History ＞Origin and Evolution

Origin and Evolution

        Figure 1: It is said that about a hundred years ago, a sculptor brought eight heads of Shenjiang statues from Fuzhou, China: Weituo, Jialan, Shancai, Longnu, and two pairs of General Qi and General Ba. They were brought through the Taiwan Strait to Taiwan. Traveling along the Tamsui River, the sculptor was going to go to Xinzhuang Old Street to sell these heads; however, when he stopped by Yonglien Temple in Luzhou, he sold the heads of Shancai and Longnu to Yonglien Temple when he noticed that Guanyin Buddha was the main god of the temple. It was a long, tough journey.


        Figure 2: In 1921, Lelele Xuanshe was willing to buy the Shenjiang statues. The main god they worshiped was Yanping Duke, not the ones general folk believed. And since merchants hardly carried Shengjiang statues to Taiwan for sale, Lelele Xuanshe made a trip to Fuzhou by boat and purchased two Shenjiang heads, Gan Hui and Wan Li. They brought the heads back to Taiwan and assembled them to form the Eight Top Shenjiang of Luzhou.



        Figure 3: On Taiwan Retrocession Day, two Shenjiang statues, Weituo and Jialan, participated in the celebration parade. President Chiang Kai-shek was fond of them and wanted to purchase them with a large sum of money; however, the Shenjiang troupe strongly opposed of it. Instead, the president awarded them with identification cards and they became the only Shenjiang statues that have identification cards in Taiwan.



        Figure 4: The number of Shenjiang statues continues to grow. Still, most people don't know much about “Shenjiang”. We hope the Luzhou Shenjiang culture will regain the fame through our project.

        History of Shenjiang Statues:

        • • The Origin of Luzhou Shenjiang
          Shenjiang statues in Taiwan originated from Mainland China. The Shenjiang statues of Luzhou, New Taipei City, are well known in northern Taiwan for their vast quantity and refined quality. The Shenjiang troupe was originally formed for parades in the temple festivals. It is said that a hundred years ago, a sculptor carried three pairs of Shenjiang heads by boat from Fuzhou, China, and landed in Tamsui. He was going to take them to Xinzhuan Old Street for sale. When making a stop in Luzhou, he saw the Guanyin Buddha statue, worshiped in Yonglian Temple, and decided to sell Shancai and Longnu Shenjiang to Nanyi Xuan in Nangang, Luzhou; Jialan and Weituo Shenjiang, guards of Buddha, were sold to Anle She in Heshanggang, Luzhou. Heyi She in Luzhou purchased the General Hsieh and General Fan Shenjiang statues, for they were ranked as divine generals in the Underworld. Meanwhile, Maode Temple ordered Gan Hui and Wan Li Shenjiang statues, guards of Yanping Duke, from Fuzhou, China too. Therefore, Shancai, Longnu, Jialan, Weituo, General Hsieh, General Fan, Gan Hui, and Wan Li were the first eight Shenjiang statues assembled in Luzhou.

        • • The Evolution of Luzhou Shenjiang
          Luzhou Shenjiang history is about one hundred years old. After discussing with teachers, we divided it into three periods as follows
        • 1.  Late Qing Dynasty and Early Republic (The Period of Folk Music Groups)
          The eight Shenjiang statues produced in late Qing dynasty and early Republic were the first generation of the Luzhou Shenjiang. Since then, the number hasn't increased. Moreover, the performance conducted by "Xuanshe", folk musical groups, was the focus in the parades of temple festivals; the Shenjiang statues seldom showed up, or merely played an unimportant role in the idolatrous parades. During this time, since Taiwan lacked the talent and technology of producing Shenjiang statues, they had to bring in statues from the far-away mainland. However, most Taiwanese temples could not afford it then, so the number of Shenjiang statues did not increase.
        • 2. From Japanese Occupancy to After Retrocession (The Transitory Period)
              • There were two important events that have impacted the production and development of the second generation in Luzhou deeply.First, Gan Hui and Wan Li Shenjiang statues owned by Lelele in Luzhou were assigned to the exhibition in the World Fair held in Japan during the Japanese occupancy. Later, Weituo and Jialan Shenjiang statues, owned by Anle She in Luzhou, participated in the parade, celebrating Taiwan Retrocession Day and were granted with identification cards by the former president Chiang Kai-shek due to their amazing, mighty posture. After both governments honored the Shenjiang statues, the residents of Luzhou recognized the Shenjiang, and the position and meaning of "Shenjiang" changed since then. Meanwhile, the economy of Taiwan started to take off and believers were very willing to offer money to temples; the cost for adding more Shenjiang statues was no longer a problem. The changes in the economy and position of Shenjiang statues have led to the production of the second generation of Shenjiang statues.
                • 3. After 1977 (The Period of Shenjiang Statues)
                  In 1977, Zhongle Xuan, in Luzhou, hired Dao-rui Wang, a famous local sculptor, to produce Shengjiang statues, General Zhongtan and General Yangjin. This initiated the production of the second generation of Shenjiang statues in Luzhou. When new Xuanshe and new temples were built, the production of Shenjiang statues was always one of the most important jobs. After decades of effort, Luzhou had become the top producer of the best and most Shenjiang Statues in Taiwan.

