this is not because they are governed by different ideals. It is only because wealth encourages diversification and thereby makes cooperation mutually advantageous. (1981, 343) For the most part, large multigenerational families have

Dwellings as Social T e m p l a t e s

always been relatively affluent because of the necessity of supporting and housing many noncontributing household members, kin a n d servants alike. Even where households are well established in an area, dwellings are dynamic entities that reveal the changing conditions and fortunes of individual families. Although the Chinese ideal traditionally was "five generations under one r o o f " [wushi tongtang i t t t I r I ^ or wudai tongtang [r] — a patrilineal descent group living together u n d e r the authority of a senior-generation male—this form has been relatively rare. Nonetheless, all over C h i n a one can still see fine relict examples of g r a n d and spacious residential compounds that once housed sizable extended families. Each is a testament to the recurring realization of the multigenerational ideal of coresidency, nurtured by strong lineage organizations in many areas of the country. Each such multigenerational family typically has a sequential tale of modest origins, protracted growth, eventual florescence, a n d decline—all mirrored in the structures its members come to inhabit. Within any family, sons and daughters inevitably marry, the older generation dies, children are b o r n , a n d brothers divide their father's estate. As each of these life-cycle events occurs, new status relationships u n f o l d that necessitate family m e m b e r s moving to rooms once occupied by others or to new rooms added to accommodate the changes in the family. Reallocation of space, especially with the partition of an estate, forces a division of property, including bedrooms, kitchens, a n d courtyards, even as some functional areas, such as threshing grounds, wells, a n d latrines, continue to be held in c o m m o n . Tensions within a family all too often frustrated the expansion of its corporate estate, directly affecting the use of residential space. With the division of a family into smaller units, a complex dwelling can be fragmented into disconnected parts. For example, an asymmetrically large farmhouse in northern Taiwan housing some 150 related people maintained a c o m m o n ceremonial hall for the ancestors and a degree of apparent unity a n d family status even in the face of dramatic spatial a n d functional evidence of family division: separate cooking stoves for each of the conjugal families, and doors nailed shut to underscore the rupture in the larger family's cordial interaction (Dillingham and Dillingham

9 1971, 6 0 - 6 5 , 127). Even though several families may continue to worship at a c o m m o n ancestral shrine, their use of separate stoves for cooking and the associated ritual segmentation mark such families as independent entities. Each separate stove requires an image of Zaoj u n , the Stove or Kitchen God, whose responsibility extends only to those eating food prepared from the stove and kitchen he oversees. As modest structures are built, there is usually an eye to the future, in that a growing family is thus being b o u n d to a locale where more-than-lifetime occupancy is a reasonable hope. Yet even the relationships a m o n g the c o m p o n e n t s of a house's initial, basic layout reveal not only the potential for expansion but also the possibility of retrenchment as family conflicts and changes in fortune arise. T h e indisputable fact that so many rural dwellings remain a single rectangle—without even a perpendicular wing or two—suggests the frequent frustration of most families' hopes for many generations living u n d e r one roof and focused inward on a c o m m o n courtyard, a housing condition that is made possible through the accumulation of corporate wealth. C o m p a c t shapes around courtyards economize in the use of space. If freestanding additions are built to accommodatc the needs of collateral relatives, this is more wasteful of land and other resources than simply joining new rooms to old ones to form a tight, ramified structure. Sometimes, as a household moves beyond agriculture, there can be a "miscegenation" of house form in which traditional elements such as courtyards are a b a n d o n e d in favor of an emphasis on other elements. As Wang Weijen has shown f o r j i n m e n , a coastal island off Fujian, once Chinese merchants who had sojourned in Southeast Asia during the nineteenth century returned to their home villages, they usually built hybrid structures with multiple "main halls" or activity centers instead of a single ancestral hall. O f t e n the primacy of a central courtyard was also diminished, replaced only by a small, open service area to the rear of the dwelling. Unlike traditional houses, greater emphasis was also placed on the facade, a characteristic of E u r o p e a n dwellings of the period (Wang Weijen 1992). A similar "degradation," to use Wang's evaluative term, has occurred with the m o d e r n transformation of courtyard dwellings on Taiwan's Penghu islands

10

IN Q U E S T O F S P A T I A L H A R M O N Y

(1987). T h i s evolution away from traditional f o r m s a n d toward western-influenced building forms can be docum e n t e d in m a n y areas of coastal southeastern C h i n a . Longitudinal studies of individual Chinese dwellings are n e e d e d to u n d e r s t a n d this organic quality of Chinese living space over time. As a "space of d e c o r u m " a n d a "space of culture," to use Francesca Bray's fitting phrases, a h o m e provides a n additional m e a n s for socializing family m e m b e r s by applying rules of propriety a n d giving shape to their values (1997,59-60). T h e social meanings of a dwelling

are f o u n d in the f o r m a n d structure of its spaces, with specific inculcating spaces speaking to axiomatic sets of relationships: those between parents a n d children, m e n a n d w o m e n within the living family; those between dead forebears and their living descendants; and those between the family unit a n d the world beyond the dwelling's wall. T h e multilayered patriarchal structure of each household guides these manifestations, revealing each family as a nucleus a n d a functioning microcosm of the state itself. In terms of their elemental design principles, Chinese dwellings are typically inward-looking, f r a m e d by balanced structures, hierarchically organized,

Innermost South-facing Structure Provides Sleeping and Leisure Space for Parents Inner Courtyard is Shared Private Space for Adult Family Members

Side Halls o f Outer Courtyard are Bedrooms for Sons and Daughters PRIVATE inner/upper

"graduated privacy"

Interior is Not Visible through Main Entry LESS PRIVATE outer/lower

Seclusion Afforded by High Wall

F i g u r e 2.1 T h e p l a n of a fully f o r m e d C h i n e s e c o u r t y a r d - t y p e d w e l l i n g , called a siheyuati, clearly e x p r e s s e s h i e r a r c h i c a l r e l a t i o n s h i p s in t e r m s of t h e s e q u e n c i n g of s t r u c t u r e s , walls, gates, a n d steps. T h e senior generation occupies the interior-most structure, which faces south a n d contains the a n c e s t r a l hall. A d u l t c h i l d r e n usually live in t h e side halls p e r p e n d i c u l a r to t h e m a i n hall, w i t h y o u n g e r c h i l d r e n a n d s e r v a n t s in t h e s t r u c t u r e s s u r r o u n d i n g t h e o u t e r m o s t c o u r t y a r d n e a r e r t h e f r o n t g a t e . [ O r i g i n a l d r a w i n g u s e d w i t h t h e p e r m i s s i o n of P a n A n . ]

Dwellings as Social Templates

and ritually centered—like the family units occupying them and the imperial state writ large. Jia, or H o m e and Family: Harmonious Hierarchy As humanized space, a Chinese dwelling is a territorial unit that represents family unity and sanctuary. "A house is a family," according to Maurice Freedman, "and its structure is the structure of a family" (1969, 13). As a living structure, a dwelling is an objective statement of a family's status as well as a tangible expression of its material and nonmaterial attainments and aspirations. Of the Confucian "Five Relationships" [wulun T\ f £ ] that are fundamental to the proper ordering of Chinese society, three operate within the confines of a family's dwelling: those of father and son, husband and wife, and elder brother and younger brother. Only the relationship between ruler and subject and the bonds between friends operate beyond domestic walls. While terms of address and ritual traditionally helped to inculcate a sense of hierarchy and order among young and old, the physical layout of each dwelling also served as a template, stating and guiding familial relationships in which each person had his or her proper place. Thus, ordered "harmonious hierarchy," to use San-pao Li's phrase, not only is the basis of Chinese cosmology but also manifests itself in Chinese ethics broadly and in daily life specifically (1993, 115-116). Within the northern siheyuan and its variant forms throughout China, living space is ordered so as to delineate status-based generation, gender, and sibling relationships (Figure 2.1). Hierarchy is linked to upper/lower, l e f t / r i g h t , and i n n e r / o u t e r associations, all f u n d a mental components of li |L, or ritual. T h e placement and sequencing of walls, gates, and steps represent not only physical transitions but also scripted territorial markers delimiting space. T h e movement from the first hall toward the interior—from public space to private space—is sometimes accompanied by an increase in the height of the floor and roof of each of the halls that one passes. Hierarchy is sometimes accentuated via the steps leading from lower courtyards or structures to those above. This "graduated privacy" in the progression of horizontal and vertical space creates a setting for ritual and domesticity, "the house as an image

11 of h u m a n relationship" (Nelson Wu 1963, 32-34). Strangers move beyond the perimeter walls and gates while the family is united within. T h e senior generation normally occupies the southfacing and interior-most structure, which also contains the ancestral hall at its core. Throughout many parts of China, the bedroom [dafang 1^] to stage left of the central altar-bearing hall was traditionally reserved for parents. With the marriage of the eldest son, he and his bride would move into the complementary room on the right side of the main hall. Young children usually lived in side halls, sometimes segregated by sex. T h e number and sex of children as well as the family's fortune determined the number of sleeping rooms and any necessary rotation because of marriages. Within the cellular form of a siheyuan, the spatial manifestations of open or closed, front or back, above or below, and distance from the center not only echoed but also helped regulate traditional Chinese social relationships. Even in simple three-bay-wide rectangular dwellings, movement along the axis away from the central room holding the ancestral altar is a passage from public space to private domain, in much the same way as occurs in the more fully developed courtyard house with its receding longitudinal axis. Women and men in traditional rural China worked in different yet complementary spheres, a y i n element balancing one that wasyang. O n e was "inner" and the other "outer," segregated in spatial terms by walls and gates. This division of labor was traditionally portrayed in a genre of instructive folk prints called "men tilling and women weaving" [nan geng nu zhi Pj Ijf it f§(] that were pasted up on the walls of dwellings. It is no accident that the Chinese ideograph for "a m a n " is constructed from a divided, squared "field" 03 plus the symbol for "strength" j j , whereas that for "peace" ^ is comprised of "a woman" i z under the radical indicating " r o o f " "with her arms held out as if working on something" (Lindqvist 1991, 272). For a thorough examination of the everyday life of women and men in traditional China, see Bray (1997). In smaller dwellings, women traditionally carried out their work in the kitchen or in spaces designated for domestic activities (Figures 2.2 and 2.3). Besides

Figure 2.2 View of a w o m a n eating in the k i t c h e n of h e r dwelling. A massive brick stove with a handled wooden cover placed over the cooking area dominates the kitchen. Brush for fuel is stored against the wall a n d will be fed into the two openings at the back of the stove. Above the stove is a s h r i n e for Z a o j u n , the Stove or Kitchen G o d , together with incense stands a n d a p l a q u e reading "good fortune." Late Q j n g lithograph. [Source: Wu Youru 1983, vol. 3, set 13, 17.]

Figure 2.3 T h e w o m a n in this picture is cooking on a new kitchen stove built in the traditional fashion. Fueled f r o m the back, like the one shown in Figure 2.2, it also includes a shrine to Z a o j u n , the significance of which is d i s c u s s e d in C h a p t e r 6. L i c u n , J i a n d e xian, Zhejiang. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1990.]

Dwellings as Social T e m p l a t e s

13

the household chores of preparing food in the kitchen, women were responsible for attending to children as well as mending, spinning, weaving, and doing embroidery (Figure 2.4). In rural areas, they also helped in the processing of farm products, such as milling rice (Figure 2.5), among many other delegated tasks. Throughout the Jiangnan region, women traditionally reared silkworms, regulating temperature, humidity, and light as well as minimizing noise that might disturb growth over a six-week period. To meet the enormous appetites of the silkworms, women chopped mulberry leaves into slivers, fed the worms day and night, and cleaned their trays of endless excrement (Knapp 1989, 59-63). The

Figure 2.5 T h e milling of rice a n d o t h e r grains using a m o r t a r a n d pestle has traditionally been the work of rural w o m e n . To the rear is a large foot-powered pestle that is d r o p p e d in o r d e r to smash the grains of rice. N a n j i n g xian, F u j i a n . [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1990.]

Figure 2.4 In addition to attending to children, a n important traditional role for w o m e n — w h e t h e r p e a s a n t or of greater m e a n s — w a s the p r o d u c t i o n of cloth a n d the making of clothing. H e r e w o m e n are shown reeling a n d spinning as well as using a small loom. Across the courtyard in a study are two upper-class m e n w h o arc passing the time in each other's company. [Source: Wu Youru 1983, vol. 3, set 13, no. 15.]

14

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

drying of herbs a n d vegetables brought women into the courtyards and onto the roofs, where they worked with the baskets of drying materials to ensure proper desiccation. W o m e n sometimes sought the company of others at the front or side gate and at the well, but the expectation was that their behavior in these places would always be demure and reserved. In the large, rambling dwellings of prosperous farmers, merchants, and officials, women traditionally occupied an inner realm of interconnected rooms a n d corridors whose location was guided by well-known n o r m s of segregation from the realm of men. As Z h u Xi's twelfth-century Family Rituals prescribes: In housing, there should be a strict demarcation between the inner and outer parts, with a door separating them. The two parts should share neither a well, a wash room, nor a privy. T h e men are in charge of all affairs on the outside; the women manage the inside affairs. During the day, without good reason the men do not stay in

their private rooms nor the women go beyond the inner door. Men who walk around at night must hold a candle. A woman who must leave the inner quarters must cover her face (for example with a veil). Menservants do not enter the inner quarters unless to make house repairs or in the cases of calamity (such as floods, fires, or robberies). If they must enter, the women should avoid them. . . . T h e doorman and old servants serve to pass messages and objects between the inner and outer quarters of the house, but they must not be allowed to enter rooms or kitchens at will. (Ebrey 1991b, 29) R a t h e r remote from the main gate, this "inner realm" of relatively cloistered space was considered peripheral to the core space around the courtyard, even though it was no more distant from the center than were the more public areas nearer the front of the dwelling. Here, in the inner quarters, women kept the private possessions they had brought with them at marriage—a bed, chests, quilts, clothing, and jewelry—objects that, although

Figure '2.6 Both enclosed a n d open passageways make it possible to connect spaces within a dwelling complex by skirting the courtyard at its core. T h i s cutaway d r a w i n g of the Lin Antai dwelling in Taipei, Taiwan, shows the fragmented yet interconnected nature of Chinese domestic space. [Original d r a w i n g used with the permission of Lee Chien-lang.]

15

Dwellings as Social Templates

II •.1R •1 UN

mm if

Figure 2.8 Set just inside the windows of the dwelling's facade, this kang is being used by the w o m a n of the house to prepare dumplings for dinner. T h e kang is joined via flues to the brick stove in the center bay of the dwelling in order to obtain its heat during the winter months. Hebei. [RGK photograph 1984.]

Figure 2.7 Just to the right of the entryway to the Lin Antai dwelling, shown in Figure 2.6, is a narrow passageway between the outer wall and adjacent inner rooms that open onto a small courtyard. T h i s enclosed passageway links up with covered arcades to form a circuit around the interior perimeter of the house. Taipei, T a i w a n . [RGK photograph 1997.]

within the husband's home, were acknowledged as belonging to the wife. Exposed and enclosed passageways helped ensure privacy by creating roundabout circuits that skirted public areas (Figures 2.6 and 2.7). Walls with ornamented openings and screens provided secluded places for relaxation and work. These patterns can be found in the large manor complexes of Shanxi and Shaanxi as well as in the tight siheyuan of Taiwan and Fujian. An exception to this rule of separation and exclusion can be seen in Hakka [Kejia] dwellings in southern Taiwan and northeastern Guangdong, where

women's bedrooms opened directly onto a central courtyard. Such an open pattern had men and women occupying common space as they worked and moved freely from one area of the dwelling to another (Lee Chien-lang 1995, 3). Women carried out some household chores in the bedroom, on a raised brick bed, on a platform bed, or within an alcove-type bed, all furniture types that were used by men as well. Traditional Chinese beds—whatever the type, and whether simple or ornate—were for more than sleeping. It was there that women relaxed alone, kept busy with chores, visited with other women, or played and studied with their children. Of great significance is the fact that it was in the mother's bed that a son was conceived and later born. It is not surprising, then, that Chinese beds, especially those used by mothers, are usually generously ornamented with auspicious and didactic patterns (see Chapters 6, 7, and 8). Regional differences as well as distinctions based on class and wealth are noteworthy.

16

KangiX are elevated brick platforms found in homes throughout northern and northeastern China. As builtin brick platforms, kang take several forms. Fairly broad ones occupy a third of the floor space of many rooms, running from wall to wall just inside south-facing windows, whereas narrower ones often take a U shape along three walls. They are used for sleeping, for daytime activities such as food preparation (see Figure 2.8), for family meals, and for receiving guests. The benefits of a kang are best seen during the winter. Because kang are constructed with a warren of flues through them connected to the kitchen stove, exhaust air warms the bricks, which then radiate heat to those sitting on the kang. Thus, in winter, kang are the warmest spots in simple rural homes throughout northern China, and even in houses of the urban wealthy. In summer, when

Figure 2.9 Although a m a n is seen reclining on this ta p l a t f o r m bed, the w o m a n peeking in through the window most likely has a similar one. With its side railings a n d simple f r a m e , this piece of f u r n i t u r e serves as a couch for resting d u r i n g the day a n d as a place for sleeping at night. [Source: Fan 1993, frontispiece.]

