Page 43 - JCAU-7-3

Journal of Chinese
Architecture and Urbanism Top-down rural heritage

3. Standardizing the Kangwang Festival personally believes that this Kanggong is actually Kang
from a top-down approach Yuanshuai, one of the Ten Marshals of the Eastern Peak in
Daoist legend. In contrast, the Kanggong Temple in Nanhai,
The research team’s visit to Tangwei village coincided Foshan, Guangdong, regards Kangwang as Kang Baoyi, a
with the annual Kangwang Festival (康王宝诞; literally general who fought against the Liao dynasty during the
“the festival for celebrating the birth of Kangwang”). Northern Song dynasty. According to legend, Kang Baoyi’s
This festival is the largest-scale folk activity in Tangwei descendants migrated south to the Pearl River region and
village and is recognized as a provincial-level intangible were granted permission to build a temple in his honor after
cultural heritage (Guangdong Provincial Cultural Center reporting their military accomplishments. Zhu Guangwen
– Intangible Cultural Heritage Center, 2018). It is also an has observed that the earliest records of Kangwang appear
important cultural activity promoted by Tangwei village to in the Lingnan Miscellany, which mentions the deity in the
external audiences. Gaozhou area (Zhu, n.d.). Tangwei village in Dongguan
The 2018 Tangwei Village Records, published under the aligns its version of Kangwang’s story with Nanhai, Foshan
guidance of the town government, provides the following account. This alignment integrates the legend into Tangwei
standardized narrative about the origin of the Kangwang village’s founding story, allowing the village to express its
legend: A member of the seventh branch of the Li family in cultural traditions and symbolism to the outside world
Tangwei village, who engaged in the trade of second-hand (Figure 4).
goods, discovered a statue of Kangwang in a dilapidated Why is Kangwang identified as Kang Baoyi in Tangwei
temple. Identifying it as Kangwang, he brought the statue village, while in Macau he is not? Tangwei Village Records
home for enshrinement. As the clan member’s economic provides no explicit explanation, and villagers have not
conditions improved, other members of the seventh branch offered any clarification. On the contrary, the records
expressed a desire to jointly worship the deity, which begin with the assertion: “Kangwang, originally named
led to relocating the statue to the Seventh Branch Hall. Kang Baoyi, was a native of Luoyang, Henan, and a
Subsequently, the fourth and sixth branches also expressed famous general who fought against the Liao dynasty
their desire to participate in the worship, prompting a during the Northern Song dynasty” (Tangwei Village
unanimous decision to move the statue to the Mei’an Editorial Committee et al., 2019, p. 115). For the villagers,
Gongci. This relocation symbolized unity and prosperity the true origin of the tradition is less important than its
for the entire clan, fostering safety and development for all symbolic significance. What they value is a folk legend
its members. that underscores the village’s orthodoxy and loyalty. This
The Mei’an Gongci, originally the ancestral hall of one is further reinforced by the stories of Li Chunsou, the son
branch of the Li clan, now houses the Kangwang statue. of Li Yong – who is considered the common ancestor of
Unlike typical village temples, the Mei’an Gongci retains the villagers, and Xiong Fei, Li Yong’s son-in-law. Both
its ancestral hall layout. The altar for Kangwang is situated are described as loyal ministers during the final years of
on the left side of the shrine, whereas the center holds the Song dynasty, which indirectly reinforces the village’s
the ancestral tablets of the Li clan, shielded by a screen. collective identity.
However, during the investigation period, which coincided By associating Kangwang with Kang Baoyi, the villagers
with the Kangwang festival, the statue of Kangwang was highlight his image of loyalty to the emperor, shaping
temporarily moved to the center of the shrine, where perceptions of the village as orthodox, ancient, and
villagers worshipped it in front of the screen. state-recognized. This alignment ensured that, when the
The identity of Kangwang varies significantly between Kangwang Festival was revived in 1994, it not only avoided
Macau and Dongguan. In Macau, Kangwang (or Kanggong) official restrictions but also received strong government
is regarded as a Daoist deity associated with fire prevention, support.
with his birthday celebrated on the 7 day of the 7 lunar Regarding the ceremonial customs, no other
th
th
month. Huang Wenhui, a researcher of Macau’s history comprehensive oral or local documentary sources exist,
and culture, noted in his book that Kangwang’s identity leaving the villagers to rely on standardized village records
and origin differ across regions (Huang, 2021). In Macau, for their understanding of the festival’s history. According
Kanggong is often referred to as Li Lie, a Daoist master to these records, in the past, the festival was organized and
from the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), or as a bandit coordinated by five spontaneous villager associations. Since
who later attained enlightenment by performing good its resumption in 1994, however, the Xincheng Society has
deeds, such as robbing the rich to help the poor. However, taken over all organizational responsibilities (Guangdong
based on the couplets found in a temple, Huang Wenhui Provincial Cultural Center – Intangible Cultural Heritage

Volume 7 Issue 3 (2025) 6 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcau.5029