Essay: Confucius Celebration

Confucius Celebration in Taipei, Taiwan

December 11, 2008

Tina Chen

September 28, the birthday of Confucius, is the designated date to celebrate Teacher’s Day in honor of the late Confucius, the first and most important teacher in Chinese culture. From childhood, students in Taiwan begin learning and memorizing Confucius’s teachings. His greatest emphasis was on the importance of study and thus this date is set aside to honor all teachers. On Saturday, September 27, my CIEE group attended the dress rehearsal of the annual celebration of Confucius’s birthday at Taipei Confucius Temple in Yuanshan, Taipei, at 4:00 in the afternoon. The actual celebration was to be held on September 28 at 6:00 AM, but unfortunately Super Typhoon Jangmi was headed on a crash course for Taiwan and postponed the ceremonies until the following Sunday. I would really have enjoyed attending the real ceremony as well, but unfortunately only the first 100 people are allowed to attend the real ceremony, so we chose to attend the dress rehearsal out of convenience. Nevertheless, the ceremony was still very insightful and I was able to capture a few good shots, both on camera and video, from the front of the crowd. The ceremony included traditional music and dance with performers wearing traditional Chinese robes and playing various classical instruments, all of which have significance to the content of the ceremony.

In observing this performance, I used Merriam’s Tri-Partite Model as a basis for my research, which is a model we used in Professor Templeman’s “Women and Music: A World Perspective” Honors Special Topics Spring 2008 course. To summarize briefly, Merriam’s Tri-Partite Model is a guideline for how to observe and analyze a performance. It states that there are three components to a musical performance: behavior, sound, and concept. The model also states that these three aspects are fully related in contributing to the successful production of music. During a performance, an artist attempts to accomplish the exhibition of certain concepts, whether created by his or herself or created by society itself, and does so by physically carrying out certain behaviors. These behaviors cause the artist to create certain sounds, which should reflect the concepts that he or she wishes to exhibit. If the sound produced does not create the desired effect, then the artist will alter his or her behaviors and sounds until they reflect the desired concept.

During this ceremony, I studied the behaviors and sounds of both the performers and audience. The performance was taken place in the inner courtyard of Taipei Confucius Temple, in front of Dacheng Hall, which houses the main alter. Above the alter hangs a plaque that reads, “Education knows no class distinction,” one of Confucius’s famous quotes. Dacheng Hall is surrounded on all four sides by a row of connected buildings, in traditional Chinese architecture, so that the performers were directly in front of Dacheng Hall and the audience stood off to the sides near the East and West side buildings as well as on either side of the Dacheng Gate, the entrance leading to Dacheng Hall. However, no one is allowed tos stand directly in the middle of Dacheng Gate because the center entrance is reserved only for the spirit of Confucius himself.

The ceremony began when two Masters of Ceremonies dressed in traditional purple Chinese robes walked to the front of the stage and initiated the opening ceremony. As a brief overlook, to depict the organization of the entire ceremony, I will list all of the 37 events that are included in the Modern Confucius Ceremony, as written by the 2008 Dalongtong Cultural Festival brochure:

1. The Ceremony Begins
2. First Drum Roll
3. Second Drum Roll
4. Third Drum Roll
5. Ceremonial Attendants Take Their Positions
6. Ceremonial Supervisor Takes His Designated Position
7. Assistant Sacrifice Officers Take Their Designated Positions
8. Collateral Presentation Officers Take Their Designated Positions
9. Principal Presentation Officer Takes His Designated Position
10. Opening the Gates
11. Burying the Sacrificial Remnants
12. Welcoming the Spirit
13. All Bow Three Times in Respect
14. Presenting the Sacrificial Feast
15. Offering Incense
16. Initial Principal Presentation
17. Initial Collateral Presentation
18. Chanting the Blessing
19. All Bow Three Times in Respect
20. Second Principal Presentation
21. Second Collateral Presentation
22. Final Principal Presentation
23. Final Collateral Presentation
24. The President Offering Incense
25. Chanting the Blessing from President
26. All Bow Three Times in Respect
27. The Sacrificing Officer Offering Incense
28. The Drink of Good Fortune and Receipt of Sacrificial Meat
29. Removing the Remnants of the Sacrificial Feast
30. Escorting the Spirit
31. All Bow Three Times in Respect
32. Sending the Silk Spirit-Money and Prayer Inscription
33. Look After the Incinerator
34. Resuming Positions
35. Closing the Gates
36. Withdrawing Positions
37. The Ceremony Concludes