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

the heated air is exhausted directly to the outside, they are a pleasantly bright place for the woman of the house to work. Kang are normally covered with reed mats on which family and friends can sit, their feet either up or dangling over the edge. Long, low tables, cabinets, boxes for storage, and folded bedding are usually found along the wall side(s) of kang. Platform or couch beds, called ta |f|, are as much furniture for sitting as they are bedsteads for sleeping. Simple ta with side railings have been excavated from fourteenth-century B.C. tombs, and their counterparts can be seen in dwellings even today. As with kang, one can either sit cross-legged on a ta or allow one's feet to hang over the side. Men as well as women reclined against the side rails or sat up straight using pillows and cotton quilts to help soften the surface (Figures 2.9 and 2.10). Before the use of chairs and high tables, ta were an important utilitarian piece of furniture in most Chinese dwellings. Even today they are found in some dwellings, differing in height above the floor, overall area and shape, and degree of ornamentation. Alcove- or canopy-type beds, called jiazi chuang -p-j^C or babu chuang A ^ i f c , vary in style from simple to elaborately ornate but are usually rectangular in shape, generously proportioned, and raised above the floor on a dais. Each alcove bed is an irreducible nucleus within the nested structure of a dwelling, that is, a relatively enclosed chamber placed within the larger room containing it (Figure 2.11). As a room within a room, these beds sometimes have grand carved facades and often come to the house as part of a bride's dowry (Figures 2.12 and 2.13). To create privacy and warmth for sleeping, either diaphanous curtains or removable wooden panels, some of which fold like doors on pivots, demarcate the centrality of this piece of furniture in a household (Figures 2.14 and 2.15). During the day, when the quilts are folded or rolled against the frame, the compact space becomes a spot for entertaining friends, some of whom may sit on nearby stools. The symbolic significance of the bed is reflected in the facts that measurements of the timber used in its construction are found in the Lu Banjing, a carpenter's manual discussed in Chapters 3 and 4, and that almanacs specified propitious dates for installing and fitting it with curtains.

Figure 2.10 An o r n a t e p l a t f o r m bed d o m i n a t e s this room, suggesting b o t h its daytime a n d nighttime uses. H e r e it is stripped of its soft quilt a n d pillows to reveal a polished w o o d e n surface. Lin Antai dwelling, Taipei, Taiwan. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1997.]

Figure 2.11 C o n s t r u c t e d on a raised dais with w o o d e n p a n e l sides a n d covering, this seventeenth-century alcove b e d is a room within a room. [Source: IM Banjing after Ruitenbeek 1993, II 35.]

Figure 2.12 T h i s t u r n - o f - t h e - c e n t u r y d r a w i n g portrays some of the essential f u r n i t u r e of a w o m a n ' s room, including a p r o m inent alcove bed. O r n a t e l y carved with painted panels a n d hanging o r n a m e n t s with auspicious meanings, this bed becomes a r o o m within a room w h e n its curtains are pulled shut. [Source: Wu Youru 1983 vol. 2, set 9, no. 18.]

Figure 2.14 D e n g X i a o p i n g was b o r n in 1904 in this ornately carved bed in a village some 40 kilometers n o r t h of C h o n g q i n g . Even stripped of its b e d d i n g a n d curtains, the alcove bed suggests its function as a room within a room for a relatively prosperous farming family. Paifang, G u a n g a n xian, Sichuan. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1994.]

Figure 2.13 Used in s u m m e r without its curtains a n d with a cool sleeping m a t , this m o d e r n alcove bed is simpler t h a n the one shown in Figure 2.12 yet includes similar o r n a m e n t a t i o n : p a i n t e d tiles along the top, here showing traditional beauties; carved openwork lattice that focuses on a stylized bat, representingJu, or good fortune (an auspicious emblem discussed at length in C h a p t e r 6); a n d some mother-of-pearl inlay work. Lingxia am, Chaishi xiang, Beilun qu, N i n g b o ski, Zhejiang. [ R G K photog r a p h 1990.J

Figure 2.15 Less o r n a t e than the alcove beds shown in Figures 2 . 1 2 , 2 . 1 3 , a n d 2.14, this bed is h u n g with o r n a m e n t e d cotton curtains that can be d r a w n at night. T h i s was the bed used by Marshall L u o Ruiqing, minister of public security in the 1950s, w h o was b o r n in 1906 in central Sichuan. N a n c h o n g , Sichuan. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1994.]

Dwellings as Social T e m p l a t e s

19

Figure 2.16 W o r k i n g in t h e courtyard fronting this dwelling, m e n a n d w o m e n sort a n d dry tea leaves. Lingshan cun, Z h o u p u xiang, H a n g z h o u shi. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1987.]

A man, whether peasant or literate, usually had his own bed and came only periodically to his wife's bed, sometimes in rotational order if he had multiple wives or concubines. While men, too, might rest, study, eat, and entertain on their couch beds, they were not expected to work within the home but kept busy in a full range of work outside, in the fields—preparing seed beds, tilling, harrowing, planting, weeding, harvesting, threshing, transporting, and storing. Sometimes, however, men processed agricultural products in the courtyard or worked with the larger equipment used to produce cloth (Figures 2.16 and 2.17). The work of upperclass men and women in urban and rural areas, of course, was less onerous, and in their homes there were studies and rooms for leisure. According to Francesca Bray's recent comprehensive study of the demarcations of gendered space in China, "the seclusion of women and the segregation of the sexes inside and outside the house . . . [came] to be not simply Figure 2.17 U s e d to weave cloth f r o m hemp, cotton, a n d silk, this waist loom d e p e n d s on the strength of a male weaver's lower b o d y to secure a tight weave. Seventeenth-century woodblock print. [Source: S o n g 1983, 62.]

20

a sign of respectability but an essential factor in maintaining public morality" (1997, 128). Yet even within a system of idealized separate spheres, such domains were neither neatly confined nor strictly dichotomous. In reality, there was always significant fluidity between the realms, with at least some women in the Jiangnan region functioning "in a series of nested circles originating in the private domain of the inner chambers and extending to the social realms of kinship, neighborhood, and to the heart of the so-called public spheres" (Ko 1994, 13). M e n and women nonetheless experienced domestic space in different ways:

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

A man was born, grew up and died within the same walls, and with the same male kin around him. He never had to leave his parents or his home, he knew which lineage and which landscape he belonged to from the time he began to understand the world. His house was home for life, and yet he could walk outside the family compound whenever he pleased. He lived in a kind of commune of shared patrimonial goods, in which his first loyalty was supposedly to the group. A girl grew up on borrowed time. When she married she had to leave the house of her birth, her mother and her sisters whom she loved and depended on, to move into an unknown house and a new group of women, many of whom might regard her with hostility. She would have to be self-reliant until she built up alliances and, as a mother, became an acknowledged member of her new family. The structures of incorporation were such that few women questioned the actual system, because as time passed they gained power and authority. (Bray 1997, 149-150) Domestic Ritual Regular family rituals, according to tradition, are performed routinely within many Chinese dwellings on a daily, semimonthly, and seasonal basis. Such rituals reinforce filial piety, linking the living and the dead and underscoring the fact that each family, according to the Chinese-American anthropologist Francis L. K. Hsu, lives "under the ancestors' shadow." Many Chinese still believe today that their ancestors live much as they once lived but now frequent another world. Ancestors must not be neglected and need to be cared for with food and other material items through offerings by their descendants: "Enriched by Confucian, Buddhist, and Religious Daoist ideas, ancestor worship buttressed the Chinese family system not only by cementing social relationships and reinforcing status obligations but also by fostering a profoundly conservative precedentmindedness at all levels of society" (Smith 1994, 88).

Figure 2.18 M a o Zedong's boyhood h o m e includes an ancestral hall (zutang) just inside the doorway, in the middle bay of the five-7'tarc-wide m a i n U - s h a p c d structure. Wider a n d d e e p e r than the a d j a c e n t bays, this central jian provides ample room for a long altar table a n d other furniture. [Source: Liu 1957, 91.]

Dwellings as Social T e m p l a t e s

21

Figure 2.19 T h e central bay of this s o u t h e r n dwelli n g is a n o p e n a n c e s t r a l hall. While the area u n d e r t h e f r o n t eaves p r o v i d e s space for eating a n d washing clothes, the high altar table holding the ancestral tablets, s h o w n in F i g u r e 2.24, is placed against the back wall in the recessed dark interior. Shuitou xiang, C a n g n a n xian, Z h e j i a n g . [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1987.]

Ancestral offerings, as well as life-cycle and annual domestic rituals, traditionally have been carried out before altars in a central room or main hall that can be described as the core of a Chinese house. W h e t h e r the dwelling is a simple rectangular unit or is elaborated in a U-shaped or enclosed courtyard style, this room for domestic ritual normally occupies a full bay [jian |'i]] a n d is usually wider than either of the flanking jian (Figures 2.18 and 2.19). Although such a room is central to the p e r f o r m a n c e of periodic ceremonies, or the spatial focus of domestic ritual, it is not a sacred space. For most Chinese families, it is a multipurpose room in which meals are taken, guests are entertained, children play, f a r m equipment, tools, and crops are stored, a n d work is carried out. Such functions vary from one part of the country to another and often reflect the education and resources of the household. In rural Taiwan in the late 1950s, the pivotal ancestral hall was described by Bernard Gallin as "untidy and cluttered . . . seldom cleaned or dusted" (1966, 240). In many areas of the mainland, however, such rooms are usually orderly and well appointed.

T h e central jian can be called the zhengwu JEJM or zhengting IE IT (middle hall), tangwu ^ ® (main hall), gongting £ J t (common hall), zutang ^ (ancestral hall), or simply tingtang i f 'SL (hall), depending on the part of the country But whatever it is called, this core room is always symbolic of unity and continuity if it contains the ancestral tablets of the family. Usually located at an interior location along the main north-south axis of the dwelling, central ritual rooms epitomize balance, axiality, and hierarchy. It is the fixing of the location of this central room that is the primary concern of practioners offengshui(see Chapter 3), because the good fortune of a family depends so much upon it. In main halls that are grand and elaborate, altars enshrining ancestral spirits are placed atop high tables or on a shelf reachable only by a short ladder; in more modest dwellings, such shrines are often tucked into the corner of a room generally serving some other purpose. T h e neo-Confucian Zhu Xi, writing in his twelfthcentury liturgical m a n u a l Family Rituals, called for a separate, three^zan-wide ritual building for "a m a n of virtue," the dimensions a n d scale of which could hardly

22

IN Q U E S T O F S P A T I A L H A R M O N Y

ancestral halls are often the largest and most impressive structures in large single-surname villages, constructed only after a long period of growth of the lineage itself. T h e facades of some resemble the simple three-bay type discussed earlier (e.g., in Figures 2.18 and 2.19), although the halls themselves recede to greater depth in order to accommodate courtyards and side halls (Figures 2.21 and 2.22). As lineage halls memorializing remote ancestors who are no longer worshiped as near ancestors within the central halls of individual dwellings, citang continue even today, in some areas, to serve as community centers and schools. Variations in the form, content, and ritual associated with ancestral halls within homes, as well as with those that are centralized, are discussed for H o n g K o n g by Faure (1986) and for Taiwan by Ahern (1973, 91 ff.).

F i g u r e 2 . 2 0 O n e r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of Z h u X i ' s citang, o r o f f e r i n g hall, this c e r e m o n i a l s t r u c t u r e i n c l u d e s t w o d i f f e r e n t t a b l e s o n w h i c h o f f e r i n g s a r e p l a c e d , as well as t a b l e t s at t h e r e a r t h a t r e p r e s e n t t h e a n c e s t o r s a c c o r d i n g to specific g e n e a l o g i c a l c o n v e n t i o n s . [ S o u r c e : E b r e y 1 9 9 1 b , 9.]

be realized by most Chinese (Figure 2.20). Flexibility was conceded in terms of orientation of the offering hall: "In organizing the room, no matter which direction it actually faces, treat the front as south, the rear as north, the left as east, and the right as west" (Ebrey 1991b, 8). A seventeenth-century revision acknowledged that "those whose resources were inadequate could simply sweep a room and set out the ancestral tablets there" (Ebrey 1991a, 7). Even in a dirt-floored home, there is often a heightened formality to the room that holds ancestral tablets and religious images. In rural H o n g K o n g and other areas of southeastern China, a central ancestral hall [citang fn] serves as the focus for acknowledging a c o m m o n ancestor. These

Throughout the nineteenth century, western observers in many areas of China wrote of the distinct activities and ornamentation associated with domestic shrines, sometimes likening them to temples of worship. Most such shrines have c o m m o n elements in terms of furniture and its placement, although they differ in terms of their level of grandeur (Figure 2.23). Placed along the back wall, the family altar is usually an elongated high, narrow table called a shenlonganzkuo that faces the entryway. O n this table ancestral tablets, images of gods and goddesses, and ritual paraphernalia are all arranged in a prescribed order. Ancestral tablets are usually placed on stage right of the tall table, and the gods on stage left (Figure 2.24). However, within grand dwellings whose commemorated ancestors go back many generations, the tablets traditionally were arranged chronologically and held in an ornate, wooden, tiered wall case or shrine that was either elevated behind the table or placed on it. Elaborate family shrines of this type sometimes look like thrcc-jian buildings themselves, complete with pivoting lattice doors and substantial o r n a m e n t a l detail similar to those in Zhu Xi's ideal offering hall (see Figure 2.20) and evocative of shrines found in grand ancestral halls. Positioned a m o n g these critical elements are other ritual items such as incense pots, wax or electric candles, flower vases, packages of incense and firecrackers, divination blocks, wine cups, statues, souvenirs from temples visited, and perhaps

Figure 2.21 S o m e of the wealthy lineages in the rural areas of H o n g K o n g constructed magnificent freestanding ancestral halls. T h e impressive three-bay s t r u c t u r e above, with its two o p e n courtyards, was built in the early fourteenth century. Even today this citang serves as the site for weddings a n d funerals, periodic feasts, a n d as a m e e t i n g place for elders of the lineage. Pingshan, New Territories, H o n g Kong. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1997.]

Figure 2.22 As the center of lineage life for a b r a n c h of the T a n g clan, the ancestral hall shown in Figure 2.21 has at its core an elaborately carved ancestral altar. Encased at the top are tablets c o m m e m o r a t i n g the founding ancestors, while those of m o r e recent generations a r e displayed in a series of descending rows b e n e a t h . Pingshan, N e w Territories, H o n g K o n g . [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1997.]

24

Figure 2.23 A long-legged high table a n d an a c c o m p a n y i n g lower s q u a r e table are basic f u r n i t u r e elements for domestic ritual. T h i s r e m i n d e r of filial devotion to ancestors is one of several didactic illustrations placed a r o u n d a grave site. While the wife looks on, the h u s b a n d ofTers incense to images of his m o t h e r a n d father placed on the high table. C a n g p o cun, G a n g tou xiang, Yongjia xian, Zhejiang. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1987.]

F i g u r e 2 . 2 4 A n c e s t r a l tablets, s h o w n here, as well as portraits are sometimes found on the family's altar table along the back wall of the central room. As a ritual space, this long table also holds containers of v a r i o u s s h a p e s into which i n c e n s e sticks a n d candles are placed. S o m e incense is lit daily, but m o r e is n o r m a l l y b u r n e d on the first a n d fifteenth days of the m o n t h a n d at the N e w Year. Shuitou xiang, C a n g n a n xian, Z h e j i a n g . [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1987.]

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

some wax fruit. Although high tables sometimes hold only the barest of ritual essentials, they are cluttered more often than not. O n a Taiwanese altar described by David K.Jordan, "the ancestors receive far less than half of the family altar for their sacrifices, the rest being given over to worshiping the gods, so also the ancestors receive much less attention than the gods" (1972, 96). This is because the gods are viewed as supernatural protectors, guardians and allies against malignant forces. Whereas each recent ancestor is represented by a tall, narrow wooden tablet on which the full name is written, either in black brush strokes or carved into its face, gods are embodied in lifelike porcelain statues recognizable to all. Sometimes an orange sheet of paper substitutes for a wooden tablet. In many areas of southern C h i n a , although incense is still lit twice a day and offerings of food made twice each month, on the first and fifteenth, and on festival days, the scope of ritual is a pale imitation of that of late imperial times. It was to the zhengting (middle hall) that male members of the family who were near death would be brought as an expression of articulation

:

Dwellings as Social Templates

within the descent group. Here also, a betrothal would be announced and a new groom and his bride come to make a report to the ancestors and pay solemn obeisance to the groom's parents. Zhu Xi's twelfth-century Family Rituals manual and its many subsequent revisions explicitly spelled out the nature of rites to be conducted in this room, few of which are observed widely today, even though the room remains the spatial focal point of many dwellings (Ebrey 1991a, 1991b).

25

usually placed in front of the altar, differing in quality according to the circumstances of the household (Figures 2.25, 2.26, and 2.27). Lower than the long altar behind them, these include rectangular sidetables [changji -jx JL] and square Eight Immortals tables [baxian zhuo A -fUj i i ] . (The significance of the "Eight Immortals table"

At least one and sometimes two sturdy tables are

Figure 2.25 Even without the ancestral tablets a n d ritual p a r a p h e r n a l i a that b r o u g h t the space to life, this family altar is i m p o s i n g a n d a witness to the wealth a n d standing of the family. Lin Antai dwelling, Taipei, T a i w a n . [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1997.]

Figure 2.26 Although no ancestral tablets line the wall behind the altar or are displayed on it, this location at the back of the central room is the focus of family rituals. A censer in the shape of a longevity c h a r a c t e r a n d a pair of candlesticks are placed on the low square table, while the altar table holds two flower vases. T h e painting b e h i n d is of H e H e , the celcstial twins (see C h a p t e r 9). O n e carries a lotus a n d the other a b o x — b o t h visual a n d aural elements that share the sound he, for " h a r m o n y " a n d "union," a n d indicate a wish for family unity. [Source: Wu Youru 1983 vol. 3, set 10, no. 3. ]

26

Figure 2.27 H e r e the high long-legged table in the rear has lost its function as a ritual altar, holding instead a television set a n d clock. In front of it, in traditional fashion, are two square baxian, or "Eight Imm o r t a l s " tables. T h e s e tables are clearly the focus of family activity. T h e p h o t o g r a p h s of deceased parents are flanked by colorful calendars a n d a picture of S h o u Xing, the stellar god of longevity. T h e h a n g i n g couplets mix the traditional with the c o n t e m p o r a r y : " G r e e n pines a n d white crane enrich the spring sights of the e a r t h " a n d " M a n ' s longevity a n d harvests contribute to the Four M o d e r n i z a t i o n s . " L i n g s h a n curt, Z h o u p u xiang, X i h u qu, H a n g z h o u shi, Z h e j i a n g . [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1987.]

is discussed in C h a p t e r 8.) Whenever there is a m a j o r ritual such as one related to the death or marriage of a family member, the baxian table is a d o r n e d with an embroidered cover. Cubical in overall shape, baxian tables have many m u n d a n e uses that go beyond regular ritual uses such as holding sacrificial offerings of food, incense, and lighted candles. M a n y c o m m o n baxian tables are fitted out with four trestle benches that seat a total of eight people, but it is c o m m o n to use stools and chairs with them as well. In the homes of the wealthy, an elaborate hardwood baxian table is normally flanked by a pair of backed chairs [kaobeiyi flitf Baxian tables often are carried to the middle of the room a n d used by the family for meals, by children to do their schoolwork on, and for playing games. It is only these square tables, and not the high altar table, that are carried outside and used as temporary altars during local festivals (Figure 2.28). Since the centraljian is the room where guests are received, the convention is for other furniture to be rather formally a n d austerely arranged Figure 2.28 O n l y a baxian table, a n d not the high altar table, can be carried outside as a t e m p o r a r y altar. T a o y u a n xian, Taiw a n . [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1966.]

