Temple Fairs in old Beijing

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Temple fairs in Old Beijing were regularly held around large and well-known temples, which had their particular flavors and styles. Visiting temple fairs was a major pastime in the lives of Beijing residents. According to 19 30 statistics, there were 20 temples,16 in the suburbs and two in downtown area. The most famous temple fairs were the White Pagoda Temple Fair, Huguo Temple Fair, Longfu Temple Fair, Yonghe Lamasery Fair, Baiyun Temple Fair, Pantao Temple Fair, and Changdian Fair.

The Longfu Temple Fair was the largest of its kind in the city. Weng Ouhong (1908-1994),a playwright and a frequent visitor to the fair, recorded a detailed description of the spectacular event:”The Longfu Temple Fair starts right outside the streets that lead to the gate of the temple.

Along them gather all sorts of stands and stores, selling second-hand goods, rare birds, dogs and cats of rare breeds, books(age-old books not commonly seen outside the fair), and tea.

Inside the temple, there are three streets. Down the middle street, there are stalls selling daily necessities and snacks, as well as arenas for entertainment, such as flagpole waving, comic duets(folk art with one doing pantomime as the other hides behind him doing all the speaking or singing), and pingshu(folk art with the performer telling a long story using a folding fan,a handkerchief and a gavel as props). Down the western street are stands selling goldfish, shuttlecocks, spare parts of musical instruments, and Peking Opera scripts. Along the eastern street are stalls selling different figurines made from materials diverse as leather, flour dough and wood. Among them, the silhouette portraits of famous Peking Opera actors are made absolutely lifelike.”

Temple fairs were entertainment venues for ordinary people, therefore, everythingin them was closely related to daily life. Yet temple fairs also stood out beyond everyday life, thus giving both physical and spiritual pleasure to visitors, be they male or female, young or old.