The ceremony was quite easy to follow because the Masters of Ceremonies flipped a yellow tablet of paper that indicated the number of each current stage. This made the ceremony much easier to understand because I could follow the performer’s actions with each stage of the performance. The ceremony began with three series of drum rolls, and the MC on the right of the yellow tablet announced in Mandarin each step that took place. There seemed to be a distinct pattern to the drum roll sequences: upon studying my video recordings, I observed the following: one strike of a higher-pitched drum, then four beats of a lower-pitched drum, which accelerates into a roll, slows down, strikes once again, and then a gong strikes once. The second drum roll begins with two strikes of the higher-pitched drum, then three beats of the lower-pitched drum, which accelerates into triplets and a roll, decelerates, ends with two strikes, and then two strikes of a gong. The third and last drum roll begins with three lower-pitched drum strikes, then 5 strikes of the lower-pitched drum, which accelerates into a roll, decelerates, and then three slow beats, ending with three strikes of a gong. Although I was able to decipher this pattern, I am unsure of whether or not this pattern has a certain meaning.

After the three drum roll sequences, the ceremonial participants took their places by walking to the beat of a drum in a single file line: walk five beats, rest one beat, beginning with the musicians and dancers. As the higher-level attendants came on stage, they walked to the front of the stage and washed their hands before taking their places. After everyone was in place, the gates that comprise the front wall of the temple were opened to allow the spirit of Confucius to enter the temple. This process was accompanied by a drum sequence. It is common in temples for people to offer the spirits food and burn incense as they pray, and so in this ceremony such offerings were prepared for the spirit of Confucius, as well. Each step of this process was very slow and purposeful, and the music that accompanied was also slow and simple to create a solemn, dignified atmosphere.

The Initial Principle Presentation was the stage in which the Ba-Yi Dance was performed, which consists of the most important movements during the ceremony. It is a classical Taiwanese dance reserved only for this sacred day. It comprises of 8 rows of 8 people (“ba;” Chinese for “eight”) It is actually routine for the Ba-Yi Dance to be replaced with the Liu-Yi Dance (“Liu;” Chinese for “six”), so for the Ba-Yi Dance to be performed this year was a rare occasion, and actually a controversial topic because many locals believe that the temple purposely choose to perform the Ba-Yi Dance to give an unnecessarily exaggerated welcome to Taiwanese President Ma Yin-Jeou, who is the first president to attend the Confucius celebration. In any case, the Ba-Yi Dance is a classical ceremonial dance and was performed by 64 local schoolchildren. The dance comprises of 16 different movements, each having their own different meaning, but all movements meant to show offering and blessing to the Confucius spirit. The dancers direct their movements in all four directions, making sure to acknowledge any fellow spiritsin all directions as not to leave any out. Each dancer carries a long peacock feather, which represents wisdom, following the theme of “education.” The same dance movements were repeated throughout the ceremony in steps 20 and 22 (Second Principle Presentation and Final Principle Presentation).

During the Ba-Yi Dance (as well as throughout the ceremony), only traditional Chinese instruments are used as musical elements, because this music has been handed down throughout dynasties. Formal and solemn, it is based on an ode to Emperor Hongwu of the Ming Dynasty who ruled from 1368-1398. In order to play the music properly, instruments made of eight different elements are required: pao (匏: gourd), tu (土: clay), mu (木: wood), ge (革: leather), shi (石: stone), jin (金: metal), si (絲: strings), and zhu (竹: bamboo).

During the opening of the gates (step 10), the spirit of Confucius is greeted by slow drum beats, and after the spirit has been welcomed, he is offered food and incense. In Taiwan, incense is only burned when praying to gods or ancestors, and is not used for an aromatic purpose, as it is used in American culture. After the spirit has been fed and properly blessed, the spirit is escorted out of the humanly world again with slow, deep drum beats, and the gates into the temple are closed.