IN Q U E S T O F S P A T I A L H A R M O N Y

Dwellings as Social T e m p l a t e s

along the side walls, but the specifics of each pattern vary from place to place. The wall space behind these tables is usually covered with backdrop hangings of various types—paintings or prints of popular deities, auspicious birthday prints, calligraphic couplets, and, in some areas of the southeast, brilliantly colored paintings on glass (Figures 2.29 and 2.30). Sometimes charms on yellow paper are affixed to unadorned spaces to ward off misfortune. Variations in the array of basic elements and miscellanea are a matter of budget and taste as well as ritual requirements. Because the front doors of Chinese dwellings in rural and urban areas are usually open, domestic

27

1

!

Figure 2.29 T h e walls encircling the family's a n t i q u e ritual furniture a r e h u n g with overlapping scroll prints, all of which were given to the family w h e n it moved into its new house. Aside f r o m a p a i r of brass candlesticks a n d a vase of plastic flowers, the tables only hold an electric fan, clock, a n d r a d i o / t a p e deck. T h e lower baxian table is flanked by a m a t c h i n g pair of o r n a t e chairs. Z h i y a n xiang, Lanxi shi, Zhejiang. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1987.]

Figure 2.30 Although lacking a high altar table, the symmetrical a r r a n g e m e n t of f u r n i t u r e a n d wall hangings in this r o o m is quite traditional. O n each side of the baxian table is a m a t c h i n g chair. T h e table itself holds a clock, two tubular vases, a n d a tea set. Auspicious themes a b o u n d on the hangings on the back a n d side walls. S o u t h e r n suburbs of Beijing. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1991.]

28

altars are visible to passersby. To the world beyond the family, this visible altar publicly attests to its unity even in the face of a family's slow disintegration: " T h e physical presence of the altar also represents the family as a well-knit, integrated unit. A house with two altars contains two families; a household with no altar usually considers itself part of another family, and will return there for important rituals" (Weller 1987, 26). T h r o u g h o u t the mainland, ancestral shrines, tablets, and even serviceable furniture from c o m m o n dwellings, as well as from the larger homes of landlords and the u r b a n bourgeoisie, were destroyed during the L a n d Reform of the early 1950s and again during the period of the Four Cleanups in the 1960s. Few ritual objects of

IN Q U E S T OF S P A T I A L H A R M O N Y

wood or paper survived the vicissitudes of these tumultuous times because they were, of course, vulnerable to fire and weather. Furthermore, most rooms that had once held ritual furniture and objects were transformed to serve more mundane, secular purposes in an effort by Communist authorities to stamp out "superstitious practices." Still, the grandeur of many of these center halls has not diminished completely, even in the absence of the ritual paraphernalia necessary to bring them to life. T h r o u g h o u t much of the mainland today, there is a revival of the domestic cult centered on ancestral worship, but rarely does it attain the intensity either of past practices or of those still being observed in Taiwan and H o n g Kong.

CHAPTER 3

Fengshui: Siting and Mystical Ecology

types—houses,

o f t e n gave u p even their m e a g e r resources to gain the

temples, palaces, even g r a v e s — h a v e traditionally b e e n

benefits that it m i g h t provide. O b s e r v a t i o n s of simple

selected b a s e d o n a n o r g a n i c view of the c o s m o s that

dwellings t h r o u g h o u t C h i n a , in r e m o t e as well as cosmo-

b i n d s individuals, families, a n d society at large to t h e

politan areas, c o n f i r m the fact that countless illiterate

BUILDING SITES f o r s t r u c t u r e s o f a l l

past a n d f u t u r e via t h e m e d i u m of fengshui. Fengshui Jx(,

p e a s a n t s sited their dwellings in b r o a d c o n f o r m i t y with

7JC, literally " w i n d a n d water," continues to be a p o p u l a r

fengshui esoterica as they sought the benefits of its appli-

yet abstruse set of spatial beliefs a n d practices c o n c e r n -

cation. C o m m o n people, in the past a n d even today,

ing t h e fact t h a t h u m a n modifications of l a n d s c a p e s

clearly are n o less c o n c e r n e d t h a n o t h e r s with worldly

d o n o t simply b r i n g a b o u t surface c h a n g e s but create

b e n e f i t s a n d t h e a v o i d a n c e of m i s f o r t u n e . I n d e e d ,

c o n d i t i o n s that influence, a n d even control, the fortunes

"locating a g o o d site is m o r e t h a n a n exercise in c o s m o -

of those w h o o c c u p y t h e sites thus modified. A c c o r d i n g

logical a b s t r a c t i o n a n d the m a n i p u l a t i o n of theoretical

to g e n e r a l fengshui a x i o m s , certain b u i l d i n g locations

constructs; it is t h e successful application of c o s m o l o g y

are m o r e favorable t h a n o t h e r s for a family; these must

to everyday life" (Bennett 1978, 21). C h i n e s e of all eco-

t h e r e f o r e be d e t e r m i n e d in o r d e r for benefits to r e d o u n d

n o m i c levels c o n t i n u e to e m p l o y fengshui in o r d e r to

b o t h to those d i s c e r n i n g t h e m a n d to their descendants.

a c c o m m o d a t e their lives within the totality of time a n d

A n c i c n t classics r e a c h i n g back to the Z h o u period ( 1 1 0 0 -

space, as well as to p u r s u e worldly benefit a n d avoid

770 B.C.), such as the Shying [Book of songs] a n d the Shu-

m i s f o r t u n e . Basic to these beliefs is the conviction t h a t

jing [Book of d o c u m e n t s ] , reveal t h e c o s m o - s y m b o l i c

o n e must n o t wait passively for one's share of g o o d

c o n v e n t i o n s relevant to the siting of i m p e r i a l capitals

f o r t u n e b u t must actively strive to d e t e r m i n e o p t i m a l

a n d palaces. Yet it is t h e a p p l i c a t i o n of fengshui p r a c -

spatial a n d t e m p o r a l relations.

tices by c o m m o n p e o p l e in d e t e r m i n i n g auspicious sites

P o p u l a r notions of fengshui, however fuzzy, a b o u n d

for n e w or r e n o v a t e d houses that reveals most clearly

a n d e n j o y a r e m a r k a b l y e n d u r i n g credibility, p e r h a p s

the deeply rooted nature of this quest for spatial harmony.

d u e to the insistence o n striving to m a i n t a i n equilib-

Fengshui is p r a c t i c e d t h r o u g h o u t C h i n a but h a s flour-

r i u m a n d h a r m o n y in a world of c o n s t a n t flux. T h e

ished especially in t h e s o u t h e r n provinces of J i a n g s u ,

t e r m "fengshui" is a m o d e r n colloquial expression of

Z h e j i a n g , F u j i a n , T a i w a n , G u a n g d o n g , a n d j i a n g x i , as

e l a b o r a t e d g e n e r a l ideas t h a t encapsulates t h e m o r e

well as in H o n g K o n g . T h o s e most able to avail t h e m -

abstruse principles associated with esoteric t e r m s such

selves of the diagnostic potential offengshui must possess

as "kanyu," "dili," "xingfa,""xiangzhai,"and

"qingwu,"used

at least a m o d i c u m of wealth to a f f o r d its a p p l i c a t i o n ,

centuries earlier in classical texts (Shi 1992, 11 ff). Kanyu

yet it is n o t only t h e wealthy w h o p u r s u e it. A l t h o u g h

i g M , " t h e c a n o p y of h e a v e n a n d the chariot of e a r t h , "

the use of fengshui by c o m m o n C h i n e s e p e a s a n t s in the

expresses b r o a d issues of C h i n e s e cosmology that link

p a s t c a n n o t be well d o c u m e n t e d , it is clear t h a t they

heaven a n d e a r t h , while dili % i M , " e a r t h t r u t h " denotes

29

30

the scrutinizing of the surface features of our planet with the intent of correlating them with cosmological elements (today dili is the term used for the discipline of geography). T h e word "geomancy" has often been used to translatefengshui, but many have found this inadequate, suggesting instead " t o p o m a n c y " (Feuchtwang 1974, 2); "astro-ecology," "topographical siting," and "siting" (Bennett 1978, 2; Smith 1991, 131); "mystical ecology" (Knapp 1986, 108-109); and "natural science of the landscape" (Berglund 1990, 240). R a t h e r than any of these terms, however, fengshui will be used here in untranslated form to embrace various meanings relating to purposeful attempts to h a r m o n i z e structures within their immediate physical environments.

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

ecology. T h e typical fengshui practioner in traditional C h i n a a r m e d himself with a geomancer's compass, or luopan, several manuals, and often a copy of the Tying [Book of changes] in order to carry out the arcane probing of a building site (see Figure 3.1). "About all their movements there is an air of classic d e c o r u m , " observed a Westerner at the end of the imperial period, "and it is no wonder, therefore, that the masses regard the geomancers as fountains of wisdom, marvels of learning, capable of fathoming all the mysteries of heaven and earth" (De Groot 1892-1910, 111:1010).

T h e essence of fengshui is a universe animated by the interaction o f y i n [5J] andyang |!R in which an ethereal p r o p e r t y known as qi ("life b r e a t h " or "cosmic energy") gives character and meaning to a place. Places may be spoken of at an elementary level as exemplifying eitheryin oryang characteristics, although sites usually exhibit both traits simultaneously. Tin sites express the female aspect, representing passivity and darkness, the Earth a n d moon, and frequently fall away from the sun to the north or northwest. T h e y are optimal for burial, providing "conductors of a power that originates in nature itself" (Watson 1988, 206). T h e divination of these "yin abodes" [yinzhai ^E], the graves of the dead, in a quest for benefits has always been a primary focus of fengshui (Ahern 1973; Freedman 1966). T h e complementary male or yang characteristic expresses brightness and activity, the Heavens and the sun; yang sites thus serve the living as suitable places for family dwellings. D e t e r m i n i n g the sites for "yang a b o d e s " [yangzhai PR^;], the residences of the living, also in a quest for benefits has similarly been defined in great detail in popular lore and in books. Following the principles of fengshui, dwellings generally face south or southeast throughout China, but proper siting goes well beyond mere considerations of compass direction, or xiang [B], A "wind and water interpreter" [ fengshui xiansheng R Jt^.,fengshuishi Jxl.7JC ft kanyujia t g H ^ , or dili xiansheng itiliM a m o n g others], sometimes called a geomancer in English, provides access to this mystical

Figure 3.1 With an air of cultured d e c o r u m , a "wind a n d water i n t e r p r e t e r " a n d his assistants set out to select a building site. [Source: C h e n g 1992, 5.]

Fengshui: Siting a n d Mystical Ecology

Today, however, the fengshui practioner "usually dresses in plain working clothes and lives in an unimpressive house which does not display his trade. H e has the a p p e a r a n c e of a craftsman . . . although his vocabulary contains a large n u m b e r of terms that c o m m o n e r s do » not u n d e r s t a n d " (Bruun 1996a, 53). T h r o u g h o u t most of C h i n a today, one seeks a geomancer on the basis of recommendations from family and friends. In Taiwan a n d H o n g Kong, geomancers can be identified from listings in the Yellow Pages of telephone directories, a n d some even have web sites on the Internet. A fengshui compass, or luopan 3? ¿ t [also called a luojing 3? , is a saucerlike block of wood that has at its center a magnetized south-pointing compass set within theyin-yang symbol and surrounded, usually, by at least a d o z e n — b u t ranging from three to almost fifty—concentric rings (Figure 3.2). Each of the rings symbolically represents the ordering of Chinese metaphysics via interrelating celestial and terrestrial relationships. T h e circular bands include, a m o n g a host of cosmic variables,

31

the taiji f i fó symbol representing the duality of yin zndyang, the four seasons, the Five Agents (sometimes called Five Phases or Five Elements), the Eight Trigrams, the nine constellations, the ten "heavenly stems," the twelve "earthly branches," the duodenary and sexagenary cycles, and the twenty-eight constellations. By manipulating the cosmologica! correspondences among these ring complexes, especially their numerical and correlative natures, it is believed to be possible to divine the potentialities of building sites and determine their aesthetic logic. To misconstrue any of the relationships a m o n g the configurations is to invite adversity (Feuchtwang 1974, 18-40; Lee Sang H a e 1986, 199-240). Although a congeries of theories, notions, and conventions that have existed in many forms, fengshui by late imperial times was characterized by two basic approaches, one emphasizing cosmic patterns and principles, and the other stressing their manifestations on the surface of the Earth: a Forms and Configurations School [xingski zong Wi zn] that was visually and intu-

Figure 3.2 T w o c o n t e m p o r a r y luopan, or fengshui compasses. O n the left is a s o m e w h a t c r u d e painted block of wood with a printed p a p e r surface showing twenty-one concentric circles. Foshan, G u a n g d o n g 1977. O n the right is a lacquered a n d brass luopan with seventeen concentric circles. X i n z h u , T a i w a n 1993. [ R G K collection.]

32

itively based, a n d a younger Analytical, also called C o m pass, School [liqi zong i f . ^ or fangwei zong Jj { i that d e p e n d e d on complicated calculations. Both schools are associated with traditions a n d practices that originated in s o u t h e r n C h i n a . Emphasis i n j i a n g x i province was on the c h a r a c t e r of terrain, especially the n a t u r e of m o u n t a i n s a n d watercourses, while in Fujian province calculations based on directions that were associated with the rings of the luopan d o m i n a t e d . O v e r time, however, these two distinct a p p r o a c h e s b e c a m e blurred in actual practice, as intuition a n d theory a b o u t celestial a n d terrestrial p h e n o m e n a c o m m i n g l e d not only in Fujian a n d j i a n g x i but also elsewhere in the country.

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

is m o r e t h a n a spot where qi is c o n c e n t r a t e d from above a n d below. It is also a horizontal spatial composition e n c o m p a s s i n g significant surface f e a t u r e s — f e a t u r e s that are m e t a p h o r i c a l expressions in the case of the Forms School a n d / o r geometrical a n d metaphorical relationships in the case of the Analytical School. Xue exist at different scales to meet the needs of the placem e n t of graves, houses, villages, a n d , indeed, whole cities. A xue must be located at the converging focus of a clearly d e m a r c a t e d serpentine chain of hills or m o u n tains a n d within the protective e m b r a c e of an a r m chairlike set of lesser topographical features.

Both schools of fengshui set out to discover xue a n analogous t e r m m e a n i n g "lair," "cave," or " h o l e " a n d used also for critical a c u p u n c t u r e points, where qi (also called shengqi Qi "life f o r c e " or "cosmic energy") concentrates. Because vital qi flows naturally f r o m above a n d below, buildings must be placed at a xue so as not to obstruct the movement of qi. A xue, however,

(1

Kunlun mountain

(2

Grand-parent-mountain

(3

Parent-mountain

(4

Master mountain

(5

Baihu mountain

(6

Qinglong mountain

(7

The village

(8

Water

(9

Shuikou-sha

(10

Anshan

(11

Chaoshan

(12). Luocheng

Figure 3.3 M e t a p h o r i c a l l y described as d r a g o n s , s e r p e n t i n e m o u n t a i n s help define an ideal building site. [Source: Fan Wei 1992, 40.]

Figure 3.4 Correlated with the four directions, the sishen (four spiritual animals) shown on this H a n - p e r i o d engraved tile are oriented so that south is on the u p p e r portion. T h e sequence follows a clockwise m o v e m e n t , beginning on the left with the azure d r a g o n facing east, followed by the vermilion bird south, the white tiger west, a n d the black tortoise n o r t h . [Source: N. Wu 1963, 1.]

Fengshui: Siting a n d Mystical Ecology

Sinuous mountains leading to a xue are metaphorically described as a " d r a g o n " [long whose body is an undulating yet interconnected organism (Figure 3.3). T h e more extensive and complex the dragon's form, the more complete the fengshui associations. Fengshui interpreters attempt to link long from Kunlun M o u n t a i n through "grandparent" and "parent" mountains as they diminish in elevation a n d extent directly to a building site. In addition to the dominating serial long, nearby topographical features called "local eminences" [sha i'J? or ¡'J;], which include elevated ridges and watercourses, such as the shuikou-sha in Figure 3.3, are meticulously analyzed and distinguished. T h e peculiar use of the term "sha," meaning "sand," is believed to derive from the fact that fengshui practitioners transmitted ideas to their students by forming ridges and valleys of sand on the ground to model different paradigmatic configurations (Lee Sang H a e 1986, 182). An ideal building site is one in which "a watercourse embraces (in a smooth curve) a n d a mountain ridge protectively runs (around the site)" that concentrates qi [shuibao shanhui /K ifi Lil M or, similarly, shanhuan shuibao biyou qi |JL| 7jC ifi W ^C] • Such a configuration is sometimes described as a Chinese-style armchair with a high back, left and right arms, and a low, open front. In the vocabulary of fengshui, left, front, right, and back correspond to east, south, west, and north—the Chinese sequence for expressing directional order. Together they mark a microcosmic matrix composed of synonymous compass directions, topographical configurations, and references to Chinese correlative thinking. Each cardinal direction is identified with one of the "four spiritual animals" [si shen 0 also si shou 29 ! £ ] , a s shown in Figure 3.4: To the east is the azure dragon [qinglong jZ], representing the element wood and emblemizing spring, the rising sun, and the birth ofyang. To the south is the vermilion phoenix [zhuque representing the clement fire and indicating summer a n d the period of m a x i m u m yang. To the west is the white tiger [baihu fni], associated with the element metal a n d symbolizing a u t u m n , the harvest, and the birth of yin. C o m pleting the cycle in the north are the black snake and tortoise [xuanwu j ^ ] , representing the element water a n d emblemizing winter and m a x i m u m yin. M a n is to

33

be anchored in the soil or earth, the fifth agent/element, found in the center of the cosmic map. T h e center is considered a fifth "direction," thus resulting in the correlation of five directions with the Five Agents. In addition to four cardinal directions and the center, four corner directions, each intermediate between two cardinal points, are recognized. Together, these nine directions are correlated with the Nine Palaces [jiugong f l J housing "star spirits," whose positions presage auspicious or inauspicious directions at different times and were thus reported in annual almanacs. T h e specific cardinal directions were often less important to the siting of a dwelling than were the expressions of front, back, and sides in terms of orientation toward the front [xiang [n]] a n d the "seating" of the dwelling at its rear [zuo Ml]. Fengshui manuals usually emphasize the shape of hills as a key to siting and include diagrams showing the many patterns of terrain that can be encountered. Figure 3.5

K

j

•f

#

tr

Figure 3.5 In d e t e r m i n i n g a building site, w h e t h e r for a grave or a dwelling, attention is paid to hill shapes in the i m m e d i a t e vicinity insofar as they relate to wuxing (Five Agents) cosmology. From top to b o t t o m on the left side are shapes representing wood, fire, e a r t h , metal, a n d water. [Source: A d a p t e d f r o m Dixue lanyuan 1966, 2, 13.]

