原文

汉武帝迷于鬼神，尤信越巫，尝令越巫立越祝祠，安台无坛，亦祠天神上帝百鬼，而以鸡卜，至今越祠多淫，以鬼神方惑民菑祥者，所在皆然。诸小鬼之神者，无贵贱趋之，况于五方之帝及五岳神，不更謟事乎哉。吴廷举知顺德，尝禁淫祀，其言曰：律，祀典神祗，有司致祭。不当祀而祭，杖。顷行龙山龙江，见五岳庙，中禺五帝，冕而执圭。夫五岳视三公，诸侯在其域内，乃得祭之。祭用木主，号如其山，坛而不屋，天子有事告以芗，无则已。今帝之而不知其公也，僣诸侯之事而不知其庶人也。季氏旅于泰山，孔子讥之，况庶人乎。淫昏之鬼，充斥闾巷，家为巫史，四十保大抵尽丛祠矣。岁时伏腊，醵钱祷赛，椎牛击鼓，戏倡舞像，男女杂沓，忽祖祢为出门之祭。富者长奢，贫者殚家，甚至攻剽嚚讼之徒，资以决筴，是奸盗之主而礼法之蠹也。知县不佞，有人民社稷之寄，民神杂扰，不可放物，罪则在予。四十保淫祠悉毁之，其材以修保之亭坛，有余输县营缮，象投水火，民孝弟力田奉公，自求多福。不然于我政人得罪，求助鬼神无及已。于是毁淫祠八百余所，御史汪宗器恶之，计竹木斤两以罪。呜呼，不辨善淫，而以其睚眦报，愧淫鬼矣。

白话

中文

汉武帝沉迷于鬼神之事，尤其相信越地的巫师。他曾命令越地巫师设立越人的祝祷祠庙，只设神位（安台）而没有祭坛，也祭祀天神、上帝以及各种鬼怪，并用鸡骨进行占卜。直到今天，越地的祠庙大多存在过度、不正当的祭祀（淫祀）现象，利用鬼神祸福之说来迷惑民众的情况，到处都是。那些小鬼小神，无论身份贵贱的人都去追捧祭拜，更何况是五方上帝和五岳山神，人们岂不更加谄媚地去侍奉吗？吴廷举任顺德知县时，曾经禁止淫祀。他发布的告示说：按照律法规定，列入国家祭祀典籍的神祇，应由有关官员负责祭祀。祭祀不应当祭祀的神祇，要处以杖刑。近来巡视龙山、龙江等地，看见有五岳庙，里面供奉着五方上帝的神像，都戴着帝王的冠冕，手执玉圭。要知道，五岳山神的地位相当于朝廷的三公，只有在其管辖区域内的诸侯才有资格祭祀。祭祀时使用木制神主牌位，牌位上的称号与其山名相符，只设祭坛而不盖庙宇房屋，天子有重大事情时才用香气禀告，没事就不祭祀。如今（民间）把五岳神尊为帝，却不知道他们（在国家祀典中）的公爵地位；僭越了诸侯的祭祀权限，却不知道自己只是普通百姓。当年季氏（鲁国大夫）祭祀泰山，孔子都加以讥讽，何况是普通百姓呢？这些不正当的、昏昧的鬼神崇拜充斥着街巷，家家户户都成了巫师、祝史的场所，（顺德）四十个“保”（基层行政单位）大概都布满了这类丛祠（淫祠）。每年特定的节日（岁时伏腊），人们凑钱举行祈祷和酬神活动，杀牛、敲鼓，演戏、舞弄神像，男女混杂聚集，甚至忽略了祭祀祖先，而去进行这些在外的祭祀。富裕的人助长奢侈风气，贫穷的人为此倾家荡产，甚至那些抢劫偷盗、狡诈好讼之徒，也利用这些（淫祀场所）来占卜决策。这（淫祠）简直是奸邪盗贼的主导者、礼法秩序的蛀虫。我（吴廷举）作为知县，才能不高，但肩负着管理人民、守护疆土的职责。民众和鬼神之事混杂纷乱，不能放任不管，否则罪责就在于我。决定将四十保的淫祠全部拆毁，用拆下的材料来修建各保的公共亭台祭坛，有剩余的就运到县里用于官方修缮工程，神像则投入水火之中。希望民众能孝顺父母、尊敬兄长、努力耕作、遵守法纪，自己去争取更多的福祉。如果不这样做，在我这个管理政事的人这里获罪，到时再求鬼神帮助也来不及了。于是（吴廷举）拆毁了八百多处淫祠。但御史汪宗器厌恶他这样做，竟然计算被毁祠庙竹木的斤两来给他定罪。唉！不能分辨善与淫（指祭祀的正当与否），却因为个人的小怨恨（睚眦）进行报复，（这种行为）连那些淫祀的鬼神都要感到羞愧了！

