Hong Kong Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences, The University of Hong Kong

Drawing on 16 months of fieldwork and historical material on Fu (符) rituals, this talk explores the distinctions between Fu activities and other local sacrificial practices that involve approaching spiritual powers with offerings, beseeching or begging for assistance. I pseudonymize my field village located in south-central China as Hecun. Through Fu rituals, Hecun villagers attempt to directly manipulate or even command the spiritual forces. Drawing on historical evidence, I propose that this fluctuating human-spiritual power dynamic can be traced to the transformation of ancient Chinese cosmology. I argue that in the pre-imperial courts there was a gradual technical transition from magical rituals to religious sacrifices. But in the local cosmology of present-day Hecun, both magic and sacrifice are evident. This combinatory cosmology has moved like a “capsule” through time, composing the deep-rooted characteristics of Chinese cosmology that have “sedimented”. I further suggest that the human-spiritual power dynamic reflects a well-established local understanding of how people experience the capricious environmental forces to which they are immediately exposed. This local understanding contrasts with the scientific outlook towards “nature” that underpins these state-led weather-water projects in Hecun. By interweaving relevant anthropological discussion around “nature” with analyses of local rituals, this talk provides a nuanced understanding of local cosmology and offers insight into the entanglement of magic, religion and science.