<論説>宋元時代の東嶽廟 : 地域社会の中核的信仰として

Abstract

宋代以降さまざまな祠廟信仰が形成され、地域社会の政治的・経済的な中核的施設を担った。限定的な地域信仰から発展した全国的信仰が登場するなか、東嶽廟は早くも宋代には全国的な広がりを見せた。元来東嶽神は国家祭祀である五嶽四手涜の筆頭であり、冥界の支配者として諸神を統括する性格を付与された特殊な信仰であり、その点で国家の権威を代表する信仰であった。その東嶽廟が民間に勧請され、その祭祀も大いに発展したことから言えば、宋代以降の神々の秩序形成が下からの上昇の文脈で論じられるなかでは異例のものである。宋代以降州県城に城隍廟を置くのが通例となると同時期に、江南の市鎮に有力な東嶽廟が出現したのは、経済中心地系統の市鎮における東嶽廟が行致中心地系統の州県における城隍廟に匹敵する求心力を持つ神として期待され、勧請されたからだと思われる。本稿では(一) 信仰圏の拡大、(二) 神の擬人化と祭礼の民間化、(三) 地域社会の祭祀組織の点を中心に宋元時代の中核的信仰としての東嶽廟を考察してみたい。

The role of temple-cults 祠廟 in the local Chinese society has been a continuous point of contention among historians. Some have focused on the fact that during the Song era, many temple-cults, which are still extant, first appeared, and that a hierarchy of gods was created. Other historians have regarded the temple-cults as the core political and economical institution of local society that can provide indispensable knowledge of Chinese society. As regards city-gods 城隍神, which are recognized as the most important of the temple cults, it is noted that the faith in protective deity of the city that begun in the Jiangnan 江南 spread in Song times, gradually gained an official character, and was ultimately established in local jurisdictions where it was protected by officialdom in the early Ming. Prior to this, and on a wider scale, belief in the Eastern Peak God 東嶽廟 had spread to local communities on a national scale. However, the social role of the temples of the Eastern Peak God had seldom been addressed until quite recently. The Eastern Peak God is both an essential element of faith in the Five Peaks 五嶽 and also exercises overwhelming authority as a ruler of the realm of the dead 冥界 according to popular legend. As the faith developed, belief in the Eastern Peak God spread from the pinnacle of national ritual to far reaches of local communities. The above is an example of the formation of a hierarchical faith that spread from the margins and that was officially recognized during the Song era, resulting in a national faith. What is the cause and meaning of this sort of occurrence? This paper considers the phenomenon relating to the belief of the Eastern Peak God in the Song and Yuan eras, focusing on three points: expansion of the sphere of belief, personification or idolization of the deity, and the situation in local regional society. 1) Expansion of the sphere of belief. Relying solely on the historical records of the Song and Yuan eras, one sees that nationwide construction of the temples of the Eastern Peak God occurred on a large scale during the middle of the 11th century. Temples without any direct relationship to Mount Tai 泰山 were constructed in many places under Southern Song Dynasty rule. The Eastern Peak God is the earliest example of a nationwide god in Chinese history, and the process of the spread of the faith was quite exceptional, particularly because there was no specific group supporting it. However, despite the lack of a specific organization, the religion was able to amass support across a wide range of social strata. I have also noted that official local government activity and Taoist religious groups contributed to the expansion of the sphere of belief. 2) Personification of the deity. The Eastern Peak faith was similar to other temple-cults of the day in that the Eastern Peak God held the title of emperor and had a wife. The major difference between the Eastern Peak religion and other faiths was that it was emphasized that the god originated in national ritual and that the Eastern Peak God ruled over the realm of the dead and the other gods of the realm of the dead. Consequently, the Eastern Peak God has been recognized as a divinity who led his family and subordinate gods, and as a god who would occasionally subsume the faiths of locally worshiped gods. Additionally, many people visited his temples annually on March 28, which had come to be considered the birthday of the Eastern Peak God, and this custom also began to be observed nationally after the Southern- Song era. 3) The situation in local regional society. In the Song and Yuan eras, the temples constructed for the Eastern Peak God were often considered those of the supreme local deity in a community, but city- gods gradually grew to threaten the status of the Eastern Peak God. One possible reason for occurrence of the Eastern Peak God is exemplified in the market town of Jiangnan, where belief in a city-god was fostered by the heads of the prefecture arid county after the Song era. The Eastern Peak God was expected to be the main god who controlled the administration of the markets and economic centers, thus opposing the power of the city-god. In other words, the Eastern Peak God was positively selected as the main faith among the core of the market town. On the other hand, in North China, the relationship between temple-cults and the economy remain slight as before. And with the exception of the large temples of the Eastern Peak God on Mount-Tai and in Da-du 大都, it appears that the strict observance of religious rituals to the Eastern Peak God continued unabated.