34

shows basic hill and water shapes related to the wuxing E f T , or Five Agents (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water) recognition of which is a primary step in choosing an auspicious building site. By association, these are related to the five planets so that "the terrestrial configurations are in agreement with the celestial order" [xingfeng peitian M tt I S • T h e transmutative Five Agents are capable of producing or destroying each other, and thus any association is assumed to have the same capacities. T h a t this ability waxes a n d wanes through a twelve-stage cycle, repeating itself five times, produces an extraordinary n u m b e r of permutations and makes judgments about auspicious building sites even more cryptic than they otherwise are.

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

T h e most prominent and immediate sha morphological markers associated with a building site are those on the left/east (i.e., qinglong, the azure dragon) and right/ west (baihu, the white tiger). Correlated withyang and yin, the male and female aspects, qinglong and baihu are not static but vital, interacting and intertwining as well as concentrating qi within a protected node. Like elevated ridges, hills, and mountains, water is also of great significance in determining an auspicious site. Especially important is a meandering stream in front of a site that is to be occupied. In cases where ridges or watercourses are absent, roads, ponds, or even structures may serve as sha. N a m i n g landmarks in terms of the azure dragon, vermilion bird, white tiger, and black tortoise creates a set of formal and informal reference positions that have clear spatial implications. T h e use of these names in describing ridges, watercourses, ponds, and groves—as well as bridges, gates, streets, pagodas, temples, gardens, and other cultural and natural features—creates a familiar mental m a p with distinctive spatial markers for all who use them. Focusing on affinities as well as oppositions, the intent has always been to locate a "balanced" and rather "symmetrical" site: On a rock hill you must take an earthly site; on an earth hill you must take a rocky site. Where it is confined, take an open place; where it is open, take a confined space. O n a prominence, take the fiat; where it is flat, take the prominent. Where strong comes, take weak; where weak comes, take strong. Where there are many hills, emphasize water; where there is much water, emphasize hills. (Shanghai xingxiang 1957, 63; quoted in A. March 1968, 258)

Figure 3.6 T h e hills to the west of Cangpo village, Gangtou xiang, Yongjia xian, Zhejiang are pointed peaks signifying fire. As such, they are viewed as capable of destroying metal in the destructive cycle of the Five Agents. To counter this inappropriate form, as well as an abundance of fire in other quarters, two large ponds were dug to alleviate the threat. [RGK photograph 1990.]

As characterized in a fengshui manual: "Mountain and water are male and female . . . . If the dragon curls left, the water has to curl right; if the dragon curls right, the water has to curl left; the two embrace each other, and only then does the site coalesce" (Ye 1696, ce 1.12b; quoted in A. M a r c h 1968, 258). Different criteria must be used in analyzing potential building sites on level plains that are open, as compared to those in hilly areas that are contained, but in all cases sites must be relatively "secluded" to ensure that qi is not dispersed.

35

Fengshui: Siting and Mystical Ecology

T h e scripting of any auspicious landscape configuration according tofengshui usually reveals many lacunae and imperfections. Because few building locations are ideal, modifications must be m a d e to improve the spatial patterns. Ponds can be d u g at the front to mitigate shortages of naturally flowing water, or they can be situated so as to d a m p e n the presence of "fire" peaks where they should not be (Figure 3.6). A phalanx of trees can be planted along the west or north side of a dwelling as a shield to compensate for the weakness of a flawed ridge line. Although the shape of a hill can be modified by chiseling (e.g., to alter a "fire"-shaped peak into a more benign one), care must be taken not to excessively damage the natural feature. As will be discussed in C h a p t e r s 5 and 6, small but significant ornamentation can also be strategically placed about the

facade as enhancements that " s u m m o n good fortune a n d keep misfortune at bay" [qu ji bi xiong i | pf jiGf 1*1]. Mingtang ["bright or cosmic courts"], for example, were often constructed at the f r o n t / s o u t h of individual residences or a whole village in southern China, either as an open courtyard, a threshing ground, or a large pond, in order to complete the composition (Figure 3.7). Usually broad and open, mingtang never slope toward a building site. C a r e is always taken in site selection so that no part of a finished building is shaded by hills on the east, south, or west, thus ensuring early access to sunrise and late exposure to sunset. Such a pattern, it is believed, heightens the appearance of yang, the life-giving presence related to the sun. Hills are permitted at the rear, not only because they do not block the sun but because

I H H H H H

Figure 3.7 Many fengshui considerations were made in the formation of Xiqi village, Taishan xian, Guangdong. T h e village is a tight rectangle, oriented toward the south, that is sited snugly within the embrace of a south-facing slope. A threshing ground and pond were constructed at its front as a mingtang (cosmic court). 1989. [Original photo used with the permission of Jonathan Hammond.]

36

IN Q U E S T OF S P A T I A L H A R M O N Y

they help guard the rear flank of any structure. T h e practical benefits of proper siting are succinctly stated in the Yangzhai shishu "t" 4$ [Ten writings onyang dwellings]: "To have the front high a n d the rear low is to be cut off with no family. With the rear high and the front low is to have oxen and horses" ( W a n g j u n r o n g 1882). T h u s practical considerations clearly underlie the ritualized prescriptions of fengshui. A south-facing slope protected on the north by a set of interlocking mountain ranges provides a building site open to the sun throughout the year and protected in winter from the cold winds characteristic of eastern Asia's climate. "Sitting north and facing south" [zuobei chaonan jt was traditionally a fundamental ingredient in properly siting dwellings, a n d it is employed widely throughout C h i n a even today. Such an orientation is a device for obtaining the best advantage of sun and wind. Even without a compass, orientation to the cardinal directions can be d e t e r m i n e d easily, either by marking the shadow of the sun at noon on successive days or by observing the Polar Star. Because the sun is regular in its path across the sky, the axial arrangement of a house controls the degree to which the sun's heat is seasonally captured or evaded. These natural conditions can be fine-tuned by the addition of overhanging eaves that block the high sun's rays in summer yet permit

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)

BODY

those of the low winter sun to enter. Working with nature, practical and aware peasants traditionally were able to avoid marshy areas and build on a well-drained site even though water coursed across it. O n such sites, water was available for cooking, washing, and irrigation, yet surplus water was carried away. Fengshui divination is linked not only to particular characteristics of building sites but also to personal aspects of the owner's birth—namely, the "eight characters" [bazi A i ] relating to the year, month, day, and time thereof, each of which is expressed in a set of paired characters. Each of these pairs consists of one Heavenly Stem and one Earthly Branch; taken together, these are critically important in determining one's fate. This concatenation of temporal and spatial elements, it has always been believed, makes it possible for a person and his family to isolate a n d accrue for themselves a fund of good fortune in a world of limited resources. O n c e a building site has been selected at a b o u n d e d xue node in terms of long and sha, concern turns to the immediate environs of the prospective house, with an eye to features that might influence the lives of those dwelling within. At this scale of an individual dwelling, an especially auspicious traditional pattern has the shape of a h u m a n body with two extended or embracing arms (seen in Figure 3.8)—a shape that includes

yin yang mingtang xue baihu qinglong

HOUSE

Figure 3.8 Fengshui texts sometimes draw an analogy between the composition of the human figure and that of residential compounds. [Fan Wei 1992, 38.1

37

Fengshui: Siting a n d Mystical Ecology

elements analogous to broader fengshui configurations. This spatial plan clearly serves as the template for both siheyuan- and sanheyuan-type courtyard structures, forms widely recognized as epitomizing a harmonious nucleus of habitation.

.imïïiTÎtk,

¿famtk^. y

£ vVjdÏLLLLLLli

ml

lib

te m m mw m

fë #

H'J A

t±l A

ri ml & &m

Km

Figure 3.9 Focusing on w h a t a p p e a r s in front of the m a i n gate, fengshui m a n u a l s use simple d i a g r a m s a n d inscriptions to point to the likelihood of good or b a d fortune. Left: "Paying no attention to this tree in front of the gate, this family will have the vicissitude of sad wailing from a widowed mother. T w o surnames shall dwell t o g e t h e r here through taking in a son-in-law. T h e r e is to be a total wasting away of h a r d - e a r n e d wealth as well as pestilence a n d bedevilmcnt." Right: "If there is a 'jade belt stream' in front of the gate, this will easily give rise to high office, begetting generation after generation of scholars who will bring wealth a n d h o n o r to glorify the house." [ W a n g j u n r o n g 1982.]

The directional orientation and character of the main gate are deemed especially critical because the placement of the gate ultimately determines the alignment of the ridgepole of the roof of the dwelling's main structure. Fengshui manuals and carpenters' handbooks, such as the Lu Ban jing (see Chapter 4), describe the circumstances of a dwelling's immediate environs that presage good or bad fortune for the household and also offer injunctions for carrying out the needed work. Among the portentous natural and man-made landscape features demanding consideration in relation to the main gate are the presence of trees, rocks, ditches, pools, wells, watercourses, roads, and other houses (Figure 3.9). A tree in front of the gate, for example, is said to portend early widowhood, the taking in of a son-inlaw, loss of wealth, pestilence, and general bedevilment, and thus must be avoided. Neither watercourses nor roads should run directly toward a dwelling because this provides a condition for wealth to drain away, through the division of the family fields due to dissension in the household. The manuals also give some attention to the benefits of high-quality carpentry work and include exhortations about good maintenance: Owners are encouraged to see to it that door stiles are plumb, that door leaves are not askew, that walls and tie-beams fit closely, and that walls and doors are mended when necessary. A large class of advice focuses on the curvature of paths and how paths either open a home to misfortune or protect it. Seventy-one illustrated sets of such admonitions in four-line rhymes are in a seventeenth-century edition of the Lu Ban jing, fifty-two portraying unfavorable situations and nineteen showing favorable ones. (Facsimile reproductions of this and several other rare editions of the Lu Banjing, as well as comparative translations, are found in Ruitenbeek 1993.) A similar set of seventy-two appears in a reprint edition of the Huitu Lu Ban jing published in Taiwan, which by 1989 was in its ninth modern printing. Most such advice highlights the need to pay attention to drainage, natural light, ventilation, sanitation, and access, all reasonable ingredients of a pleasant place to live and ones that also contribute to good health.

38

Over the past decade., fengshui "manuals" of all types have been found in the markets throughout rural China, and especially in the south. M a n y are crudely printed a n d bound, clear evidence that they are illegal underground publications that have not been approved by the authorities and that are aimed at "unsophisticated" buyers. Some reproduce illustrations from traditional manuals and handbooks, rendering the classical text in simplified characters and colloquial language. Some are obvious reprintings of Taiwan and H o n g K o n g publications, without p r o p e r attribution; others are coarsely produced, with fictitious publishing pedigrees that easily d u p e the u n w a r y T h r o u g h o u t m a n y of them, commonsense admonitions that have stood the test of time are mixed with contemporary concerns and, sometimes, nonsense. References to venereal diseases, clutter under the bed, the placement of television sets, and excessive decoration are de rigueur in current fengshui booklets.

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

(Figure 3.10). It further warns that the presence of stagnant water in front of a home will lead to the birth of girls rather than boys, a precautionary admonition that resonates powerfully in rural China today (Yu Xing n.d., 37). Another handbook, which claims to have been printed in H e b e i by the official-sounding " C e n t r a l People's Institute" in one place and the "Central Nationalities Institute" in another, is replete with eccentric drawings of houses with their roof beams running north to south, a m o n g other oddities that suggest its shady provenance (Figure 3.11). Such a ridgcline orientation is relatively u n c o m m o n in China; the associated recommendations thus stir a degree of bewilderment in the minds of careful readers, even though the manual maintains that a southern exposure with an east to west ridgepole "is generally not bad." Recommendations about locations to be avoided in the placement of toilets (Figure 3.12) are a m o n g the reasonably practical advice given.

O n e of these recent booklets, which purports to have been published in Beijing and printed in S h a n d o n g (as nominal signs of authenticity) points out, as any traditional manual would, that riches and rank come to those who build with flowing water in front of their dwellings

J t / r ' f t K / i «A.'«*,' Wit k BEftft^%

Figure 3.10 Water circulating a r o u n d a dwelling has several effects. A m o d e r n rendition tells us that riches a n d rank c o m e to those with a flowing stream in front of their dwelling, but that if there is stagnant water, m o r e girls than boys will be b o r n . [Source: Yu X i n g n.d., 37.]

Figure 3.11 C o u n t e r i n g conventional wisdom, this c o n t e m p o r a r y fengshui m a n u a l tells us that a house oriented n o r t h to south will bring good fortune, wealth, a n d riches to its occupants, m a n y grandsons, a n d a h a p p y life. [Source: Li Tianlin 1993, 76.]

/

'1-

i i M

Fengshui: Siting a n d M y s t i c a l E c o l o g y

39

These manuals, purchased in rural markets of southern Jiangxi in 1993, differ little from others that can be found elsewhere in the country. D u r i n g the past decade and a half of economic reforms, "fengshui specialized households," or fengshui zhuanyehu Jxl, 7K Jk (zhuanyehu b e i n g the e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l , sometimes described as "capitalistic," engines of recent rural economic growth), have even emerged in H u n a n and the rural counties of Shanghai, a m o n g other areas, according to authoritative reports (Liu Shaoming 1994,1). Chapter 9 describes a n d evaluates the reemergence of fengshui and other folk practices in recent years and attempts to place them in historical perspective. In the meantime, it is clear thatfengshui continues to be a deeply rooted belief system that guides the siting of dwellings throughout China.

F i g u r e 3.12 A c c o r d i n g to this p r e s c r i p t i o n , if a toilet is l o c a t e d facing n o r t h , m i s f o r t u n e will occur. [Source: Li T i a n l i n 1993, 96.]

CHAPTER 4

House Construction: Craft and Ritual

of a building site had been carefully considered, the actual building tasks themselves traditionally also had to be taken seriously in terms of sequence and timing in order to ensure harmony. House construction was viewed as more than the mere assembling of building materials. Like siting and situating a dwelling, the building process was often highly ritualized, with cosmological and magical intentions that a t t e m p t e d to deal with the possibility of unsettling actions on the part of both carpenters and masons. Carpenters and masons might consult afengshui practitioner, a Lu Ban jing manual, a n d / o r almanacs for the best dates and hours to carry out essential building tasks— felling trees, leveling the building lot, breaking ground, setting the stone base, positioning a carpenter's trestle, shaping the wood, erecting columns and beams, hoisting the ridgepole, determining the slope of the roof, laying a brick wall, tamping an earth wall, tiling the roof, paving the floors, plastering the walls, installing a door, building the kitchen stove, sweeping the floors, digging the well, making a cow shed, and, finally, moving in, a m o n g many other actions. Each was perceived as a critical point that required p r u d e n t attention to heighten h a r m o n y and forestall adversity. O N C E THE MANY CHARACTERISTICS

Beyond the consideration of propitious timing, a battery of offerings, charms, and talismans are employed to s u m m o n good fortune and prevent adversity even while proper dates and hours are being observed. Ritualized practices of this sort, which vary from one place to another in China, were traditionally undergirded by a complex set of beliefs and rituals. T h o u g h not as comm o n and widespread as they once were, such traditional

40

practices can still be glimpsed today. T h e building of a house in traditional China was celebrated with as much family and neighborhood involvement as a marriage, the birth of a child, or a death. This chapter thus highlights some of the protective actions taken during house construction to prepare a dwelling for secure, prosperous, and harmonious occupancy by its owners. T h e precautionary attention paid to ground breaking [dong tu ¿J] i or po tu iK ± ] recognizes that "the physical universe is alive with forces that, on the one side, can be shaped and brought to bear on a dwelling and those who live in it, and, on the other side, can by oversight or mismanagement be made to react disastrously" (Freedman 1969, 7). In the Wenzhou area of Zhejiang, a packet of vermilion and silver spirit money, as well as five peachwood slips, were customarily buried at building sites. Fruit, incense, and candles, accompanied by firecrackers, were offered to appease the local tutelary deity, Tudi G o n g (the Earth God), because the soil was being disturbed, an activity said to set free malevolent forces (Zhejiang minsu xuehui 1986, 183). Chicken blood, believed to repel demons, was then sprinkled on the building site to restrain these dark forces. As seen in Figure 4.1, not only readable characters but also arcane calligraphy believed to possess great power in itself are even today written as charms on slips of peachwood and addressed to the four cardinal directions (the center is often included as the fifth direction) as the ground is broken. Together with the written word for spirit [ling , the attending spiritual energy is thought capable of preventing misfortune. In m a n y areas of southeastern C h i n a , a red p a p e r

