The Confucianization of Taibo’s beliefs in Jiangnan during the Ming and Qing Dynasties

The Confucianization of Taibo’s beliefs in Jiangnan during the Ming and Qing Dynasties

The Confucianization of beliefs is a special phenomenon worthy of attention in folk beliefs during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It refers to the integration of gods into national sacrifices. After the canon, its image was transformed into a phenomenon that conforms to Confucian moral standards. The sacrifice and worship of Taibo among the people in the south of the Yangtze River was initially the simplest ancestor worship and had nothing to do with Taibo's own virtue. The image of Taibo as a god among the people as a moral model was mainly realized through Confucian transformation in folk beliefs after the Ming Dynasty. Local officials and local scholars were the driving force behind this transformation, and local scholars played a leading role in it.

[Keywords] Taibo; folk beliefs; Confucianization

1. Introduction

In the study of folk beliefs after the Song and Yuan Dynasties, what often appears? There are two concepts: nationalization and Confucianization. "Nationalization" refers to the phenomenon of incorporating local gods who have contributed to the people into sacrificial rituals in an institutionalized manner through state power, and ordering officials to perform sacrifices in temples in prefectures, prefectures and counties across the country. A typical example of the nationalization of gods is the city god. This phenomenon began in the Song Dynasty. The development of the commodity economy in the Song Dynasty made folk beliefs increasingly diversified. In order to strengthen social control, the imperial court adopted the policy of "conferring amounts" and "giving titles" to gods, and incorporated local gods into the national sacrificial code to regulate them. Folk gods. It can be said that "nationalization" was a measure that the Song Dynasty court had to take in response to the diversity of folk beliefs.

?Confucianization? refers to the phenomenon that after the gods are included in the national sacrificial canon, their images are transformed to conform to Confucian moral standards. The typical example of the Confucianization of gods is Guan Yu. When did Confucianization begin? There is currently no conclusion in the academic circles. However, most scholars believe that it is a special phenomenon worthy of attention in folk beliefs during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Studying it will certainly help academic circles deepen their understanding of the social characteristics of the Ming and Qing Dynasties from the perspective of folk beliefs. Although some scholars are not engaged in the study of folk beliefs, they have also drawn the conclusion of Confucianization or Confucianization from research in other fields. For example, Liang Qizi, through research on the history of medical society in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, believed that among the dominant forces in local society, A trend of Confucianism. Because of this, this issue has considerable academic research value and has attracted much attention in recent years.

The current research on the Confucianization of folk beliefs can be summarized into two research ideas: one is to take the prominent events in the process of Confucianization as the research object. By showing the conflicts in the incident, the researcher analyzed the relationship between the court, local elites, and civil society in the process of Confucianization. The second is to take the Confucianization process of a certain deity as the research object. Through the examination of the changes in the images of gods in different periods, the relationship between the Confucianization process and social development is explored. The questions that need to be addressed in the second line of research are when did Confucianization begin, where are its roots, and what social factors promoted Confucianization. To draw conclusions on the above issues, it is far from enough to study only a few cases such as Guan Yu's beliefs. This article attempts to discuss the above issues by taking the Taibo belief in Jiangnan as a case study.

2. The formation and Confucianization of Taibo’s belief

Taibo, the son of King Tai of Zhou and the eldest brother of Ji Li, the father of King Wen of Zhou, his deeds are detailed in "Historical Records?" Wu Taibo Family". "Historical Records" records: King Tai wanted to establish Ji Li and Chang, so Taibo and Zhong Yong went to Jingman. They cut off their tattoos and hair to show that they were not usable, so as to avoid Jili. Taibo went to Jingman and named himself Gou Wu. , Jing Man Yi Zhi, so he returned to the Qianyu family and was established as Taibo Wu. ?

Tai Bo and Zhong Yong are both the founders of the Wu State and the founders of Wu culture. Their worship and worship have a long history in Wu, where witchcraft and witchcraft are prevalent. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Taibo belief was mainly concentrated in Suzhou Prefecture and Wuxi County of Changzhou Prefecture. In other areas of Changzhou Prefecture, the worship of the ancestors of the Wu people was mainly represented by the sacrifice of Taibo's brother Zhongyong and Zhongyong's descendant Ji Zha. . There are two Taibo temples in Suzhou Prefecture: one is inside Lumen in Wu County, which was moved from outside Changmen to inside Changmen during the Wu and Yue Dynasties; the other is in Weiting Town, Yuanhe County. There are three Taibo temples in Changzhou Prefecture, all in Wuxi County: one is located in Huishan, Wuxi, one is located in Louxiang, inside the city, and one is located in Meili Township, Wuxi County.

