新莊地藏庵的大眾爺崇拜

The Cult of Ta-chung Ye (Lord of the Hordes) at the Ti-tsang An (Abbey of Ksitigarbha) in Hsin-chuang

在台灣的本土民間信仰中，厲鬼信仰為其最主要的特色之一。簡單來說，所謂的「厲鬼」是一些沒有後代子嗣供養，或者是一些橫死、冤死的靈魂；同時，「厲」也蘊含有「疾病」、「罪惡」等意思，甚至於有時可以寫成「癘」。在這些厲鬼中，有另外一種鬼魂經過了不一樣的演變過程，而與中國的地獄信仰聯結在一起，而這就是「大眾爺」。本文選擇作為研究主題的新莊地藏庵，早在乾隆年間該廟是建在當地的「義塚」裡。這座廟的主神（名義上為地藏王菩薩，事實上是「文武大眾爺」） 顯然與孤魂野鬼有密切關係。不過，它很快就發展成為新莊地區主要的公廟之一，也得到當地紳士、菁英的支持。日治時期，地藏庵更發展為台北盆地著名的廟宇之一，它一年一度的「暗訪」儀式即始於明治末年。筆者著手於此一研究，首先蒐羅和本廟有關的史料，包括地方志、碑文、日治時期的調查報告等。同時，筆者也進行田野調查，以便了解地藏庵的演變與現況。本文首先將探討台灣厲鬼信仰的淵源，再略述地藏庵的歷史，接著討論在此廟舉行的各種儀式，最後探討地藏庵的發展所呈現出的歷史意義。

One of the most striking characteristics of Taiwanese popular religion involves the large number of temples dedicated to vengeful ghosts (li-kuei 厲鬼) , that is, the souls of people who suffered violent and/or untimely deaths. This paper describes the cult of one of northern Taiwan's most popular vengeful ghosts, the Lord of the Hordes (Ta-chung ye 大眾爺) . Worship of the Lord of the Hordes appears to have evolved out of beliefs and practices related to the Altar of Vengeful Souls ( Li-t'an 厲壇) and charitable cemeteries (yi-chiung 義塚) . Today, however, the Lord of the Hordes is conceived of as a deity belonging to the underworld bureaucracy who can help believers deal with various forms of physical and social affliction. I examine this cult by means of a case study centering on the Abbey of Ksitigarbha (Ti-tsang An 地藏庵) , located in the city of Hsin-chuang 新莊 (Taipei County). The Abbey was founded in the latter half of the eighteenth century by members of the Hsin-chuang local elite. During the early twentieth century, it developed into one of Hsin-chuang's most renowned sacred sites. In this paper, I use historical research and fieldwork to trace the Abbey's history and describe the various rites performed there. I conclude by exploring the ways in which these rituals resemble what Victor Turner has described as 'rites of afflication'.