H o u s e C o n s t r u c t i o n : C r a f t a n d Ritual

41

streamer with the words "Jiang taigong is here, break the ground, no h a r m will occur" [Jiang taigong zai ci, xinggong dongtu bai wujinji H iz -fit lit, z d ill i , S Jt iH - S ] is sometimes attached to the building site and held in place by large stones. As further evidence in C h a p t e r 5 will show, the protection of the early Zhouperiod minister J i a n g Ziya (Jiang taigong) is invoked at many of the critical stages in house construction. Sometimes portrayed clutching a whip in one hand and a yellow banner in the other, or represented by totemic words that summon up imagery of his valiant deeds, J i a n g taigong is still believed by many to be capable of warding off any and all disasters. Once the ground is broken, attention is paid to leveling the foundation [pingji ^ JE], using either a water level or a plumb line, followed by the pounding of the earth with rammers and, finally, the placement of stone plinths or a boulder foundation [ding sang iH] to support the walls and columns. Using rammers made of wood, stone, or metal, either an individual laborer or a small group of workers pounds the earth until it is sufficiently firm to bear the structural load. As workers lifted and dropped stone rammers in the Beijing area early in this century, they sang well-known as well as improvised "pounding songs" that told moralizing tales or recounted stories from novels and dramas (Eberhard 1970, 147-171). Because the correct siting of a dwelling is made certain by the location of its main gate, special care attends its placement. O n an otherwise barren building site, two uprights of wood or bamboo and one crosspiece are sometimes used to create a temporary door frame, the orientation of which is critical in determining the alignment of the ridgepole. In a ceremony called "installing the door" [an men $ f J ] , at least one strip of red paper with the characters ^ f ] c? [an men daji, "Good luck with the installation of the door"] is attached to the frame before any other columns or beams are raised. Shang Liang: Raising the Ridgepole Special attention has always been given to raising the wooden columns [li zhu tL tt, li mu AZI , or shu zhu t i ] and hoisting the ridgepole [shang Hang h , the most costly component of a house and the critical sup-

Figure 4.1 T h e unleashing of hostile forces w h e n g r o u n d is broken for a dwelling is c o u n t e r e d with c h a r m s written on slips of p e a c h w o o d a n d addressed to the four directions. Ruian xian, Zhejiang. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1988.]

port for the roof. Folklorists have recorded aspects of these rituals in several parts of China over the years, noting that general patterns remain the same even though minor particulars differ from place to place. Special attention is paid to the selection, timing, and setting up of corner and front columns, many of which are marked with auspicious phrases, but the ritual attending them pales in comparison with that associated with the ridgepole (Figure 4.2). Fragments of shang Hang (raising the ridgepole) ritual practices gleaned from the observations of Chinese and western scholars over the past century point to rich festivities with much symbolic meaning. In Guangdong and H o n g Kong, the ridgepole is often painted red; elsewhere it is left a natural color. In eastern Zhejiang, the raising of the ridgepole traditionally coincided with a high tide or full moon, expressing the hope that the household would be similarly full in prosperity and complete in harmony. In Zhejiang's Zhoushan archipelago, it was considered especially fortuitous to hoist a ridgepole when there was light rain because this portended a showering of future riches (Zhejiang minsu

42

I N Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

bagua symbol surrounding it (both described further in C h a p t e r 5) but also myriad auspicious patterns and words (Figure 4.4). O n the islands off the coast of eastern Zhejiang, it is reported that green paper banners are customarily employed (Zhejiang minsu xuehui 1986, 607). T h e following are some of the phrases attached to ridgepoles seen by the author in Zhejiang province in recent years: Good fortune with the raising of the ridgepole. _h A. o

T h e Protector Jiang taigong is here. ^ Jk^^E ¡it T h e male and female phoenix are both here. Jxl M, Let the five good fortunes shine brightly, fg i l )!", Let the purple polar star shine brightly. ^ Wl lisj JiR T h e morning sun rises from the east, jfi 0 ^ f f £ ^ ¡it Taigong is here; no harm will ever occur, gfiEE« s As a precaution against conflagration, care was sometimes taken to avoid writing the four-dot radical indicating "fire" at the base of the character B.H, for "shine," substituting instead only three dots to signify "water." A comprehensive list of appropriate couplets for the raising of a ridgepole, other significant acts in building, and moving into a dwelling is found in Liang and Liang (1993, 421-479).

,ii .¿rtp . : ..

i

_ -' Jk^-^iiT:

; ^MSif ' '

Figure 4.2 A strip of red paper with the auspicious characters AL cf ["Good luck with the setting of the column"] is pasted on both of the columns that frame the center bay of this new dwelling. Here, each column along the facade is set on a low brick wall rather than reaching to the ground. Sometimes a statement is also hung when the door frame is installed, but none was used here. Huairou xian, Beijing. [RGK photograph 1987.]

xuehui 1986, 136, 356, 607). As elsewhere in China, charms, talismans, and single or parallel banners m a d e of red cloth or paper inscribed with propitious sayings are always attached to the ridgepole before lifting it (Figure 4.3). A woodblock print on red p a p e r to be h u n g on a ridgepole in Zhangzhou, Fujian province, includes not only taiji characters at the center and the

Prominently mentioned by observers in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are "raising the ridgepole songs" [shangliang ge _h chanted by the chief carpenter. Sometimes these traditional songs were abbreviated to the simple proclamation "Raise it! G o o d luck and good fortune!" [Shang a! Daji dali! _h W ~fc ei i'j!]- As the ridgepole is hoisted in the Ningbo area of Zhejiang province, the master carpenter offers libations, sprinkling wine from a wine bottle onto the ridgepole while chanting these auspicious and salutary words (Zhejiang minsu xuehui 1986, 136): Pouring wine on the ridgepole to the head of the azure dragon, the sons and grandsons of later generations will reach the top; Pouring wine on the ridgepole to the middle of the azure dragon, the sons and grandsons of later generations will be united; & t e m i ' j * % * , T i t ? # fit &

Figure 4.3 A red cloth with auspicious phrases written on it is wrapped around the ridgepole. Yangmeiwan cun, Yangxi .Mangjiande xian, Zhejiang. [ R G K photograph 1987.]

Figure 4.4 Printed on a sheet of red paper, a laiji diagram with many auspicious symbols is either pasted around or attached to hang from the main roof beam. T h e characters taiji appear at the center and are surrounded by a bagua (Eight Trigrams) symbol, drawings of the eight precious things, and the characters for "supreme prosperity, beneficial divin a t i o n . " 39.5 x 39 cm. Zhangzhou, Fujian. [Source: Wang Shucun 1992, 105.1

•/ V

44

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAI. H A R M O N Y

Pouring wine on the ridgepole to the foot of the azure dragon, the sons and grandsons of later generations will leave their mark; Together pouring around a tray of flowers, they will become the first family of Ningbo. T h e h e a d of the household reciprocates by distributing small packets of money w r a p p e d in red p a p e r to all the w o r k m e n on the project. Moreover, in m a n y areas of southeastern C h i n a it has been customary for friends a n d relatives to help celebrate the auspicious occasion of raising the ridgepole by bringing gifts of steamed buns, pork, a n d live chickens, which are set out on the table as offerings. Because they represent a b u n d a n c e , only half of such gifts are eaten that day, with the r e m a i n d e r being returned to those who brought them to take home. T h e Lu Banjing stipulates a similar but m o r e elaborate set of offerings, including a portrait of the Buddhist master Pu An Hf H? (perhaps the teacher of Lu Ban) sacrificial money in five colors, flowers, meat from three animals, fruit, a n d wine. T h e carpenters a n d masons were expected to add some of their tools—a steelyard, a ten-foot long rule, a line marker, a n d a s q u a r e — t o the table of offerings (Huitu Lu Ban jing 1989, ch. 2, 1). T h r o u g h o u t C h i n a , the raising of the ridgepole always concludes with a feast for the carpenters a n d masons as well as neighbors a n d relatives who helped. For the traditional period, Ruitenbeek (1993, 6 7 - 7 1 ) provides a n additional conflated s u m m a r y of ritual building practices in eastern C h i n a , and C h e n Laisheng (1992, 152-166) offers a general review of ceremonies carried out by ethnic minority groups on the country's p e r i p h e r y (variations not reviewed here). Even though there is little authoritative d o c u m e n t a tion that u n a b r i d g e d shang liang\)r?LCl\ccs are carried out widely in C h i n a today, ongoing fieldwork and anecdotal information affirm the resilience of m a n y associated traditional ritual folk practices, at least on a regional basis. Recent field observations of shang Hang rituals quite similar to those stipulated in the Lu Banjing were m a d e by the folklorist J i a n g Fan in Lijiatai xiang, Kaiy u a n xian a n d other areas of rural Liaoning province

(1994). According to tradition, shang Hang rituals should be c a r r i e d out by the m a s t e r c a r p e n t e r , but J i a n g observes that this has not always been the case in recent years. O n e reason for this is the fact that, in the three decades after 1949, only limited rural construction was carried out. Moreover, there were periodic campaigns to root out superstition, focusing at times on the suppression of ritual specialists. As a result, by the time economic reforms unleashed a building boom in the late 19 7 Os, there were not only insufficient n u m b e r s of experienced craftsmen but even fewer who h a d well-honed ritual skills as well. To compensate for this scarcity, in a case reported by J i a n g , a pair of skilled itinerant c a r p e n t e r / ritual-specialists were c o m m o n l y invited to p e r f o r m shang Hang rituals even though they h a d played n o role in the actual carpentry itself. According to J i a n g , each of the principal building actions preceding the actual raising of the ridgepole is accompanied by the chanting of rhymed "luck-bringing" verses [da xi ge t j U1}^] that praise the quality of the raw materials a n d the skill of the carpenters, a n d that s u m m o n good fortune. O n the chosen day, the rough log that will become the ridgepole is placed on a trestle a n d "worked o n " [shaoshijiagong ffi ' f t jjp X ] , as the progression f r o m its cutting a n d transport to its measuring a n d shaping is described. O n a baxian table in the court-' yard, a container is filled with "the five grains" \wu gu E i f ] , which vary f r o m place to place in t e r m s of specifiic cereal grains, a n d three sticks of incense are inserted into it. O n one side is set a carpenter's square a n d on the other, an ink-line reel. Nearby are steamed buns, food and wine, a wine pot, plates, and chopsticks. O n c e the incense is lit, a set of rhymed verses is chanted to praise Lu Ban, the ingenious master craftsman of the fifth century B.C., the patron of carpenters and masons, and the reputed a u t h o r of the canonical Lu Banjing. T h e middle section of the ridgepole is o r n a m e n t e d with a c o m b i n e d taiji and bagua, sometimes drawn directly on the pole but other times printed or d r a w n on a sheet of p a p e r attached to the it. J i a n g observed a c o m m o n p a i r of couplets t h r o u g h o u t the province: " [ J i a n g ] taigong is h e r e " [taigong zaici £ i±. lit], a n d "All the spirits abdicate in his favor" [zhushen tuiwei f't1 iM {¿].

45

H o u s e C o n s t r u c t i o n : C r a f t a n d Ritual

O l d eight-sided c o p p e r coins [bagua qian A ^ ¡ H ] , preferably of the Q i a n l o n g period in the eighteenth century, J i a n g observed, are sometimes nailed to the ridgepole in n o r t h e r n L i a o n i n g as protective amulets a n d are a c c o m p a n i e d by the c h a n t i n g of: First nail is for gold, the second for silver, T h i r d for the G o d of Wealth not leaving the gate, z f i K i t t e n Fourth for dependability in work, raiTH^A^ Fifth for five sons passing the imperial examinations, E f T E i M Sixth for matters to go smoothly, A * MB Seventh for the seven stars to shine brightly and the family to have a treasure bowl even after arranged marriages for sons and daughters; i s a As I place the bagua nail, high position and great wealth for ten thousand springs. M A i H T T i

e

T T W

In a d d i t i o n to symbolic language, this c h a n t is replete with characters that have auspicious h o m o p h o n o u s relationships, some of which are discussed in later chapters. W i t h these a t t a c h m e n t s complete, wine is p o u r e d f r o m the wine p o t f r o m one e n d of the ridgepole to the o t h e r as a set of rhymes calls for noble positions. O n c e this is c o n c l u d e d , the o w n e r shouts, " T h e auspicious time has come!" [ji chen dao pf ijlS 1 ]!] while the c a r p e n t e r follows with "Raise the ridgepole!" [shang liang ± i £ ! ] . A c c o m p a n i e d by the noise of exploding firecrackers, the ridgepole is slowly raised with ropes until it sits a t o p a set of columns, w h e r e the c a r p e n t e r taps it into a secure position. O t h e r s standing a t o p the roof place strips of auspicious red cloth across the ridgepole. M o n e y w r a p p e d in red p a p e r is t h e n h a n d e d directly to the workers, a l t h o u g h J i a n g reports that traditionally red m o n e y packets were unobtrusively set on the table for t h e m . N e a r the climax of the ritual, the e m b o l d e n e d master c a r p e n t e r t h e n m o u n t s the ridgepole a n d " r u n s along

the b e a m " [pao liang jjfp

. As he checks that it is firmly

seated, he chants: T h e phoenix does not light where there are no treasures. Today it perches at the end of the ridgepole. • HSIiEWPl With one swing of my axe, the house will be solid forever. Ten thousand years solid, ten thousand years prosperous, riches and position, a N u m b e r O n e family. T o complete the ritual f r o m a t o p the ridgepole, the master c a r p e n t e r casts out the five grains a h a n d f u l at a time. T h e s e are hurled t o w a r d the five directions as the c r a f t s m a n alludes to each of the five elements using a m e t e r e d c h a n t of subjugation that will "vanquish the d e m o n s " [da sha fJ . After verbally a n d symbolically neutralizing the d e m o n s , coins a n d steamed b r e a d are also cast f r o m a t o p the ridgepole toward each of the five directions. While throwing coins a n d steamed b u n s [mantou jAcj, the master c a r p e n t e r chants that riches of all types—gold a n d silver, a full treasure house, a n d horses a n d mules—will arrive, in addition to a long life to the age of ninety-nine, for the household h e a d . J i a n g notes the escalating popularity today of shang liang rituals, with their "luck-bringing" songs, as house building increases. Young c a r p e n t e r s , he states, are apprenticing themselves to ritual masters in o r d e r to learn the ceremonies that h o m e o w n e r s are demanding. A c c o r d i n g to news reports a n d field observations, similar efforts are o c c u r r i n g in other areas of the country. In L a n t i a n county, to the east of X i ' a n in S h a a n x i province, the raising of m o d e r n roof trusses a n d their securing with p a i r e d ridgepoles a n d associated purlins is also a c o m m u n i t y event, but with simplified ritual elements c o m p a r e d to those J i a n g observed in Liaoning province (just described). O n the underside of an inferior ridgepole a taiji symbol is attached, a n d characters stating the time a n d date as well as an auspicious phrase are written directly on the wood (Figure 4.5). T h e s e words can be read f r o m below once the pole is set in

46

IN Q U E S T O F SPATIAL. H A R M O N Y

Figure 4.6 (opposite) T h e sturdy b e a m is hoisted from a position on the square ritual baxian table b e n e a t h . T h i s offering table holds a pair of lighted candles that are seated in e m p t y liquor bottles, lighted inccnse, a n d several m e a s u r i n g devices a n d carpenter's tools. Red cloth is d r a p e d over each end of the ridgepole, a n d several yellow protective amulets are also attached. After tribute is m a d e to Lu Ban, two strings of firecrackers are lit with a cigarette as four m e n hoist the ridgepole. Lantian xian, Shaanxi 1991. [Original p h o t o g r a p h used with the permission of J. Azevedo.]

place, becoming in the process a component of interior decorative meaning. A relatively simple "solemn and reverential" ceremony accompanies the hoisting and setting of the main ridgepole above the inferior ones. T h e table of offerings, placed within the walls and beneath the roof trusses, holds only several carpenter's tools, incense, and two candles, and it is set in front of the ridgepole itself, which has a red cloth draped over each of its ends. After tribute is m a d e to Lu Ban, accompanied by the sound of firecrackers, four men hoist the ridgepole atop the wooden framework using ropes (Figure 4.6). As is so often the case throughout C h i n a today, younger villagers a p p e a r to have little understanding of the specific meanings of construction rituals and amulets associated with building, seeing them only as "a generalized emblem of good luck" (Azevedo 1991, 78). C o m p a r e d to the rich Liaoning rituals, those in Shaanxi ring hollow and have a makedo quality to them.

Figure 4.5 P r e p a r e d for raising, this ridgepole includes several amulets, a bagua with the taiji d i a g r a m i n c o r p o r a t e d into it, a n d statements written on the pole itself as well. T h e characters on the u p p e r portion give the time a n d date of the ceremony; those below read, "Setting the posts a n d the ridgepole brings good luck a n d great benefit with everything that one wants." T h e ridgepole is set in placc so that the inscriptions a n d amulets are visible to anyone looking u p toward the unfinished ceiling. L a n tian xian, Shaanxi 1991. [Original p h o t o g r a p h used with the permission of J. Azevedo.]

Annual almanacs that can still be bought in H o n g Kong, Taiwan, and even some places on the mainland specify auspicious dates for raising a ridgepole, as they do for other building tasks, such as breaking ground and installing a door frame or stove. Sometimes, when the date for raising the ridgepole is "inconvenient" for the building contractor but necessary in terms of the household's demands, the ridgepole alone will be lifted and set atop flimsy trestles, accompanied by ritual (Figure 4.7). In a kind of building "from the top down," the dwelling's walls and roof-support will be subsequently raised, allowing removal of the temporary trestles supporting the ridgepole. "Such is the Almanac's power," according to one observer in the New Territories of H o n g Kong, who witnessed genuine ceremonies amid such pseudobuilding (Baker 1979, 89).

Figure 4.7 T o fulfill the r e q u i r e m e n t s of an auspicious date, the ridgepole is temporarily set atop flimsy trestles, a c c o m p a n i e d by the full range of shang liang (raising the ridgepole) rituals. H u n g from the ridgepole are symbols of fertility a n d fecundity, such as a b a m b o o sieve a n d lanterns. N e w Territories, H o n g Kong. [Source: Baker 1979, 91.]