The Taibo Temple that first appeared in historical data was built in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The Zhide Temple in Suzhou was outside Changmen in Wuxian County. In the second year of Yongxing in the Han Dynasty, the prefect Mi Bao built it in the south of Yantangtun outside Changmen. , the establishment of the temple can be defined as a symbol of the formation of Taibo belief. At that time, the descendants of Taibo could still be tested. Historical materials recorded in detail the specific circumstances of the imperial court's reward to Taibo's 41st grandson Wu Rusheng. From this, it can be speculated that Taibo's belief at this time should be a relatively primitive belief in Wu. Ancestor worship.

In the second year of Chui Gong of the Tang Dynasty (686), Prime Minister Di Renjie banned and destroyed more than 1,700 obscene temples in Jiangnan, leaving only four temples: Xia Yu, Taibo, Ji Zha, and Wu Yuan. In this way, Taibo in Jiangnan Under the protection of state power, faith is further extended and expanded. It is worth noting that Taibo was not included in the list of obscene temples, not because of Taibo's noble virtue of humility. Because at the end of the Tang Dynasty, the imperial court had never established Confucian morality as the mainstream morality, and the image of Taibo as a god in Tang novels was also far from the god Taibo who was devoid of desire and indifferent to fame and wealth and was admired by later Confucians. There is such a record about Taibo's belief in "Ziyiji" written by Li Mei of the Tang Dynasty ("Taiping Guangji" Volume 2806, Liu Jingfu quoted in "Ziyiji"):

Wu Taibo Temple is in the East To the west of Changmen, every spring and autumn, all the shops and shops gather together to drink wine and pray for the king of Sanrang. They offer many pictures of good horses, colorful horses and girls, and there is no empty sun if it is not the moon. At that time, in the spring of Yi Chou, there was a gold bank leader who gathered his disciples and painted a beautiful lady with a stick and a harp to follow her. The appearance was similar to that of the old painter, and the beauty was named Sheng'er.

The image of Taibo as a god in Li Mei’s works is far different from the historical Taibo. This difference has long been noticed by Lu Changyuan, a man of the Tang Dynasty. "Bian Yu Zhi" (Tao Zongyi's "Shuo Yong", Volume 23, "Taibo" quoted from "Bian Yu Zhi") says:

There is Taibo Temple outside Wu Changmen, and people often come and go by boat to compete. Yi, there is a house in the east of Taibo Temple, and there is a statue in it. It is said that when Taibo Sanlang (Taibo's eldest son) was offering sacrifices, the shaman said: "If you are blessed, please buy cattle and build a canopy for Taibo." ?

Lu was quite puzzled by this phenomenon, and said:

It is like Tai Bo who despised the world and gave it to others, but he is suitable for Gou Hao. How can he care about Niu Gai? And what a blessing it is to people! According to the "Biography of Taibo", Taibo had no heirs, so he had younger brothers Zhongyong and Taibo Sanlang. I don't know what happened? (Volume 23, Part 2)

Through the records of Li Mei and Lu Changyuan, it is not difficult to find that the image of Taibo God at this time is very similar to the five-power God of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. He likes good horses and colorful horses. Men and women are completely inconsistent with the later Confucian definition of saints. As for the record of Taibo's son Saburo, it is even more inconsistent with the life of Taibo who had no children and had his younger brother Zhongyong.

From this point of view, Di Renjie’s preservation of Taibo’s belief in Jiangnan was not based on Taibo’s own moral character, but rather on the ancestor worship factor in Taibo’s belief. This is also the main difference between Taibo, Xia Yu, Jizha, and Wu Yuan, the three local temple gods, that are different from other obscene temples. Dayu controlled the water and dredged the rivers in the south of the Yangtze River. Jizha was a descendant of Zhongyong and an ancestor of the Wu people. Wu Yuan built Hejian City and dedicated his life to the hegemony of the Wu state. They all played a decisive role in the history of the development of the south of the Yangtze River. Anyone who has made contributions to the people should be sacrificed. Di Renjie's protection of Taibo's faith is in line with this principle.

