人類學與道教研究的對話：以「煮油」除穢儀式為例

A Dialogue between Daoism and Anthropology: A Study of Purification Ritual in Taiwan

本文以一個由地方舉行的除穢儀式來探討道教與地方儀式的關係，並進而分析該儀式在地方社會中的文化意涵。透過一個台灣西南農村的研究，本文說明由地方所行的煮油儀式如何建立在漢人文化中空間與身體的類比、兩性概念、以及結合道教五營觀與乩童信仰。因此，道教、民間信仰、與漢人文化概念三者同時提供地方儀式的基礎架構。本研究以人類學的分析方法，將三者之間的結合方式具體描繪出來，並說明正是透過這些概念在儀式中共同運作，邪惡力量被驅除，地方得到了再生。

This article discusses the relationship between Daoism and local religious practice by means of a purification ritual, ”zhuyou jingwu” (lit. boiling oil to purify houses). I start by illustrating how this ritual is recorded in Daoist literature and performed by Daoist priests. I then describe how it is practised by local people in southwest Taiwan. I analyze how the ritual, when practised by ordinary people, is intertwined with the Chinese concepts of place, body, and gender; and how the important Daoist cosmology involving a center surrounded by four directions is embodied by the local spirit medium. In this way, I show the shortcomings of previous research which sees Daoism as playing an exclusive role in providing the structure for local religion. This article, in contrast, elucidates how Daoism, local belief, and Chinese cultural concepts simultaneously interact in this purification ritual to expel evil power and rejuvenate the local society.