48

T h r o u g h o u t the coastal areas of southern China, from H o n g K o n g and G u a n g d o n g northward to Zhejiang, notions of fertility and prosperity are invoked by suspending a b a m b o o sieve, grains of rice in small sacks, bundles of red chopsticks, or trousers from the ridgepole or from the caves as the dwelling is completed. T h e square openings in a red b a m b o o sieve are said to represent the " m o u t h s " [kou P ] in a large family (Figure 4.8). Hopes for male posterity are invoked via h o m o p h onous associations that sometimes exist only in the local dialects of southeastern China, not in standard Chinese. For example, in H o n g K o n g and adjacent areas of Guangdong, the word for hanging lantern ['¿J] and the word for son [ ] ] have similar sounds and thus associational meanings (Figure 4.9). Lanterns traditionally were h u n g above the wedding bed for the same reason, so that "adding a lantern" had the p u n n e d meaning of "adding a son." A similar play on words accounts for the small silver nails [jinding ff< X ] p o u n d e d into the ridgepole in the Ningbo area of eastern Zhejiang. And the local dialects of the Guangzhou area of Guangdong province a n d other parts of the southeast, the

Figure 4.8 H a n g i n g from the eaves of this new stone dwelling is a reflecting protective mirror attached to several auspicious items, including a pair of chopsticks a n d a sieve. T h e square openings in a red b a m b o o sieve are said to represent the " m o u t h s " in a large family; the h o p e for t h e q u i c k arrival of sons is based on wordplay, because the C h i n e s e w o r d for chopsticks, kuaizi, is h o m o p h o nous with the phrase "sons coming quickly." Y a n d a n g s h a n , Z h e j i a n g . LRGK p h o t o g r a p h 1990.]

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

pronunciation of the word for chopsticks [kuaizi i/i i 1 ] has a p u n n i n g relationship with "sons coming quickly" [kuai zi ' f t ~P], as does the pronunciation of the word for men's trousers ku\ with the auspicious Chinese character g [fu], meaning "riches." "Sometimes the trousers are merely passed around the beam during the ceremony, and I have once seen this happen with the trousers incongruously w r a p p e d a r o u n d a live chicken;" the pronunciation of the word for chicken a n d propitious is the same (Baker 1979, 90). Antispectral charms [fu ffi] on yellow paper pasted to the ridgepole and replaced as necessity demands also continue to be used throughout southern China to counter unfavorable circumstances. With the secure placement of the ridgepole, a building's frame is considered whole, and attention turns to the completion of the roof structure, walls, and nonstructural carpentry. For common dwellings, these tasks are accomplished with relative ease and draw upon the experience of the craftsmen a n d their awareness of certain proscriptions. For the larger structures of those with greater means, specific principles and measure-

House Construction: Craft and Ritual

49

Figure 4.9 H u n g from the ridgepole on the left is a tattered bamboo lantern, the word for which is homophonous with the word for sons in Hong Kong and adjacent areas. An auspicious red cloth with three phrases pasted on it is wrapped around the weighty ridgepole, which is also painted red. Two of the four-character phrases are readable: "A hundred sons, a thousand grandsons," and "Good luck with the raising of the ridgepole." Sheung Wo Hang, New Territories, H o n g Kong. [RGK photograph 1990.]

ments must be followed to fix the slope of a roof and provide the dimensions for shaping door and window frames. Well-known mathematical relationships recorded in various carpenters' historical manuals, discussed by Ruitenbeek (1993, 71-76), facilitated the placement of the underlying roof purlins that made it possible to bring curvature to the slope of a roof. Carpenter's squares and rules, divided into favorable and unfavorable units related to color and directional associations or symbols, were always important tools for those working with wood. The nonstructural carpentry of windows and

doors also depended on footrules and carpenter's squares graduated into favorable and unfavorable measurement intervals relating to wealth, sickness, separation, righteousness, position, calamity, harm, and good luck. Each of eight "inches" marked on traditional rules was glossed with a meaningful poem (Ruitenbeek 1993, 169-173). Where dimensions were longer than the rule, the basic scale was repeated. Special care was always taken in measuring doors, windows, tables, and beds to ensure that the dimensions fell within favorable intervals and thus boded well for a household. Throughout Taiwan, the basic and "fortunate" height, width, and

50

IN Q U E S T OF S P A T I A L H A R M O N Y

Figure 4.10 T h i s m o d e r n metal Lu Ban chi (Lu Ban rule) is retractable a n d shows metric as well as English linear m e a s u r e m e n t s in relation to favorable a n d unfavorable units. Taiwan. [ R G K collection 1988.]

d e p t h dimensions of dwellings were traditionally determ i n e d by a complicated series of steps using the Lu B a n rule in association with Eight T r i g r a m s a n d Five Phases cosmology. (This step-by-step progression is shown in C h i o u a n d K r i s h n a m u r t i 1995, 5 5 6 - 5 6 2 . ) K n o w l e d g e of these associations n o d o u b t helped to u n d e r p i n the m o v e m e n t toward the standardization of building c o m ponents, even though the acts themselves served a ritual f u n c t i o n . T h e taking of m e a s u r e m e n t s allowed carpenters a n d h o m e o w n e r s to "imagine that they have control over a thing which is b e y o n d control—luck, since they can choose right or w r o n g m e a s u r e m e n t s " (Ruitenbeek 1993, 81). Traditional calibrated footrules were usually m a d e of w o o d or metal a n d passed on f r o m m a s t e r to apprentice. Although these are difficult to find today, new metal tape measures with auspicious/ inauspicious intervals m a r k e d for use by do-it-yourself c a r p e n t e r s can be f o u n d in some markets in T a i w a n (Figure 4.10). T h e b u i l d i n g of s u b t e r r a n e a n yaodong (cave-type dwellings) in the loessial uplands of n o r t h e r n C h i n a obviously does not involve the raising of a ridgepole because no w o o d e n f r a m e w o r k is used as structural support. However, the setting of a keystone in the stone arch at the facade of a cliff-face cave dwelling is reminiscent of shang Hang ritual a n d serves a similar p u r p o s e as a high p o i n t in the construction process. In n o r t h e r n S h a a n x i , as elsewhere in the loessial uplands, masons build u p a stone arch that will f r a m e the facade using chiseled-out e a r t h as support. As the keystone [helong shi 1=1" ~)Z is set, the s t o n e m a s o n exclaims, " T h e b r e a c h is closed!" (Figure 4.11). A c c o m p a n i e d by exploding firecrackers, the owner of the cave throws cakes, coins, a n d sewing kits to assembled friends a n d neighbors. N u m e r o u s items are h u n g by the helong shi—a pair of

red chopsticks, a writing brush, an ink slab, an almanac, a n d a red b a g containing the "five grains"—wheat, millet, sorghum, c o r n , a n d kaoliang. Auspicious couplets written on red p a p e r are pasted along the stone arch. It is r e p o r t e d that, in the past, people " p u t the hearts of three small animals (rooster, rabbit, a n d wild pheasant) into a small hole d u g o n the helong shi b e f o r e h a n d as sacrifices to the gods, to get rid of evil spirits a n d keep the people safe" (Qiu 1992, 71). A net effect of attending to cosmo-magical considerations d u r i n g m a n y critical stages in the building a n d furnishing of a house is that the overall process becomes m o r e deliberate a n d pragmatic, despite the fact that it includes m a n y presumably irrational elements. As discussed in a Song-period advice m a n u a l , the building of a house is not only difficult but has the potential of b a n k r u p t i n g even a wealthy family a n d therefore must be carried out with p r u d e n t care. In the twelfth century, Yuan Cai h a d this advice for other educated p r o p e r t y owners (as q u o t e d in Ebrey, 1984, 321): Build houses gradually over a decade or longer. T h a t way, when the house is done the family will still be as rich as before. First consider the foundation; level the high spots and build up the low ones. Perhaps build the walls and dig out the ponds. Do this in stages, planning to take over ten years. Next consider the scale and the quantity of the materials needed, down to the details such as the number of logs for beams and the bamboos for fences. Each year buy some according to the numbers needed and have them hewn right away. Plan to have them all ready in ten odd years. . . . With this method the house can be finished with the family as rich as before." Yuan C a i does not speak of using ritual specialists but cautions against the expansiveness of builders as they

H o u s e C o n s t r u c t i o n : C r a f t a n d Ritual

51

attempt to overbuild beyond the means of the household employing them. T h e cosmological and magical intentions of house building may indeed help a family grapple successfully with one of life's m a j o r decisions a n d thus assist in the quest for domestic harmony.

Figure 4.11 T h e c e r e m o n y associated with setting the keystone in the stone arch facade of a cave dwelling in n o r t h e r n Shaanxi is akin to the raising of a ridgepole elsewhere in C h i n a . [Source: Q i u 1992, 72.]

CHAPTER 5

Building Sorcery and Defensive Measures

THERE WAS AN ALMOST universal belief in traditional

natural death, loss of wealth, family disharmony, noise

China that carpenters and masons possessed not only

at night, quarrels, fires, theft, a lack of male descen-

the necessary mastery of their trades but knowledge

dants leading to the end of a family's line, and many

of spells and formulas that could inflict harm on house-

other forms of torment and adversity. And if crafts-

holds as well. Apprentice carpenters and masons indeed

men consider their treatment by those hiring them to

knew of specific measures that could be exercised to

be exceptionally good, they also have the ability to bring

avenge slights, loss of face, or mistreatment by those

advantage to the family through charms directed at

who employed them to build dwellings. Techniques for

ensuring long life and wealth for the household. In-

cursing dwellings and families were usually transmitted

cluded in the building magic noted in Zhejiang in the

in the oral tradition from master to apprentice as mne-

1930s was the placing of the following objects within a

monic rhymes. Many found their way into illustrated

dwelling's walls:

manuals as well, some of which survive. Figure 5.1

cataloged by C a o Songye in the 1930s (Eberhard 1970,

A bowl and a pair of chopsticks, the tail of a pig, or a cart containing cash that is headed away from the house, to bring poverty to the household. A paper or straw figure of a person to appear at night as a ghost. Wood chips, a shoe, thread with ink, or some blood, to bring general harm. A straw man carrying a match in his hand, to ensure a house fire.

50—65). Well aware of potential threats arising from the

Neutralizing amulets, in contrast, have always been

shows a page from the Lu Banjing that explains twelve of the twenty-seven "secret" beneficial and harmful charms available to craftsmen. (The other fifteen are illustrated in Knapp 1986, 118; Knapp 1989, 147; and Ruitenbeek 1993, 2 9 8 - 3 0 5 . ) Termed "building magic" by Wolfram Eberhard, many forms of this charm-based sorcery used by craftsmen in Zhejiang province were

actions of craftsmen, households often tried to counter building sorcery by using neutralizing amulets in an effort to gain some control over events and lives. Many of these dueling practices can still be observed today.

fixed prominently on and about dwellings, some placed as a dwelling is built but many others added once the house is occupied. This dueling between owners and workers was traditionally a precarious one in which

T h e customary objects employed by carpenters and

each attempted to balance the need to ensure good treat-

masons in building sorcery are usually hidden inside

ment by the other and the need to protect themselves

tamped or brick walls, secreted among the tie and roof

from any possible poor treatment as well. To better

beams, or written in inconspicuous places within a

their working conditions and punish those who did not

dwelling's structure as it is being built. By using charms

treat them respectfully, "carpenters used their proximity

made of wood or straw as well as drawings, craftsmen

to ancestral and geomantic charisma to their own advan-

invoke curses that are expected to lead to illness, un-

tage" (Ruitenbeek 1993, 83). T h a t house-protecting

52

Mill if

t

*Jt * A

JLIL

QD

IP? iilE |f|T

l%\l n *

l ^ T T

IMP

f S ^ i

Figure 5.1 A page f r o m the Lu Banjing illustrates twelve of the c h a r m s that c a r p e n t e r s could use to bring fortune or misfortune to the household of a dwelling they were completing. O f the twelve c h a r m s listed, only three are auspicious. T h e top left c h a r m reads, "A sword with a silk string tied a r o u n d its handle, buried a n y w h e r e a r o u n d the house, will bring a b o u t dissension within the family and lead m a n y m e m bers to h a n g themselves." T h e lower left c h a r m reads, "A m a n c a r r y i n g a spear while riding a horse will ensure that a family m e m b e r will b e c o m e a r e n o w n e d general, but he will be killed in battle." [Source: Huitu Lu Ban jing,juan 4.]

54

amulets can be seen on many rural homes even today is powerful evidence of the continuing belief in a perceived combatative relationship between craftsmen and households. To counter the tricks of carpenters and masons, some households resort to all-purpose as well as specialpurpose amulets to neutralize known and suspected sorcery. As a prescriptive c o u n t c r m e a s u r e , esoteric writing on yellow p a p e r is attached to the ridgepole on the day the house is completed to break any and all spells made during construction (Figure 5.2). In addition,

Figure 5.2 Written in cinnabar, this all-purpose amulet is pasted on the ridgepole by the o w n e r of a new dwelling to c o u n t e r any building magic that m a y have been carried out by c a r p e n t e r s or m a s o n s d u r i n g c o n s t r u c t i o n . A f o r m a l dedication of the dwelling follows. [Source: Huitu LAI Ban jingjuan 4.]

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

proper incantations are proclaimed to make a dwelling "eternally safe." Families consider the precautionary do's and don'ts dictated by tradition to be important both in protecting their homes against misfortune and ensuring an ample supply of worldly benefits. Some of these verbal and written charms are viewed as needing subsequent reinforcement, in the form of additional charms that are periodically attached to a dwelling. O n c e the dwelling is occupied and preemptive measures taken, changing circumstances clearly necessitate continuing attention to the cosmic fund of fortune and misfortune. This ongoing quest for a reasonable share of the limited supply of good fortune has brought to Chinese dwellings an abundance of calligraphic and p i c t o g r a p h i c symbols that elevates building detail beyond mere ornamentation even, where there is no conscious attempt to ward off misfortune or solicit good fortune. W h e t h e r members of the H a n majority or of a national minority, the Chinese people universally o r n a m e n t their dwellings with a remarkably c o m m o n set of symbolic motifs around entryways and windows, on interior lattice panels, and in and about main halls, altar rooms, kitchens, bedrooms, bedsteads, and other furniture. In the late imperial period, "although these symbols were seldom interpreted in precisely the same way by all levels of society, they contributed to a shared sense of culture that transcended class and even the divide between orthodoxy and heterodoxy" (Smith 1990,308). T h e degree to which this common symbolic repository is still drawn upon today throughout the Chinese cultural world is indeed remarkable. T h r o u g h o u t rural China today, one continues to see old as well as new neutralizing measures to shield villagers from possible h a r m . Some are deployed at critical junctions within a village to create a kind of supernatural protective system akin to that provided by more tangible walls. M a n y of these charms, amulets, and structures are clearly defensive, aimed more at repelling the impinging and dangerous outside world than at simply avenging the spiteful actions of carpenters and masons. T e r m e d "dominating," "suppressing," a n d " e x o r c i z i n g " f e a t u r e s [yasheng PE Ij'ji ,yaxie Q£

a n d bixie

S i iff], antagonistic objects are placed where they are expected to reduce the likelihood of personal and family

Building Sorcery a n d Defensive M e a s u r e s

misfortune as well as unwanted intrusions from demons and ghosts. Because settlements take form over a period of time and grow in size only slowly, there were, traditionally, both a continuing need for vigilance against h a r m and an ongoing decision-making process about defending one's own home as well as the homes of neighbors. In many cases, what resulted were concentric layers of protection reaching from the wall and gate of individual dwellings to the immediate environs of the neighborhood and then beyond, to the fringes of the village. T h e probability of new construction impinging on older structures has always been a concern of Chinese households, necessitating constant vigilance about the need to maintain a multilayered spatial system of defensive shields at various locations. New roads and ditches; changes in the placement of a dwelling's gates, corners, and chimneys; the heights of adjacent buildings—all are perceived as dynamic elements affecting security. Lanes and alleys can be especially intrusive and perilous, for they are perceived as dangerous arrows that are pointedly thrust toward vulnerable gates, which thus need shielding.

55

the addition of characters and charms that are carved to enhance their defensive efficacy by multiplying yasheng. As seen in Figure 5.3, these include the bagua, the taiji, and the calligraphic injunction, "Resisting

A m o n g the spatial defensive features that form parts of dwellings are "resisting stones," amulet tablets of many types, and screen walls. Twelve or thirteen types of such yasheng (dominating features) are illustrated in c o m m o n carpenter's manuals, with prescriptions for placing them atop a roof ridge or gable wall, on door panels or above the lintel, at the junction of a corner wall, in the courtyard, or attached to an altar in the main hall. Besides material objects themselves,yasheng ritual plays an important role in guarding villages and families from ghosts of many types, a subject explored well for Taiwan by David K . J o r d a n (1972). Shi gandang, or Resisting Stones "Resisting stones," varying in form and ornamentation, are found throughout China and have been in use since as early as 35 B.C. (Ruitenbeek 1993, 293). At their most basic, they are simple stone shafts with only three Chinese characters, Jft ^ [shi gandang, "this stone dares to resist"], chiseled into a flat face. Many stones, however, are much more elaborate because of

Figure 5.3 T h e three c h a r a c t e r s shigan dang are s u p p l e m e n t e d on this stone p l a q u e with the bagua symbol as well as the characters taiji a n d zhi sha. Penghu, T a i w a n . [Original p h o t o g r a p h used with the permission of A r t h u r Cheng.]

