国家治理视阈下的妈祖信仰与清代台湾社会

Matsu Temples and the Taiwan Society of Qing Dynasty from the Perspective of National Management

清代的台湾寺庙藏有诸多涉及地方治安、汉番矛盾、资源分配等地方社会问题的示谕碑文。其中,妈祖庙所藏示谕碑文数量最多,且其碑刻反映的社会问题如汉番关系、族群械斗等非常典型,体现了妈祖信仰在协助清政府治理地方社会方面的积极作用。移民社会时期的台湾,士绅、宗族力量薄弱,清政府因此引入妈祖等神明的无形力量协助治理地方社会。妈祖调和族群矛盾的社会功能不仅符合清政府官方政治统治的需要,同时也符合从移民社会转向定居社会需要稳定外部环境的民间社会的利益需要。

There are lots of tablet inscriptions of the Qing dynasty on local public security, relationship between Han and Aborigines, fighting between different ethnic groups. And among them, the number of the tablet inscriptions in Matsu temples was the largest, and the social problems they carried typical, reflecting that Matsu belief played a positive role in assisting Qing government to manage local society. In the immigrant-period society of Taiwan, the power of gentry class and patriarchal clan is vulnerable. Therefore, the Qing government used Matsu’s intangible power to assist itself to manage local society. Matsu’s social function of reconciling ethnic contradictions not only accorded with Qing government’s interests, but also complied with the public, because they needed a stable social environment.