During the Yuanqun period of the Northern Song Dynasty (1086-1093), the imperial court granted Taibo Temple to Taibo. This move can be regarded as the beginning of the nationalization of Taibo belief. Before Taibo was granted the temple, Taibo After all, the Bo belief is informal among the people. Although it is not included in the folk temples for obscenity, it does not have the qualifications for official worship. After Taibo's faith was officially recognized, Taibo's image also quietly changed.

In the second year of Longxing (1164), it rained heavily, which harmed the crops and the people did not have shelter. In the spring of the second month of the year when Qiandao was changed to the Yuan Dynasty, the Duke (Shen Du, then the prefect of Pingjiang) ordered him to go to the temple and pray, and the gods responded immediately. At this time of year, there is autumn wheat, so the government invites people to give thanks with vegetables and gifts. The Duke said: "You dare not abolish it, but how can you repay one ten thousandth of it?" ? (Zeng Ji: "Rebuilding the Zhide Temple", Volume 4 of Daoguang's "Meili Zhi")

Through this record of Taibo sacrifice during the Southern Song Dynasty, it is not difficult to find that the image of Taibo God at this time Compared with the Tang Dynasty, obvious changes have taken place.

He no longer needs to spend a lot of money in prison, nor does he need good horses, colorful horses, and women. He works for the welfare of the people, and all he needs is simple vegetarian fruits and vegetables. The image of Confucian sages began to approach. However, the Taibo belief in this period did not have the function of moral education, so it cannot be said that the Taibo belief at this time has become Confucian.

Taibo’s belief in Confucianism became increasingly obvious, and Taibo’s image of a sage as a benevolent king became increasingly clear among the people, probably after the establishment of the Ming Dynasty. In the fifth year of Xuande's reign in the Ming Dynasty (1430), Kuang Zhong, the prefect of Suzhou, rebuilt the Taibo Temple in view of the continued litigation and a sharp increase in criminal cases. On the day the temple was completed, Governor Yingtian Zhou Chen warned the people:

When Fang Taibo fled to Wu, his hair was cut off and he had tattoos, indicating that he could not stand up. However, Jing Manyi returned to more than a thousand families, and then he was entrusted to the people. He wanted to say goodbye to wealth, but wealth followed him. In later generations, Fu Chai was so fierce that he was sure to win. He used military force to defeat the more imprisoned Qi. He wanted to dominate the central territory. He killed his country and killed his wife. He wanted to be rich and powerful but lost his wealth and power. Your people wanted to give way to Tai Bo. Do you want to follow the example of Fu Chai’s controversy? One is a temple that will last for eternity, and the other is a source of ridicule for thousands of years. There must be someone who can tell the difference between gain and loss. (Zhou Chen: "Rebuilding Taibo Temple", Daoguang's "Meili Zhi" Volume 4)

Zhou Chen's words contrasted Taibo's humility with Fucha's greed, and the two were completely different. The comparison of later generations' evaluations was to highlight Taibo's virtue of humility and to educate the people with his virtue. "Rang" is the highest level among the five virtues of gentleness, kindness, respect, frugality and Rang. Here Zhou Chen's praise of Taibo's virtue of "Rang" is more important than Song Dynasty's Shen Du's praise of Taibo's virtue of "thrift". It is in line with Confucius's evaluation of Taibo as the most virtuous person who can give the world three concessions. It can be said that the Confucianization of Taibo's beliefs had already begun in the mid-Ming Dynasty.

Taibo’s status as a Confucian sage became more prominent in the middle and late Ming Dynasty. In the forty-eighth year of Wanli Dynasty (1620), the Guandi Temple was newly built in the Taibo Temple. Taibo and Guan Yu were worshiped together, and Taibo's "concession" and Guan Yu's "loyalty" were simultaneously promoted. This is a manifestation of the further Confucianization of Taibo's belief. . In the third year of the Apocalypse (1623), Gao Panlong and others organized the reconstruction of Taibo's tomb. Gao said in the article "Yin Ji of Taibo's Tombstone":

The most virtuous saint, who gives up the world, will be in the hands of father, son and brother. In between, its civilization is conceivable. Alas! The ancient saints did not care about the relationship between father, son and brothers. People in the world cannot help but feel ashamed to fight over the bean soup between father, son and brothers. If so, can he still be called a scholar of Xi? How can he pass through the ruins of Meili and the foot of Mount Huang? Everyone thinks about it and is ashamed of it, but father, father, son, brother, brother, the civilization of Xi is the best in the world! (Volume 4)

In the article, Gao Panlong praised Taibo as the ancestor of civilization and emphasized that if everyone respects Taibo and takes Taibo as a model, Wuxi can become a civilized country that is best in the world. This is Another example of Taibo's Confucian belief in the late Ming Dynasty.

