| dc.description.abstract | Great Tomb Spirits of Justice Graves, a local belief which was formed in the process of land reclamation by the ancestors coming to Taiwan. It’’s located in Peitsie Plains of the northern Taiwan, and it’’s surrounded by Dahan River, Hsientien River and Chingshuei Pit Mountains. Historically, since the Spanish and Dutch colonial era, there have been establishments of Adminstrative Regions. Approximately, the Han people’’s reclamation started between the late period of Kangxi and the early period of Yongzheng; at the latest,they finished developing in the middle era of Qianlong. Besides, they successively built several water conservancy facilities including Bagu Great Canal, Yongfeng Canal, and Daan Canal. The flowing ranges of these three canals are overlapping the religious sphere of the Great Tomb Spirits of Justice Graves. This reveals its close relationship with the formation of the religious sphere.
For whom were Great Tomb Spirits of Justice Graves built? There are two statements: one is for the refugees or the righteous during Lin Shuangwen Events; the other is for the victims of fighting between Zhangzhou people and Quanzhou people. No matter which is true, they have been supported by the local seniors dictating the history and its relevant historical data. How can the huge religious sphere be organized? How can it become one of the belief centers in Peitsie? This issue is worthy of being researched. Concerning the tombstones being retained till now, they have something to do with Lin Shuangwen Events; furthermore, they are also confirmed by some related historical data. However,through the collective memories of local seniors in groups, it cannot be denied that the statement of fighting between Zhang and Quan has the relationship with Great Tomb Spirits. Therefore, both the facts are sure, but they’’re different in the chronological order. The nature of the belief was thought to be the ghost belief, but because it has been so famous and efficacious that it has become the common belief in Peitsie regions.
The conformation of such a tremendous religious sphere includes the three elements: belief combination, water conservancy combination, and the same ancestral combination. The area range covers Peitsie Thirteen Villages where most Zhangzhou people inhabited during the Ching Dynasty and these places are now most areas for Banqiao, Tucheng,and Zhonghe. All the combinations show the ancestors’’ mutual friendship of taking care of each other in the process of their development and reclamation on land. In addition; the judgment on the evolution of the temple architecture, the development of management organizations,and the effective use and audit of funds reveals the institutionalized operation and the ancestors’’ideas of sustainable management. Of all the annual routine rituals,the most important one is Ghost Festival, not only has been grand since the Japanese colonial era, but also has retained its spirit and technical equipment until today.Thus, it has been selected as the sixth cultural assets of New Taipei City in 2012.
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