56

demons!" [zhi sha i h ^ ! ] - As all-purpose territorial markers, shi gandang defensive stone stelae are placed at critical positions along the exterior walls of dwellings as well as at various locations throughout a village settlement. Two additional characters, LL| [" Taishan"], are often added atop "shigandang"to form an idiom meaning " T h e stone of Taishan dares to resist e v i l / d a n g e r /

IN Q U E S T OF SPATIAL H A R M O N Y

catastrophe." Carpenter's and generalfengshui manuals generally prescribe the size and form of Taishan "resisting stones" as well as exactly when the stones should be selected and set up (Figure 5.4). By invoking the name of Shandong province's Mount Tai, preeminent among China's Five Sacred Mountains, this five-character phrase is expected to augment the power of an otherwise common stone slab. Mythical and historical associations celebrate Taishan as China's easternmost mountain, the birthplace of all creatures. Taishan stones should be hewn from the rock face of the mountain itself in order to be potent, but many of the reputed Taishan stones found within villages are clearly spurious imitations whose calligraphic assertion alone is believed to be sufficiently powerful to provide adequate defense. In accordance with the Lu Banjing, shi gandang and Taishan shi gandang throughout China are usually found where a lane or road leads directly to a door or some other vulnerable position, such as the corner of a wall (Figure 5.5). Even without the presence of a stone, the phrase "Taishan shi gandang" can be written on a wall as a potent warning amulet (Figure 5.6). Sometimes the character in Taishan is mistakenly rendered as a simpler character with the same sound but a different meaning. In other cases, one or another character is simply left out of the five-character phrase. Throughout China, one sees the four characters ife l_L| liEltt [Taishan zai ci, "Taishan is here"], a conflating of the Taishan amulet with one invoking the presence of Jiang taigong, the early Zhou-period minister Jiang Ziya, whose presence is invoked at many stages of house construction to ward off any and all disasters (Figure 5.7). Some of the protective charms and characters that are suspended from the lintel (see below) may also be added to the face of a Taishan stone to further enhance its reputed resisting power. Even in relatively small areas, such as around Tainan in southern Taiwan, there are substantial variations in the forms, shapes, ornamentation, and legends of "resisting stones" (Yang 1987, 96-111).

Figure 5.4 T h e Lu Banjingdetails the size of a Taishan "resisting s t o n e " (4 chi 8 cun high, 1 chi 2 cun wide, a n d 4 cun thick), its p l a c e m e n t in the g r o u n d , the twelve days after the winter solstice d u r i n g which it is auspicious to carve it, a n d the early m o r n i n g h o u r s in which it should be set up. [Source: Huitu Lu Banjing, juan 4.]

Feng shi ye, or "Master Lion of the Wind" "Resisting stones" carved into three-dimensional lion shapes are found on the wind-swept islands in the straits between Taiwan and Fujian provinces. Called "Master

Figure 5.5 (above) At this critical j u n c ture w h e r e roads intersect at the c o r n e r of a dwelling, a Taishan shigandang carved stone, m o r e elongated than is specified in the Lu Banjing, stands sentrylike duty. Q i a o j i a b a o , Q i x i a n , Shanxi. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1996.]

Figure 5.6 (above, right) Even without a "resisting stone," the written characters Taishan shi gandang (the stone of T a i s h a n dares to resist evil) are seen as a p o t e n t c h a r m . D o u b l e d here a l o n g either side of a d o o r that faces a road, the five-character phrase provides protection. Zhiyan cun, Z h i y a n xia/ig, Lanxi shi, Zhejiang. [ R G K p h o t o g r a p h 1987.]

Figure 5.7 (right) T h e four characters ed., Fengshui lilunyanjiu Jxl./Je J¡E ifc OT S i [ R e s e a r c h of fengshui t h e o r y ] , p p . 1 1 - 2 5 . T i a n j i n : T i a n j i n d a x u e c h u b a n s h e A: ftfti Kg tt. Shyu Yu-chien [ X u Yujian] i & f g j ® 1996 " T a i w a n c h u a n t o n g minju yingjian fengshuijixiong chicunjijinji" Ri" R JT: ^ [Favorable a n d unfavorable fengshui measurem e n t s a n d avoidances related to the building of traditional dwellings in T a i w a n ] . Paper presented at the Seventh National C o n f e r e n c e on Chinese Vernacular Architecture, Shanxi, August 13-19. S m i t h , R i c h a r d J. 1990 " R i t u a l in C h ' i n g C h i n a . " In K w a n g - c h i n g Liu, ed., Orthodoxy in Late Imperial China, pp. 2 8 1 - 3 1 0 . Berkeley: University of California Press. 1991 Fortune-Tellers and Philosophers: Divination in Traditional Chinese Society. Boulder: YVestview Press. 1992 Chinese Almanacs. H o n g K o n g : O x f o r d University Press. 1994 China's Cultural Heritage: The QingDynasty, ¡644-1912. Boulder: Westview Press. S m i t h , R i c h a r d J. a n d D. W. Y. Kwok, eds. 1993 Cosmology, Ontology and Human Efficacy: Essays in Chinese Thought. H o n o l u l u : University of H a w a i ' i Press. Song Kun ^ a n d Yi Lin U t ^ 1992 "Yangzhai xiangfa j i a n x i " |SH £ t l i £ fsf t/f [Brief analysis of yangzhai xiangfa]. In W a n g Q i h e n g l E ^ t , ed., Fengshui lilunyanjiu )x|, /X I® iff ' f i [Research of fengshui theory], pp. 7 0 - 8 8 . T i a n j i n : T i a n j i n d a x u e c h u b a n s h e Ji ft. ± «fi f ± . S o n g Zilong 5 ^ - p f l a n d M a Shiyun M t t t B , eds. 1990 Huizhou zhuandiaoyishu M j ' H W i t O f t i [ T h e art of brick e n g r a v i n g in H u i z h o u ] , Hefei: A n h u i meishu chubanshe

Steinhardt, N a n c y S h a t z m a n 1984 Chinese Traditional Architecture. New York: C h i n a Institute in America. 1990 "East Asia: Architectural History Across W a r Zones a n d Political Boundaries." In Elisabeth Blair M a c D o u g a l l , ed., The Architectural Historian in America. H a n o v e r a n d L o n d o n : National Gallery of Art a n d the University Press of N e w E n g l a n d . T a n a k a T a n EH ^ 1995 " T h e Symbolism of the Roof in C h i n e s e Architecture." In Form and Symbol, pp. 6 3 - 7 4 . H o n g Kong: C h i n e s e University of H o n g Kong, D e p a r t m e n t of Architecture. Tsien Tsuen-hsuin [Qian C u n x u n ] f ä ^ E H l 1985 Science and Civilization in China, Volume 5. Chemistry and Chemical Technology; Part I: Paper and Printing. C a m bridge: C a m b r i d g e University Press. T u n Li-ch'en [Dun Lichen] Sftíjü>[iíi[ 1936 Annual Customs and Festivals in Peking. T r a n s l a t e d and a n n o t a t e d by Derk Bodde. Peiping: H e n r i Vetch. Waley, Arthur, trans. 1937 The Book of Songs. N e w York: Grove Press. Wang Han-ch'ing 1981 "Feng-shui a n d Traditional Chinese Domestic Architecture." M a s t e r of Science thesis, D e p a r t m e n t of Architecture, Cornell University. W a n g j u n r o n g 31 ^ 5R, comp. 1882 Yangzhai shishu |¡0 -íi "I" Í5 [Ten writings on yang dwellings]. Beijing: S h a n c h e n g t a n g 11.| 1 1 $ • W a n g Lidao iE ed. 1987 Jixiang tu'an pj t í 1ÍS [Auspicious patterns]. Beijing: C h a o h u a meishu c h u b a n s h e H tb HfifiW a n g Q i a n I i | a n d Li Fan 1949 Xin jianzhiyishu 0f I ? ® zi [New p a p e r c u t art]. H o n g Kong: H o n g t i a n c h u b a n s h e tl A tb HSii. Wang Qiheng I W , ed. 1992 Fengshui lilunyanjiu Jxl.;Jc J f i£fijf % [Research of fengshui theory], Tianjin: T i a n j i n d a x u e c h u b a n s h e ft WangQijun

i g f i j

1996 "Minsu w e n h u a dui m i n j u xingzhi de zhiyue" ¡^ ÍS X it tt K 1 Ü ft'J to ft'J «1 [Folk cultural factors underlying the typological organization of traditional dwellings]. In H u a n g H a o M ' i n , ed., ^Iiongguo chuantong minju yu wenhua, disiji ^ HI S t K, I t ^ it, IÜ EU [China's traditional vernacular dwellings and culture, volume 4], pp. 6 7 - 7 4 . Beijing: Z h o n g g u o j i a n zhu gongye c h u b a n s h e ^ H j a I Jk Hi Hg f ± . W a n g S h u c u n i fat t í 1985 Minjian nianhua K; I'bJ if- iaj [Folk N e w Year's prints]. Beijing: R e n m i n meishu c h u b a n s h e A K H ^ i4i lig

f±.

180

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1992a Paper Joss: Deity Worship Through Folk Prints + S f t K f ö Ü f i f f i i [Zhongguo gudai minsu banhua], Beijing: N e w World Press #f tj± ^ ,4i liS }±. 1992b Zhongguo jixiang tujicheng + HI ff SI Ä [Collection of C h i n e s e auspicious prints], Shijiazhuang: H e b e i r e n m i n c h u b a n s h e I"J4T A K; Hi HSTT-

W a n g Yude i

J:.

ed.

1992 Gudaifengshui shu zhuping i " f t /K ¡± ff [Annotated c o m m e n t a r y on the art of ancientfengshui]. Beijing: Beijing shifan d a x u e c h u b a n s h e -It JK W ¡Q A ^thiSii. W a n g Wei I a n d C h e n Lifang |5/j; HR 1989 Jiekaifengshui zhi mi tfcg Jf Jxi /J< ¿1 i i | [Revealing the secrets of fengshui], F u z h o u : Fujian kexue jishu c h u banshe m f 4 ¥ t £ * Hi US tt • W a n g Weijen 3 1 | | f Z 1987 " P e n g h u h e y u a n z h u z h a i xingshi ji qi kongjian jiegou z h u a n h u a " Pal l a t f i f i l ' i t [Prototype a n d t r a n s f o r m a t i o n of courtyard houses in Penghu]. Guoli Taiwan daxue jianzhu yu chengxiangyanjiu xuebao BÄS'Ä^^PiSilPIM® W [ B u l l e t i n of architecture a n d city planning, National T a i w a n University] 3 . 1 : 8 7 - 1 1 8 . 1992 "Typological Evolution of J i n m e n ' s H o u s e Form a n d Its Social D o m i n a n c e . " Paper presented at the T h i r d I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e of the International Association for the Study of Traditional Environments, Paris, O c t o b e r 8 - 1 1 . Watson, Rubie S. 1988 " R e m e m b e r i n g the D e a d : Graves a n d Politics in Southeastern C h i n a . " I n J a m e s L. Watson a n d Evelyn S. Rawski, eds., Death Ritual in Late Imperial and Modern China, pp. 2 0 3 - 2 2 7 . Berkeley: University of California Press. Weiler, R o b e r t P. 1987 Unities and Diversities in Chinese Religion. Seattle: U n i versity of Washington Press. Williams, C . A. S. 1932 Outlines of Chinese Symbolism and Art Motifs. S h a n g h a i : Kelly & Walsh. Wilson, B. D. 1983 "Notes on S o m e Chinese Customs in the New Territories." Journalof the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 2 3 : 4 1 - 5 7 . Wolf, A r t h u r P. 1981 " D o m e s t i c O r g a n i z a t i o n . " In Emily M a r t i n A h e r n a n d Hill Gates, eds., The Anthropology of Taiwanese Society, pp. 3 4 1 - 3 6 0 . Stanford, Calif.: S t a n f o r d U n i versity Press. Wu, Nelson [Wu N o s u n ] 1963 Chinese and Indian Architecture: The City of Man, the Mountain of God, and the Realm of the Immortals. N e w York: G e o r g e Braziller.

Wu Q i n g z h o u H f t ' J i l 1993 " X i a n g t i a n , fadi, faren, f a z i r a n — Z h o n g g u o c h u a n tong j i a n z h u yijiang f a h u i " % A , Jt!¿, í £ A , i £ 0 ^ - - ^ H Í ^ f j t ^ Í A s E S ; ® [Heavenly portents, e a r t h l y laws, laws of m e n , a n d n a t u r a l law: T h e a b s t r a c t c o n c e p t u a l i z a t i o n of C h i n e s e t r a d i t i o n a l architecture]. Huazhongjianzhu f f i ^ í £ í j í [ H u a z h o n g architecture] 11.4:71-76. 1994 " Z h o n g g u o minju j i a n z h u yishu de x i a n g z h e n g z h u yi" + [ T h e symbolic m e a n i n g of Chinese v e r n a c u l a r architectural o r n a mentation] . Paper presented at the Fifth National C o n ference on Chinese Vernacular Architecture, Sichuan, M a y 2 6 - J u n e 4. Wu Youru % 1x 1983 Wu Youru huabao x- Í í &P Iffii [ T r e a s u r y of Wu Youru's drawings]. T h r e e volumes. Shanghai: Shanghai guji shudian _h ) § H -"tí . X u Ping 1990 "Feng-shui: A M o d e l for L a n d s c a p e Analysis." D r . D E S dissertation, G r a d u a t e School of Design, H a r v a r d University. X u Yinong tf- "ii 1989-1990 "Zhongguo chuantong fuhe kongjian guannian" T I F F T L ^ S

I'BJ «

± , * , T

[Composite

space concepts in traditional Chinese architecture, p a r t s l, 2, 3], Jianzhushi ^ í f ü J i p [ T h e architect] 3 6 : 6 8 - 8 7 ; 3 8 : 7 1 - 9 5 , 37; 3 9 : 6 7 - 8 2 . Yang R e n j i a n g [ Y a n g j e n - c h i a n g ] H r f Z ' / I 1987 " S h i g a n d a n g c h u t a n — T a i n a n diqu shigandangshili" [A prelimin a r y analysis of shigandang: Examples of shigandang in the T a i n a n region], Tainan wenhua 9i^í~ÍC~íh [Tainan culture] 2 4 : 6 4 - 1 1 3 . Ye Tai M B 1696 Dilidachengi&Q^ffii [Great achievements of dili\. n.p.: S a n d e tang H Í Ü I g ; . Yi D i n g — T , Yu Lu Ü S I ,

a n d H o n

§

Yon

S ^ f f i (pseud.)

1996 ^hongguo gudai fengshui yu jianzhu xuanzhi H Íí ft 1*1 ^ 3É iX i&flt [ G e o m a n c y a n d the selection of architecture placement in ancient C h i n a (sic)]. Shijiaz h u a n g : Hebei kexue jishu c h u b a n s h e ?oJ fif ti YuHongli É T ^ í I 1994 Huizhou minjian diaokeyishu ®')|'| NI® ~zL ^ [ T h e art of H u i z h o u v e r n a c u l a r carving]. Beijing: R e n m i n meishu c h u b a n s h e K K § i ^ ftí US f i . Yu K o n g j i a n ÉTÍLÜ2 1991 " ' F e n g s h u i s h u o ' d e shengtai z h e x u e sixiang ji lixiang j i n g g u a n moshi" Jx(, /Je fft í . ¡S *Ji ''4- S ffi Jk I I ffl t l A [Fengshui model of the thought a n d theory of the philosophy of ecology]. Xitong shengtai [Systematic ecology] 1:6-15.

Bibliography

181

1 9 9 4 " L a n d s c a p e into Places: Feng-shui M o d e l o f Place

ning(?): Guangxi minzu chubanshe P M K ® ttj Dfi

Making and S o m e Cross-cultural Comparisons." Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture 94: History

and

Culture Conference Proceedings, pp. 3 2 0 - 3 4 0 . Yu X i n g

tt.

1988 "Fengjian mixin yu qunzhong w e n h u a " Jif i É Û H a

ff

-M)

n.d. Yinyang zhai dachuan I¡fl o f yinzhai

iz ^

$ r ffl ,4i US ? i (place o f publication

fà.

i t [Feudal superstition and mass culture].

Qunzhong wenhua

[Complete book

a n d y a n g z h a i ] . Beijing: Z h o n g g u o xinwen

c h u b a n s h e cf3

^

Zhou Ying JW|

[Remarks at the convening o f the

ftgK.

Society for the Research in Chinese Architecture].

1 9 9 3 ¿[hongguo fengshui

yingyongxue

[Applied Chinese fengshui].

Zhongguo yingzao

't 1 IH Jxl, 7X lii ffl

Architecture]

guo chubanshe K & ^ III A OS f i . zi [Folklore Society o f

Z h e j i a n g ] , ed.

xueshe huikan ^ H S a s ^ f i Ä T'J

[Bulletin o f the Society for the Research in Chinese

Beijing: R e n m i n Zhong-

Z h e j i a n g minsu xuehui ¡firii. K, i S 1 9 8 6 ^hejiang

[Mass culture] 5 : 3 - 6 .