The Confucian transformation of Taibo in the Qing Dynasty not only continued the policies of the Ming Dynasty, but also relied on the support of the imperial power. In the twenty-fourth year of Kangxi's reign (1685), Tang Bin, the governor of Jiangsu, banned and destroyed Wutong obscene temples on a large scale in the Jiangnan area to promote Taibo belief, and then promoted the reform of social customs in the Jiangnan area. The strong backing of his reform was Emperor Kangxi himself. In the forty-fourth year of Kangxi's reign (1705), the emperor visited Suzhou on a southern tour and wrote the four characters "Zhi De Wu Ming" in the Suzhou Taibo Temple to show his admiration and respect for Taibo. The emperor wrote Confucius's evaluation of Taibo to the royal family. The book was placed in the temple. This move can be regarded as the first step of Taibo's Confucian transformation.

In summary, the Confucian transformation of Taibo began in the Ming Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty. Although its scale and influence are not as extensive as Guandi's beliefs, the Confucianization process has never stopped and is continuing to deepen. . Confucianization is a special phenomenon in the process of changes in gods, and its causes deserve further exploration.

3. The driving force of Confucianization

The direct driving force of Taibo’s Confucianization is local officials and local scholars. They jointly promote Confucianization based on * The common purpose is to use Taibo faith to promote local moral education and reform social customs.

After the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, Confucian Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism has always been the official guiding ideology. Neo-Confucianism advocates that fathers, fathers, sons, brothers, and brothers should strictly abide by their names and hierarchies.

The virtue of humility is the moral basis for upholding the ethical code and resolving social conflicts. Especially in the social environment in the middle and late Ming Dynasty when social customs were declining and disputes continued, humility should be promoted. Taibo is a famous humility king in history. If his virtue of humility can be vigorously promoted among the people with the help of Taibo's belief, it will undoubtedly help the spread of Confucian moral propositions among the people and the improvement of social atmosphere.

The aforementioned warnings given by Zhou Chen to the people when he rebuilt the Taibo Temple highlighted his purpose of promoting local moral education with Taibo beliefs. In the 24th year of Emperor Kangxi's reign (1685), the governor Tang Bin destroyed Wutong and established Taibo, also for the purpose of moral education. Tang Bin was a famous Neo-Confucianist. He admired Taibo precisely because he hoped to use Taibo's frugality to make him Educate the people with virtue and curb the unhealthy and extravagant trends in Jiangnan. Jiangnan in the early Qing Dynasty was undoubtedly the region with the most developed commodity economy in the country. The increase in social wealth fostered social disputes and extravagance. The popular local belief in Wutong God further encouraged the social psychology of extravagant consumption and mutual comparison. . In this social environment, educating the people through folk beliefs that have wide influence and are consistent with Confucian ethics is an effective enlightenment measure that local governments can take. Facts have proved that this measure has indeed had a positive impact on the social atmosphere in some areas to a certain extent. As far as Wuxi is concerned, the areas with the simplest folk customs are also Meili Township and Taibo Township, where Taibo belief is most prosperous. Wuxi local chronicles have this comment on the folk customs of each township, Taibo, Chuiqing, Yanxiang, Meili The folk customs in the four townships are rich, the customs in Jingyun Township are the most complex, and the people in Xin'an and Kaihua Township are the most frivolous? (Volume 30).

