Fengshui forest management by the Buyi ethnic minority in China Juanwen Yuan a , Jinlong Liu b, * a School of Resource and Environmental Management, Guizhou College of Finance and Economics, Guiyang, 550004, China b School of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Renmin University of China, Beijing, 100872, China 1. Introduction In China, fengshui (literary means ‘wind’ and ‘water’) forests are protected man-made or natural forests which are perceived to have impacts on human livelihoods in terms of granting good wishes, safety, longevity, prosperity, wealth and promotion (Freedman, 1968; March, 1968; Guan, 2002b; Liu et al., 2007). The practice of fengshui can be traced back to the Shang Dynasty (ca. 1700-1100 BC) and the Zhou Dynasty (1066-256 BC); fengshui has been widely practiced after the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC). Fengshui theory considers good fengshui to include good land contour, rich water, abundant trees and bushes. As a whole, an abundant forest is a symbol for good fengshui. No cutting of trees in fengshui forest brings good luck while deliberate damage to it is perceived to bring bad fortune. Good fengshui, abundant forest and good fortune are interconnected (Guan, 2002b). A number of academic scholars believe that fengshui forests developed because of a spiritual purpose of seeking harmony between people and nature (Theatre and Chow, 2000; Yang, 1999). Fengshui forests are very common in China, and in other East Asian countries historically influenced by Chinese culture (Hut- terer et al., 1985, cited by Romm, 1987; Kim, 2005). They are usually established at the village entrance, cemetery, and a hill behind the village, backyard, and temple (Yang, 1999). Fengshui forests are categorized into three types according to location, namely village fengshui forests, cemetery fengshui forests and temple fengshui forests (Guan, 2002a,b,c). An example of a village fengshui forest is the 133-ha virgin forest owned by Huang family who had emigrated to the Letu village in Fujian Province, Southwest China about 300 years ago (Guan, 2002b). It is now officially protected through its status as a National Nature Reserve. ‘‘Kong forest’’, or forest of Confucius (551-479 BCE), is a cemetery fengshui forest located in Qufu city of Shandong Province. The forest serves as the cemetery of Confucius (whose thoughts have been developed into a system of philosophy known as Confucianism affecting Eastern culture until the present day) and his descendants, which has been maintained for 2400 years. The ancient trees in the cemetery are said to have been brought there by the disciples of Confucius from their hometowns after his death. There are more than twenty thousand trees inside the cemetery, providing shade to the tombs and tombstones. There are many historical sites in the forest commemorating the visits of emperors of various dynasties who came to pay tribute to Confucius and his descendants. Throughout China, temple fengshui forests are very common where a buddhist temple is surrounded by a piece of holy forests (Guan, 2002b). This type of forest provides a cool and soothing environment for the buddhist monks and lay Buddhists practicing meditation and performing various religious activities. The development of fengshui forest is very much affected by political development in China. After the Communist Party took political power in mainland China in 1949, an anti-feudal movement gained momentum and adversely affected traditional Forest Ecology and Management 257 (2009) 2002–2009 ARTICLE INFO Article history: Received 2 July 2008 Received in revised form 7 January 2009 Accepted 24 January 2009 Keywords: Customary regulation Guizhou Traditional knowledge Forest history Forest management Forest policy Livelihoods ABSTRACT Fengshui forests, very popular among the ethnic minorities in the rural areas in Guizhou Province of China, have spiritual symbolic meanings and are strictly managed. This paper examines the nature, history, local perceptions and management of fengshui forests in two Buyi villages in the Guizhou Province. With their long history, the fengshui forests are perceived to provide good wishes, security, unity, fortune, wealth and health to the local communities. Fengshui forests act as a form of ‘‘community based nature reserve’’ which maintains the health of natural forests, especially hydrological features and prevention of soil erosion. Cunguimingyue (Folk Regulation and Customs) is the primary local normative mechanism that maintains the fengshui forests in a good condition. The lessons learnt from local fengshui forest management needs to be incorporated in for contemporary China’s forest policy formulation as these forests play an important role in rural livelihoods. ß 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author. Tel.: +86 10 62511061. E-mail address: liujinlong_jl@hotmail.com (J. Liu). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Forest Ecology and Management journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/foreco 0378-1127/$ – see front matter ß 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2009.01.040