百年信俗年年順風──後龍水尾子武德宮送順風探述

A Century of Tradition, with Favorable Winds Each Year--An Exploration of the Song Shun Feng by the Wude Temple in Shueiweizi, Houlung

隨著2020年新冠疫情的爆發，社會對於瘟疫流佈與感染的恐懼感增加，開始注意到了後疫情時代文化資產的發展，亦關注在自有的傳統文化脈絡中，對於瘟疫的態度與處理方式。
提及送瘟多數都想到東港盛大的迎王祭典，或是密集於中南部地區大大小小關於代天巡狩信仰的民俗祭儀，然而在苗栗縣後龍鎮水尾子存在一個近百年的「送順風」祭典，卻鮮為人知且從未被詳實紀錄。
綜觀台灣，北部地區年年舉行的王船信俗祭儀且具公眾事務性質案例極少，此案例之於台灣在王船信俗中彌足珍貴。送順風之祭典流程與祭儀模式，相較其他田野案例簡化且單純，但是其蘊含的「逐瘟」特性極強，除瘟目的單一明確，對於「瘟」的意象與恐懼鮮明。

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, society’s fear of the spread and infection of the plague has increased. Attention shifted towards the development of cultural assets in the post-pandemic era, focusing on attitudes and approaches to dealing with the plague within traditional cultural contexts.
When it comes to warding off plagues, most people think of the grand The Burning of the King Boat in Donggang or various folk rituals related to the Daitian Xunshou Ritual in the central and southern regions. However, in Shuiweizi Village, Houlong Township, Miaoli County, there is a nearly century-old“Song Shun Feng”that is little-known event and has never been thoroughly documented.
Looking at Taiwan, there are few cases of public and administrative folk rituals involving king boat processions held annually in the northern region. This case is particularly precious in Taiwan’s king boat procession traditions. The procession and ritual of“Song Shun Feng“in terms of its flow and ceremony are relatively simplified compared to other field cases. However, its strong characteristic of“expelling the plague”is evident. In addition to the concentrated and clear purpose of warding off the plague, its vivid imagery and fear of the“plague”are distinctive.