In addition to local officials, local scholars were another force that promoted the Confucianization of Taibo's beliefs. These scholars grew up under the influence of Confucian classics and read the Four Books and Five Classics. Many of them regarded educating the people and serving the countryside as their social responsibilities. In the thirteenth year of Hongzhi's reign (1500), the scholar Wang Hao suggested that Jiang Wenkui, the newly appointed magistrate of Wuxi, rebuild the Taibo Temple. After the temple was completed, Jiang asked the king to write an article. At the end of the temple inscription, the king sighed: "Wow, who knows that the world's teachings are dying?" Brothers are fighting for each other, father and son are at odds with each other, I think of the best person, I was born late in the year of Kong, and if I don't get it, I will be called it, but my name will be far away? (Wang Hao: "Inscription on the Stele of Rebuilding the Taibo Temple", see Daoguang's "Meili Zhi" Volume 4) . In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, Wuxi scholars Gu Xiancheng and Gao Panlong also talked about their social propositions in "Rebuilding Taibo's Tombstone" and "Taibo's Tombstone Yin Ji", that is, everyone respects Taibo, takes Taibo as a model, and respects each other. Be humble and live in harmony. This is not only their moral proposition, but also the same moral proposition as that of their contemporary Confucian intellectuals. Until the Qing Dynasty, scholars were still the main initiators of the repair and maintenance of Taibo Temple. For example, in the 30th year of Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty (1765), the renovation of Taibo Temple in Meili, Wuxi was initiated and organized by local student Cai Heling and others.

The mutual cooperation between the government and scholars was often seen in the repair process of Taibo Temple in the past dynasties. Let’s take Taibo Temple and Taibo Tomb in Wuxi as an example. There are three Taibo Temples in Wuxi, namely Meili Temple, Louxiang Temple, and Huishan Zhide Temple. Among them, Meili Temple is the oldest and is said to have been built in the second year of Yongxing in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The Louxiang Temple was built in the 10th year of Hongwu (1377) in the early Ming Dynasty (154), and the Huishan Temple was built in the 30th year of Qianlong (1765) in the Qing Dynasty. Among the three temples, Meili Temple has the greatest influence and has undergone the most renovations. There were seven large-scale renovations from the early Ming Dynasty to the mid-Qing Dynasty.

The Taibo Temple in Meili was first repaired in the 13th year of Hongzhi in the Ming Dynasty (1500). Wang Hao, the proposer of the repair, recorded the entire repair process in detail: In the 11th year of Hongzhi (1498), Jiang Wenkui of Nanchang came to know Wuxi, Yu said: There is a temple of a saint in the city, but it is in ruins, which is a shame. ?Jiang said: ?Promise, as soon as you get off the car, you will discuss it again, and donate your salary to support the people. ?So the rich lose their wealth, and the strong work hard, and they will grow year after year? (Wang Hao: "Inscription on the Stele of Rebuilding Taibo Temple"). The people specifically responsible for the repair project were the brothers Cai Fu and Cai Ji, who were both local scholars. They took charge of the project and raised 1,500 taels of silver from the wealthy people in Li Zhong for the renovation. Cai Fu and Hua Yizheng each allocated five acres of land as the temple base. In addition to the original three acres and five cents of the temple base land, the total temple base land is 13 acres. After the renovation was completed, based on the suggestion of elder Hua Song and others, Taoist Xu Yuanshan (a disciple of Hua Yongming), who became a monk in Danyang Dongyue Temple, was invited to live here to offer incense. Since then, Taoist priests have been in charge of the daily affairs of Meili Taibo Temple.

In order to maintain the basic life of the Taoist priests and the daily expenses of the temple, Cai Fu's brother Cai Ji donated 23 acres of farmland to support the Taoist priests (also known as the incense field), and Qian Rong donated 10 acres of land near the temple to support the Taoist priests. , Zou Xianzhi ordered his son to donate ten acres of land to support the family (Qian Rong: "Taibo Temple Support Field", see Daoguang's "Meili Zhi" Volume 2 Appendix).

After carefully sorting out the entire renovation process, we can find that this large-scale renovation, from the proposal to the organization of the project, the writing of the temple monument, to the later donation of the temple's sacrificial field and the construction of the temple Five scholars including Wang Hao, Cai Fu, Cai Ji, Hua Yizheng and Qian Rong participated in its maintenance.