英文

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was obsessed with spirits and deities, particularly trusting the shamans (Wu) of the Yue region. He once ordered the Yue shamans to establish Yue sacrificial shrines, which had spirit platforms (antai) but no altars, and where they also worshipped the Celestial God, Shangdi (Supreme Emperor), and numerous spirits, using chicken bones for divination. To this day, many shrines in the Yue region (Guangdong) engage in excessive and improper worship (yinsi). The practice of using spirits and deities to delude the populace about fortune and misfortune is prevalent everywhere. People of all social standings flock to worship minor ghosts and spirits, let alone the Emperors of the Five Directions and the deities of the Five Sacred Mountains – wouldn't they serve them even more obsequiously? When Wu Tingju served as the magistrate of Shunde, he once prohibited improper worship. His proclamation stated: According to the law, deities listed in the official sacrificial canons should be worshipped by designated officials. Worshipping deities that one is not entitled to worship is punishable by caning. Recently, while inspecting Longshan and Longjiang, I saw temples dedicated to the Five Sacred Mountains, housing statues of the Five Emperors, wearing crowns and holding jade tablets (gui). It should be known that the status of the Five Sacred Mountains is equivalent to the Three Dukes of the court, and only feudal lords within whose domains the mountains lie are entitled to sacrifice to them. The sacrifice uses wooden spirit tablets, inscribed with the mountain's name, performed on an altar without a temple building. The Son of Heaven informs them with fragrant offerings only when there are important matters; otherwise, no sacrifices are made. Now, the common people venerate them as Emperors, unaware of their ducal status (in the official hierarchy); they usurp the sacrificial prerogatives of feudal lords, unaware of their own commoner status. Confucius criticized the Ji clan (a noble family in Lu) for sacrificing to Mount Tai – how much more inappropriate is it for commoners? These improper and benighted cults proliferate in the alleys and lanes; every household acts like a shaman or priest, and the forty "bao" (local administrative units) [of Shunde] are likely filled with clusters of these illicit shrines. At seasonal festivals (suishi fula), people pool money for prayers and thanksgiving offerings, slaughtering oxen, beating drums, staging plays, dancing with effigies, men and women mingling indiscriminately, neglecting ancestral sacrifices for these outdoor rituals. The rich foster extravagance, the poor exhaust their resources, and even robbers, thieves, cunning litigants use these places for divination to make decisions. These [shrines] are patrons of villains and thieves, and vermin to ritual propriety and law. As the magistrate, though lacking talent, I bear the responsibility for the people and the state. With the affairs of people and spirits in disarray, I cannot let things drift; otherwise, the fault lies with me. I have decided to demolish all illicit shrines in the forty bao. Their materials will be used to repair the public pavilions and altars of the bao, with any surplus sent to the county for official construction projects. The idols will be cast into water and fire. Let the people practice filial piety and fraternal duty, work diligently in the fields, obey the law, and seek their own blessings. Otherwise, if they incur punishment from me, the administrator, seeking help from spirits and deities will be futile. Consequently, Wu Tingju demolished over 800 illicit shrines. However, Censor Wang Zongqi detested this action and sought to incriminate him by calculating the weight of the bamboo and wood from the demolished shrines. Alas! To be unable to distinguish between proper and improper worship, and instead retaliate based on personal grudges (yaizi) – even the spirits of the illicit shrines would feel ashamed [of Wang Zongqi]!

文化解读/分析

此条目深刻反映了清初广东地区官方意识形态与民间普遍存在的“淫祀”（过度或不合礼制的祭祀）之间的紧张关系。

1. 淫祀现象的普遍性与历史溯源：屈大均指出广东地区淫祀泛滥，并将其源头追溯至汉武帝信奉越巫的时代，暗示这种现象具有深厚的历史根源和地方特点（越祠多淫）。他批评这种利用鬼神迷惑民众的做法。
2. 批判对象与儒家礼制标准：批判的核心是民众不分贵贱地祭祀各类“小鬼”，甚至僭越身份去祭拜规格极高的五方帝和五岳神。屈大均引用儒家经典和礼制（五岳视三公、诸侯方可祭祀、季氏旅于泰山）来论证民间祭祀行为的不合礼法（僣越），体现了儒家知识分子维护等级秩序和礼教规范的立场。
3. 民间祭祀活动的生动描绘：条目细致地描述了民间淫祀活动的具体场面：集资（醵钱）、杀牛祭祀、鼓乐喧嚣、戏剧表演、偶像巡游（舞像）、男女混杂、忽略祖先祭祀。这些描绘为研究清代广东民间信仰的实践形态提供了宝贵资料。
4. 淫祀的社会危害：在作者看来，淫祀不仅导致铺张浪费（富者长奢，贫者殚家），败坏社会风气（男女杂沓），更成为犯罪分子（攻剽嚚讼之徒）寻求庇护和指导的工具，直接危害社会治安和礼法秩序（奸盗之主而礼法之蠹）。
5. 地方官员的治理行动与困境：记述了顺德知县吴廷举大规模毁禁淫祠（八百余所）的事件。吴廷举的告示体现了地方官员以儒家伦理（孝弟力田奉公）和国家律法整顿基层社会、移风易俗的决心。然而，他的行动遭到上级官员（御史汪宗器）的反对和刁难，揭示了推行此类改革可能面临的政治阻力，以及官方内部对于如何处理民间信仰问题可能存在的分歧。
6. 官方与民间的张力：整个条目展现了官方（以吴廷举代表的儒家正统观念）试图规范、甚至清除其认为“不正当”的民间信仰，而民间社会则有着自身顽强、复杂的信仰实践。这种张力是中国历史上长期存在的现象。屈大均在此处虽批评淫祀，但对吴廷举因毁祠而遭报复表示同情，也隐约透露出对僵化执行礼教、不顾地方实际的官僚作风的批评。

总而言之，该条目通过对广东“淫祀”现象及其治理的记述，不仅提供了清初岭南民间信仰实践的细节，更揭示了儒家礼制与地方习俗、官方意识形态与民间社会活力之间的复杂互动与冲突，具有重要的社会史、文化史和宗教史研究价值。

关键词

五帝, 五岳, 淫祀, 广东, 顺德, 民俗, 信仰, 祭祀, 巫术, 鸡卜, 吴廷举, 屈大均, 广东新语, 毁淫祠, 汪宗器, 汉武帝, 越巫, 礼制, 儒家, 民间信仰, 社会治理, 龙山, 龙江