1930 " Z h o n g g u o yingzao xueshe kaihui y a n c i " c f l H S

and publisher probably fictitious). Zhang Huimin

fi^X^^tffc

Zhu Q i q i a n

Zou Ying

1.1:1-10.

l i j and G a o Yilan ¡Si Ï F zÊ

1994 "Jianzhu xingtai, shehui wenhua xinli, j i a n z h u wenfengsu jianzhi

ifjf

R . f S jn)* ,¡{¡1 [ C o n c i s e

record o f Z h e j i a n g customs). H a n g z h o u : Zhejiang

f l Jtt, and Li Nailong

Wang Zhenju J*]

1 9 9 3 Dili zhengzong

ë

£ i f c ' C / ï ï ï , ' â Î H X it—w

i £ i a if}

+ ffiitli [X m

, fi âfêïïï

' î l [Architectural form, socio-cultural psychology,

renmin chubanshe '/Iff } I K K: ft Kfi f i Z h o u W e n z h e n g Jn]

h u a — J i n zhongnan diqu siheyuanyanjiu"

Z h o n g Lin

central S h a n x i ] . Jianzhushi

trans. i f c i l l H ' ^ [ O r t h o d o x dili).

architectural culture: Research into siheyuan in south

Nan-

59:4-19.

iÉÎftlfiî [ T h e architect]

INDEX

References to illustrations are in boldfacc. Aesthetics, 7 Alcove bed (jiazi c/wang), 16, 17, 18 Amulets. See C h a r m s Ancestral halls a n d offerings, 20-'28, 21-22 Ancestral tablets, 22, 2 3 - 2 5 , 91 Anlitii, 6 0 - 6 1 , 155, 157 Animals, symbolism of. See Bats; Butterflies; C a r p ; Cats; C r a n e ; D e e r ; Ducks; Fish; Geese; Gold Fish; H a r e ; Lion; M a g p i e s ; Roosters; T i g e r ; Tortoise Animals, mythological: symbolism of. See D r a g o n s ; Phoenix; Qilin Auspicious sites, 3, 2 9 - 3 7 Bagua. See Eight T r i g r a m s B a r n h a r t , R i c h a r d , 134 Bats: as symbols of good fortune, 18, 76, 102, 103, 1 0 5 - 1 0 6 , 117, 120, 146 Baxian. See Eight I m m o r t a l s Ba zi. See Eight C h a r a c t e r s Beds, 1 4 - 1 8 . See also Alcove b e d , C a n o p y - t y p e b e d , P l a t f o r m bed, a n d kang Beijing, 2 7 , 4 2 , 6 8 , 74, 9 7 , 100, 103, 1 10, 149 Berganiot: as symbol of longevity a n d good fortune, 120, 124 Berliner, Nancy; 135, 1 3 7 - 1 3 8 , 141, 159 " B o t h C o m p l e t e " (shuang quari), 120, 120, 122, 123, 124 Bray, Francesca, 10, 19, 84 B u d d h a ' s H a n d (foshou), 120, 120, 124 Building m a g i c a n d sorcery, 2, 5 2 - 7 8 Butterflies: as symbols of longevity, 117, 119

183

C a i S h e n . See G o d of Wealth Calligraphy, 2. See also C o u p l e t s C a n o p y - t y p e bed [jiazi chuang), 16, 17, 18 C a o G u o j i u , 151, 154, 155. See also Eight I m m o r t a l s C a o Songye, 52 C a r p : as e m o l u m e n t symbol, 125, 126 Carpenters' handbooks, 37-39, 38 Cats: as longevity symbol, 117, 1 1 7 118 C h a r m s : defensive c h a r m s , 54, 94; neutralizing c h a r m s , 54, 5 8 - 6 5 ; for s u m m o n i n g good fortune, 8 2 - 8 3 ; use by c a r p e n t e r s a n d bricklayers, 5 2 - 7 8 , 5 2 Chavannes, Edouard, 2 China 's Old Dwellings, ix, 2 C h r y s a n t h e m u m : as longevity symbol, 114, 116, 117 Chunlian ( " S p r i n g Couplets"). See C o u plets Classic of C h a n g e s (Tijing), 5 9 Classic of Filial Piety (Xiaojing), 1 3 3 - 1 4 1 Cohen, Myron, 7 C o i n s a n d m o n e y : as symbols, 103, 120, 1 2 1 - 1 2 4 , 125 C o n f u c i a n values, 2, 11, 2 0 - 2 3 , 133 141 C o s m o l o g y a n d cosmological beliefs, 7, 29-32 C o u c h Bed (to), 16, 17 C o u p l e t s (duilian), 2 6 , 50, 6 0 , 91, 9 2 99, 9 2 - 9 6 , 108, 143, 168 C r a n e : as longevity symbol, 114, 1 1 4 115, 144 C u l t u r a l Revolution. See G r e a t Prolet a r i a n C u l t u r a l Revolution Cypress: as longevity symbol, 114, 116

D a o i s m (Taoism), 20, 114, 117, 148 Day, C l a r e n c e B u r t o n , 78, 159 D e e r : as longevity symbol, 114, 1 1 5 116; as e m o l u m e n t symbol, 125, 125, 1 4 3 - 1 4 4 D e m o n - Q u e l l e r . See Z h o n g K u i Didactic themes, 15, 1 3 3 - 1 5 7 Dili. See Fengs/mi Directional orientation, 2 9 - 3 2 , 3 6 - 3 7 D o m e s t i c shrines, 2 2 - 2 3 , 2 4 D o o r Gods. See G a t e G o d s D o u b l e d H a p p i n e s s (shuangxi), 8 2 , 1 1 7 125, 1 1 9 1 2 2 D r a g o n s : as symbols, 6 2 - 6 3 , 102, 103 Ducks: as symbols of c o n j u g a l h a p p i ness, 126, 128 Duilian ("antithetical couplets"). See Couplets E a r t h G o d (Tudigong), 40 E b e r h a r d , W o l f r a m , 40, 52, 1 1 7 Ebrey, Patricia, 14, 22, 25, 50 Eight C h a r a c t e r s (ba z>), 36 Eight I m m o r t a l s (baxian), 2, 1 4 8 - 1 5 7 , 148-157 Eight I m m o r t a l s table (baxian zhuo), 25, 2 5 - 2 7 , 133, 156, 157 Eight T r i g r a m s (bagua), 3 1 , 4 3 , 4 6 , 50, 55, 5 8 - 5 9 , 59, 6 1 - 6 2 , 63, 63, 120, 122, 169 E m o l u m e n t (lu), 1 2 5 - 1 2 9 . See also Lu Xing Ershisi xiao. See T w e n t y - f o u r P a r a g o n s of Filial Piety Evergreen trees: as longevity symbols, 1 14, 1 14, 144 Family organization, dwellings and, 7 - 1 1 Feng shiye. See M a s t e r Lion of the W i n d

184 Fengshui (geomancy): a p p l i c a t i o n of, 2 - 3 , 29-39, 30-33, 3 8 - 3 9 ; contemp o r a r y applications, 3 8 - 3 9 , 165, 1 6 7 - 1 6 8 ; criticism of, 158, 165; schools of, 3 1 - 3 2 Fertility, 48, 1 18. 120, 130 Filial Piety, 2, 1 3 3 - 1 4 1 , 1 3 5 - 1 3 9 Fish: as symbol of a b u n d a n c e , 125, 126-127 Five Agents (Five Phases), 31, 3 3 - 3 4 , 3 4 , 50 Five G o o d Fortunes (wu fu), 8 6 , 106— 107, 1 0 7 - 1 1 0 , 114, 127 Five legions (wuying), 70, 71, 72 Fong, M a r y H., 141 Four directions a n d four spiritual animals, 3 2 - 3 3 , 3 2 F r c e d m a n , M a u r i c e , 11 Frontiers a n d family f o r m a t i o n , 7 Fu. See G o o d f o r t u n e F u j i a n , 9, 13, 15, 29, 32, 4 3 , 56, 5 9 , 7 0 , 7 1 , 7 6 , 9 0 , 9 4 , 9 7 , 9 9 , 100, 104, 110, 121, 142, 144, 166 F u n g u s of Immortality, 114 Fu X i n g (Stellar god of G o o d Fortune), 141, 142, 142, 145, 146. See also Stellar T r i a d Gallin, B e r n a r d , 21 G a t e G o d s (menshen), 7 2 - 7 6 , 7 3 - 7 5 Geese: as symbols of m a r t i a l bliss, 126 G e n d e r e d Space, 1 9 - 2 0 G e o m a n c y . See Fengshui G o d of Wealth (Cai Shen), 96, 9 8 , 129, 147-148, 147-148 G o l d Fish: as symbol of a b u n d a n c e , 125, 1 2 6 - 1 2 7 G o o d Fortune (fu), 2, 6 9 , 8 1 - 1 0 1 , 8 3 , 8 7 , 1 0 2 - 1 3 2 , 1 0 3 - 1 0 9 , 170. See also Fu X i n g G r e a t Proletarian C u l t u r a l Revolution, 1 6 1 - 1 6 5 , 161 G r o u n d b r e a k i n g ritual, 4 0 - 4 1 , 41 G u a n g d o n g , 15, 29, 3 5 , 41, 48, 100, 120, 146 G u a n g x i , 155 H a n g i n g Papers (guajian), 9 9 - 1 0 1 , 9 9 101,146 H a n X i a n g z i , 151, 154, 156. See also Eight I m m o r t a l s H a n Z h o n g l i , 151, 152. See also Eight Immortals H a p p i n e s s . See G o o d Fortune H a r e : as longevity symbol, 114, 116 H a r m o n y at h o m e , 2, 126, 1 2 8 - 1 2 9

INDEX

H e a l t h (kangning), 106. See also Five G o o d Fortunes H e b e i , 15, 38 H e H e (celestial twins), 2 5 , 1 2 8 - 1 2 9 , 129, 130 Helu ("Yellow River C h a r t " ) , 58, 59 Hexes. See C h a r m s H e X i a n ' g u , 1 5 1 - 1 5 2 , 152, 154, 154, 155. See also Eight I m m o r t a l s H o m o p h o n o u s relations, 48, 4 8 , 4 9 , 75, 102, 105, 114, 122, 125, 130 H o n g Kong, 7, 22, 23, 28, 41, 46, 4 7 , 48, 4 9 , 6 4 , 73, 9 0 , 9 5 , 100, 108, 124, 132, 170, 170 H o u s e construction a n d ritual, 7, 2 9 39, 4 0 - 5 1 , 4 6 , 4 7 H o u s e h o l d division (fenjia), 7 H s u , Francis L . K . , 20 Hunan, 20 Jia (home a n d family), 7, 1 1 - 1 3 J i a n g Fan, 44 J i a n g Taigong, 41, 42, 44, 56, 68 J i a n g s u , 29, 92, 100, 115, 141, 143, 144, 146 J i a n g x i , 29, 32, 39, 73, 8 3 , 9 1 , 9 3 , 104, 1 1 2 - 1 1 3 , 119 J o h n s o n , D a v i d , 81, 88, 92 J o r d a n , David K., 24, 55 Kang (brick bed), 15, 16, 134 Kanyu. See Fengshui K i t c h e n , 1 1 - 1 3 , 12 K i t c h e n G o d . See Stove G o d Ladies Classic of Filial Piety (Nil xiaojing), 140 L a n C a i h e , 151, 152, 1 5 3 - 1 5 6 . See also Eight I m m o r t a l s L a n d R e f o r m , 28 Lee C h i e n - l a n g , 14, 15 Li, S a n p a o , 11 L i a n g Sicheng, 2 Liaoning, 4 4 - 4 5 , 120 Li G o n g l i n , 134 Lion, 6 2 Li T i e g u a i , 151, 152, 153. See also Eight I m m o r t a l s Liu D u n z h e n , 2 Longevity (shou), 1 0 7 - 1 1 7 ; r e p r e s e n t e d by symbolic imagery, 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 . See also Five G o o d Fortunes, S h o u Xing, Swastika Lotus: symbolic m e a n i n g of, 125, 126, 128, 1 2 8 - 1 2 9 , 130 Love of V i r t u e (youhaode), 106. See also Five G o o d Fortunes

Lu. See E m o l u m e n t Lu Banjing, 16, 37, 40, 44, 52, 5 3 , 60, 66, 66, 68 L u D o n g b i n , 151, 153, 154, 155. See also Eight I m m o r t a l s Luopan (geomancer's compass), 30, 3 1 - 3 2 Luoshu ("Luo River writing"), 58 Lu X i n g (Stellar G o d of E m o l u m e n t s ) , 141, 142, 144, 145, 148. See also Stellar T r i a d Magpies: as e m b l e m s of m a r i t a l bliss, 118, 119, 121, 126, 127, 130 M a i n G a t e , 41, 8 4 M a i n Halls, 2 1 - 2 2 M a l e Olfsping, 1 2 9 - 1 3 2 M a o Z e d o n g , 82, 8 3 M a s t e r Lion of the W i n d (feng shiye), 56, 58, 5 8 , 70 M e a s u r e m e n t s , favorable a n d u n f a v o r able, 4 9 - 5 0 , 5 0 Melons: as symbols of fecundity, 130 Menlian ("door couplets"). See C o u p l e t s Menshen. See G a t e G o d s M e n ' s space, 11, 1 9 - 2 0 , 19 Mirrors, 60, 6 0 - 6 1 , 143 Misfortune, w a r d i n g oil", 4 0 - 5 1 , 5 2 - 7 8 M o u n t Tai, 5 5 - 5 6 , 5 6 N a r r a t i v e Tales, 1 3 3 - 1 5 7 N a t u r a l D e a t h in O l d Age (kaozhongming), 106. See also Five G o o d Fortunes N e u t r a l i z i n g amulets, 54, 5 8 - 6 5 N e w Year, 8 1 - 8 4 , 8 5 , 88, 90, 9 2 , 9 5 , 96, 98, 169 N e w Year's Pictures (nianhua), 91-101 Nianhua. See N e w Year's Pictures N i n e Palaces, 33 Oliver, Paul, 8 Pan An, 10 Patriarchical system a n d housing, 7 15, 10 Peaches: as longevity symbol, 114, 116, 143 Phoenix: as symbol, 102, 103 Pine T r e e : as longevity symbol, 114, 1 1 4 - 1 1 6 , 117 Plants, as c h a r m s , 76, 78, 79 Plants, symbolism of. See B e r g a m o t ; C h r y s a n t h e m u m ; Cypress; Eve r g r e e n trees; Lotus; Melons; Peaches; Pine Tree; Plum Blossoms; P o m e g r a n a t e s

185

Index Platform Bed (to), 16, 16, 17 Plum Blossoms, 127, 130 P o m e g r a n a t e s : as symbols of fecundity, 118, 120, 130 Po Sung-nien, 81, 88, 92 Posterity. See M a l e Offspring Qilin, 130, 131, 132, 132 Regional differences, 15 Resisting Stones (shigandang), 5 5 - 5 6 , 55-56 Ridgepole, raising a (shang liang), 4 1 47, 4 6 - 4 7 Ritual: family a n d , 11, 2 0 - 2 8 ; house construction a n d , 7, 37, 4 1 - 4 7 , 46-47 Rocks: as longevity symbol, 114 Roof-tile G e n e r a l (Wa Jiangjuri), 6 5 - 6 8 , 66-67 Roosters, 81 Ruitenbeek, Klaas, 7, 37, 44, 49, 50, 52, 55 Ruyi ("whatever o n e wishes") scepter, 129, 141, 145, 1 4 6 - 1 4 7 Screen Walls (yingbi, zhaobi), 6 8 - 7 2 , 6 8 - 6 9 , 72, 111 Shaanxi, 15, 4 5 - 4 6 , 4 6 - 4 7 , 50, 51, 7 0 - 7 1 , 75 S h a n d o n g , 38, 56, 92, 118, 126, 131 Shanxi, 57, 67, 69, 83, 86, 89, 109, 110, 111, 1 1 1 - 1 1 2 , 116, 118,

125, 134, 135, 139 S h a p e of dwellings, 7 Shi gandang. See Resisting Stones S h o u X i n g (Stellar G o d of Longevity), 26, 141, 142, 1 4 2 - 1 4 4 ; See also Stellar Triad

Shuangxi. See D o u b l e d Happiness Sichuan, 75, 82, 89, 92, 96, 1 0 5 - 1 0 6 , 109, 111, 113, 121, 124, 139, 153 Siheyuan (courtyard dwelling), 7, 10, 15, 37 Smith, R i c h a r d J., 20, 160 Society [Institute] for Research in Chinese Architecture, 1 Spirit writing, 40, 54, 9 8 Stellar Triad (xing), 133, 141-146, 1 4 1 145, 149 Stove G o d {Zaojun), 7, 9, 12, 83, 8 5 - 9 0 , 133 "Superstition," 2, 158-159, 171 S u p r e m e Ultimate. See Taiji Swastika: as longevity symbol, 1 1 1 112, 1 1 2 - 1 1 3 , 121 Taiji (Supreme Ultimate), 43, 45, 46, 55, 55, 59, 5 9 Taishan Stones, 56, 57 Taiwan, 7, 9, 14, 15, 15, 1 7 - 1 8 , 21, 22, 2 5 - 2 6 , 28, 29, 49, 50, 55, 58, 5 8 - 5 9 , 62, 70, 76, 84, 95, 99, 100, 101, 109, 140, 146, 157, 170 T i a n j i n , 131 Tiger: as amulet, 6 0 - 6 1 , 6 1 - 6 4 ; as an e m b l e m of G o o d Fortune, 106, 110, 169 Tortoise: as longevity symbol, 1 14 Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Piety (Ershisi xiao), 1 3 4 - 1 4 0 Wa Jiangjun. See Roof-tile G e n e r a l W a n g Weijen, 9 Wealth (fu), 116. See also Five G o o d Fortunes

Wolf, Arthur, 7 W o m e n and household space, 11-13, 1 2 - 1 3 , 14-18, 19-20 Wu, Nelson, 11 14« fu. See Five G o o d Fortunes Wu xing. See Five agents Xiaojing. See Classic of Filial Piety Yijing (Book of Changes), 59, 5 9 Yin a n d y a n g , interaction of, 3 0 - 3 1 , 3 3 36, 60 Yingbi. See Screen Walls Yuan Cai, 50 Zaojun. See Stove G o d Zaowang. See Stove G o d Z h a n g Daoling, 78 Z h a n g Guolao, 151, 154, 156. See also Eight Immortals Zhaobi. See Screen Walls Zhejiang, 12, 19, 21, 24, 27, 29, 34, 40,41,41,43,48, 48,52,57, 5 9 - 6 7 , 64, 72, 7 7 - 7 8 , 85, 8 5 88, 9 3 - 9 5 , 9 8 , 100, 1 0 2 - 1 0 3 , 105, 1 0 7 - 1 0 9 , 1 1 1 - 1 1 2 , 1 1 4 117, 119, 1 2 1 - 1 2 2 , 1 2 6 - 1 3 0 , 143, 144, 147, 148, 150, 152, 1 5 3 - 1 5 7 , 1 6 0 - 1 6 4 , 169 Zhongguoyingzao xueshe. See Society [Institute] for Research in Chinese Architecture Z h o n g K u i , 7 6 - 7 8 , 77, 96, 98, 133 Z h o n g Liquan, 151, 1 5 1 - 1 5 2 . See also Eight Immortals Zhu Q i q i a n , 1 - 2 Z h u Xi, 14, 21, 22, 22, 25 Zuobei chaonan ("sitting north, facing south"), 36

A B O U T THE A U T H O R G. K N A P P is distinguished professor of geography at the State University of New York at New Paltz, where he has taught since 1968. H e is the author or editor of seven books, including China's Traditional Rural RONALD

Architecture: A Cultural Geography of the Common House (1986); China's Vernacular Architecture: House Form and Culture (1989); and Chinese Landscapes: The Village as Place (1992).