Scholars were not only responsible for the repair work of Taibo Temple, but also used their reputation to fight for and maintain political and economic privileges for Taibo Temple. Since the Meili Taibo Temple was rebuilt in the 13th year of Hongzhi (1500), the temple sacrificial fields (including the temple base fields and incense fields) have always enjoyed the privilege of being exempt from paying taxes. After the thirty-seventh year of Emperor Kangxi's reign (1698), Wuxi Magistrate Li Jishan retaliated against the sacrificial fields for promotion, and the sacrificial fields were forced to pay summer taxes and autumn grain. As a result, the temple's economic income dropped sharply, and it was even unable to maintain daily expenses. . In order to solve the dilemma faced by Taibo Temple, in the fifty-seventh year of Kangxi (1718), Zhu Xianzhi, a tribute supervisor, invited Cai Heling and other nine students to present the matter to the Fuyuan, requesting that the Taibo Temple's sacrificial fields be exempted from taxes and grains, and Fuyuan After review and verification, the new county magistrate Zhang Yi was ordered to support the old tax-free grain. Since then, the tax-exemption rights of Taibo Temple's sacrificial fields have never been deprived (Zhang Yi: "Re-exemption of Grain Stele", see the second appendix of Daoguang's "Meili Zhi").

The novelist Wu Jingzi of the early Qing Dynasty once described such a scene in "The Scholars": the protagonist Du Shaoqing invited a number of local celebrities to rebuild the Pantheon in Nanjing to worship Taibo and other 42 Confucian sages (No. 37 chapters). This description is by no means groundless and unfounded. As a satirical novel, "The Scholars" should have a certain basis in reality. The protagonist in the article is a scholar who is well-read in Confucian classics. It can be said that scholars are essentially the leading force in promoting the Confucianization of Taibo's beliefs.

IV. Social reasons for the success of the Confucianization of Taibo’s beliefs

The Confucianization of Taibo’s beliefs, jointly promoted by local officials and local scholars, reached its climax in the Qing Dynasty. . Among the people, Tai Bo's image as a Confucian sage has long been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Confucianization began in the Ming Dynasty and flourished in the Qing Dynasty, and there are many reasons for its success. Just as academic circles analyzed the reasons for the success of Tang Bin's ban on the destruction of the Wutong Prostitution Temple, the strong support of the imperial power of the Qing Dynasty was one of the important reasons for the success of Confucianization. In addition, the author believes that there are two other reasons worthy of analysis and discussion: first, Confucianization integrates folk Taoist cultural traditions; second, Confucianization combines local concepts. Now they are discussed separately:

1. The integration of Confucianism and Taoist cultural traditions

When talking about folk beliefs, we must talk about the impact of Taoist cultural traditions on folk beliefs. Chinese Taoism is a religion that constantly creates ghosts and gods and constantly renews itself from within, while Confucianism has always advocated "respect ghosts and gods and keep away from them." So, will the Confucian transformation of Taibo, while emphasizing Taibo as a moral model, weaken the divinity of the gods themselves? The author believes that because Confucianization integrates the local Taoist cultural tradition, the Confucian transformation does not weaken the divine responsiveness of the gods themselves. Regarding the integration, there are two examples: First, Taibo’s birthday is on the same day as the Taoist Jade Emperor’s birthday, both scheduled on the ninth day of the first lunar month (Volume 1). As we all know, it has long been impossible to verify when Taibo was born. This is one example of integration; secondly, the Taoist priest served as the abbot of Taibo Temple from the Hongzhi period of the Ming Dynasty until the Republic of China. These Taoist priests are not only responsible for the daily sacrificial activities of the temple, but also have infinite magic power to catch ghosts. As early as the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, the Taoist priests of Meritaibo Temple were famous for their ability to catch ghosts. The behavior of Taoist priests hunting ghosts is obviously a violation of the Confucian principle of "respecting ghosts and gods and keeping them at a distance", but it has continued for hundreds of years in the Taibo Temple in Meili, which reflects the difference between Confucian culture and Taoist culture in folk beliefs. Integrating each other, it can even be said that Confucianism and Taoism made compromises and concessions on the issue of catching ghosts.

The phenomenon of mutual absorption and integration of Confucian culture and Taoist culture in the process of Confucianization of gods can also be supported by case studies of folk beliefs in other regions.

The author believes that the distant ancestor worship is the link between Confucianism and Taoism in Taibo's belief. The Wu people's reverence for their ancestors made them not only willing to give Taibo powerful divine power, but also doubly praise his noble morality.