The audience during this ceremony was mostly on a bystander level. They did not try to participate in the actual ceremony itself, and mostly just took pictures and videos, respectfully staying in one place the whole time as not to cause disturbance. People towards the back of the audience walked around and sometimes talked in low voices, but only because the ceremony took place outdoors and their dis

tance would not disturb the solemn, still atmosphere of the procession. The only movement that really occurred from the audience took place when it started to rain, and then people merely brought out their umbrellas and continued watching the procession.

There was no singing throughout the ceremony, only dance and musical accompaniment. The overall pace of the music, as well as the movement of the participants, was very slow, and the steps of the participants were often march-like, following the steady beat of the drum. This created a solemn, formal atmosphere that would have been appropriate for an emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and also can be explained by the fact that the music originated from an ode. In Taiwanese culture, it is custom that respect comes with age. Thus, the most honored are those who have already passed away; in no way should a deceased person be negatively referred to, and ancestors are believed to return as ghosts who can do harm to mortal beings if not pleased. The formal, solemn atmosphere reflects this cultural custom of the importance of worshiping ancestors, because it contributes to the sincerity of the procession, so that the performers can show their greatest honor and respect to the ghost of Confucius.

This procession also reflects the enormous importance of worshiping the deceased in Taiwanese culture; many Taiwanese, even if they do not claim to be Buddhist or even follow any religion at all, still worship and pray to their own ancestors. Some of my Taiwanese friends who attended this ceremony claimed to be atheists, but still burned incense for the sake of Confucius’s ghost. They believe that ghosts of the dead do exist and that they can influence the living world. Although this might seem contradictory, I have speculated over the relationship of worshiping the dead and religion in Taiwanese culture, and have come to the conclusion that there is no connection, which is unlike the Western notion of praying as solely a religious act. Further evidencing this idea, my own relatives in Taiwan are not religious but still pray at temples, whereas I still cannot make myself pray at Taiwanese temples because I feel that I am contradicting my atheism if I make such an action.

Furthermore, the traditional dress and instruments used in this performance reflect Taiwanese culture’s emphasis on the importance of history and heritage. There is a Chinese proverb, “飲水思源” (yin3 shui3 si4 yuan2), which can be translated to, “When you drink a glass of water, you must remember where the cup came from.” This proverb reminds us that we must remember our roots and the ancestors from which we came, which is a very important concept in Taiwanese culture. The ceremony’s music and dance has been passed down since the Ming Dynasty, and so the continuance of using traditional instruments and clothing indicates that we should remember where the custom’s roots.

The honoring of Confucius himself reflects the tremendous importance Taiwanese culture places on education. Taiwanese students, from the very beginning of their education, are under a tremendous amount of pressure to do well in school. From elementary school it is expected that after school, students also attend cram schools, so that a typical school-aged child will attend classes from morning until late night, six or even seven days a week. During junior high school, the pressure increases even more, as students must compete in high school entrance exams, and then later also in college entrance exams, which hugely influences their future chances of finding a stable career. In my own Chinese Language classes this past quarter, there was an entire chapter dedicated to explaining the process of entrance exams, and compared the examinees to “熱鐹上的螞蟻” (re4 guo3 shang4 de5 ma3 yi3), or, “ants on a hot pot,” with no where to seek safe refuge.

From the successful interpretation of these concepts, I can conclude from this report that Merriam’s Tri-Partite Model was a useful model as a basis for this study, because I was able to isolate certain behaviors, actions, and sounds that reflected specific concepts of the society in which it took place. I agree that society can shape the actions and behaviors of its people, and this case-study is a clear example. The ceremony was a success because the participants executed their concepts during the procession, and the crowd (as well as I) was sufficiently satisfied with the performance. Also, because the song and dance have remained the same over centuries, the participants knew how to carry out their actions and behaviors as to create a successful production. Thus, I conclude Merriam’s Tri-Partite Model accurately theorizes the production of music because it successfully acted as a guide that I could use as a basis for my study.