                • Perspectives:
                  Shun-wei Huang: Shenjiang was not respected until the time of President Chiang Kai-Shek. During the Japanese occupancy, the performances of Nanguan and Beiguan instruments were the focus in the parades, but today, the Shenjiang statues have become the focus and are highly respected. However, only the old generation really knows what the Shenjiang statues are for, the young generation only looks at them as large, fun puppets. Our purpose of the Cyberfair project is to attract the attention of the masses, so that the glory of "Shenjiang" can be passed from generation to generation.
                • Kuan-ting Ho: There were different sayings about the history of the Luzhou Shenjiang; the actual origin is untraceable. However, after the site investigation and documentation study, we figured out that the first few Shenjiang heads were purchased from a Fuzhou merchant who crossed the sea and brought them to Luzhou, during the Qing Dynasty. The electrical and musical Third Prince in southern Taiwan is not the same one from Luzhou; however, most young people do not know the difference. I hope that through this project, we will be able to tell the young generation that the Luzhou Shenjiang is not the same as the electrical and musical one.
                • Po-hung Wang: The Luzhou Shenjiang statues showed up during the Qing Dynasty. A sculptor brought them here from Tangshan, China. During the Japanese occupancy, Japan hosted the World Fair while Taiwan held the Shenjiang Expo in Taipei. The Luzhou Shenjiang statues were highly acclaimed! In the Taiwan Retrocession parade, President Chiang Kai-shek was amazed by the mighty walking posture of the Shenjiang statues, Weituo and Jialan, and proposed to purchase them with a large sum of money. However, the management group of the statues strongly refused the proposal. Still, Chiang Kai-shek granted the statues with identification cards; the fame of Luzhou Shenjiang rose since then. I wonder, "Could Luzhou have become the place with the most Shenjiang statues in Taiwan if these things had not happened?" The answer is no. Luzhou could still be a quiet little town!
                • Yuan-ting Tseng: Our Luzhou Shenjiang statues came from overseas on a very tough trip to Luzhou. They were not valued at first. Later on, they gradually appeared in the parades of temple festivals. After centuries of development, the Luzhou Shenjiang has become an important role in parades. I hope we can pass on this heritage.
                • Ming-hsien Hsu: I did not know that the original Luzhou Shenjiang statues were from Tangshan, China. They were carried over the Taiwan Strait, which has a versatile climate, to Luzhou and later developed to become the major culture of Luzhou. After many important events, such as surprising people in the parade of the World Fair during the Japanese occupancy and being granted with identification cards by President Chiang Kai-shek, the Shenjiang statues finally became an important feature and culture in the Luzhou area!
                • Pin-yu Wu: We should be thankful to our ancestors that we can see many mighty Shenjiang statues in parades. However, the kids today are afraid of the Shenjiang statues because of the negative stereotypes due to their horrible and wicked looks. I hope we can help people change their impressions of "Shenjiang" through the project. In the past, people admired Shenjiang as gods, but the young people today no longer admire or respect Shenjiang because they misunderstand the meaning of the Shenjiang culture. Many do not accept it because they think it is a religion or superstition. However, the Shenjiang culture is a traditional culture. When we try to understand it, we will find it is a treasure that is worth exploring.

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