2. Combination of Confucianism and local concepts

The Ming and Qing Dynasties were a period of rapid development of Wuxi’s commodity economy. By the end of the Ming Dynasty, Wuxi’s rice market had already become famous far and wide. During the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, Wuxi was divided into two counties: Wuxi and Jingui counties, which reflected the economic development and population increase in the Wuxi region. Economic development has enhanced Wuxi people's hometown pride. At this time, Wuxi was only a county-level administrative district within the jurisdiction of Changzhou Prefecture in terms of its administrative level. Wuxi people were eager to increase the visibility and influence of their hometown. Meili, Wuxi is the old capital of Wu State and the earliest place where Taibo settled. Improving the cultural status of Taibo Temple in Meili and Taibo Tomb in Hongshan will not only help to improve the cultural status of Wuxi, but also satisfy Wuxi’s needs to a certain extent. A person’s sense of hometown glory. Therefore, this idea was mentioned many times in the writings of local scholars.

As early as the Wanli period, Gu Xiancheng emphasized that Tai Bo was worshiped in Wu Yilong, and Xi was more important. Gao Panlong, who was slightly later than Gu Xiancheng, explained Gu's proposition more specifically:

"It is the sage of supreme virtue who allows the world to escape, not to the famous mountains and rivers, not to Changlin and Chun" Valley, and to Jing. It is not like Jing Ye, not like the Three Rivers and Five Lakes, not like the deep rocks and ravines, but like the vast flat ruins of Wuxi. Is it for no reason? What's more, we are in Pingxu and the tomb is in Zishan. They are only a few miles away from each other. If they choose to be here, how can it be without reason? People of tin can think about it. Civilization is not the work of words and expressions. (Volume 4)

Gao Panlong fled from Taibo and settled in Wuxi. The foundation of Wuxi as a country of civilization and etiquette is the deep historical relationship between this place and Taibo. Gu and Gao cleverly combined the Confucianization of Taibo's beliefs with the construction of local culture, so that the Confucianization transformation successfully relied on the cohesion of local concepts in regional society.

Until the Qing Dynasty, Wuxi people were still striving for a higher cultural status for Taibo Temple and Taibo Tomb in Wuxi. "Meili Zhi" published in the Daoguang period records the inscription of Emperor Kangxi's inscription to Taibo Temple in Suzhou: "The Holy Emperor visited Suzhou on his southern tour, and the imperial letter "Zhi De Wu Ming" was engraved with four characters in the Taibo Temple in Suzhou. Since Taibo's old capital is in Xi, the temple should also be dominated by people from Xi. The compiler of local chronicles believes that the status of Taibo Temple in Wuxi should be higher than that of Taibo Temple in Suzhou, which is consistent with Gu Xiancheng's opinion that Taibo was enshrined in Wu Yilong, and that Xi was the most important.

The combination of Confucianism and local concepts is also reflected in the fact that Confucianism did not impact the image of Taibo as a social god among the people. Until the end of the Qing Dynasty, an ancient Wushe was still preserved in Taibo Temple in Meili. temple. The Taibo Temple Fair held on the ninth day of the first lunar month every year is the beginning of the rural temple fair in Wuxi. It is also the largest agricultural production tool exchange meeting in rural Wuxi. In Weiting Town, Suzhou, Taibo has always been the social god of Weiting Town, and is commonly known as "Three Rang King" among the people. The local custom of letting the king pay his salary continued until the end of the Qing Dynasty (Volume 3).

5. Conclusion

Folk beliefs belong to the category of human consciousness. It is the refraction and reflection of consciousness on the real world. Just as each historical period has its own characteristics, folk beliefs also show different characteristics in different development periods. "Confucianization" is a special phenomenon in the changes in folk beliefs during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

?

The Confucianization of Taibo’s faith began in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and its social root was the change in social atmosphere brought about by the development of the commodity economy. In a social environment where luxury, comparison, and litigation are on the decline, out of the need to reform social trends, local officials and local scholars cooperate with each other and jointly promote the development of Taibo belief. Confucianization. They tried to use the widespread influence of Taibo's faith among the people to promote Taibo's virtue of humility, so as to eliminate unhealthy habits such as luxury and litigation brought about by comparison and selfishness. In this process, local scholars played a leading role. They were not only responsible for the repair of temples and tombs, but also paid attention to the maintenance and management of temples and tombs.

The reason why Taibo's Confucianization of belief was successful was that it not only relied on the strong imperial power, but also relied on the widespread influence of Taoist cultural traditions and the cohesion of local concepts in regional society.