삼화사는 조선시대 국행수륙재를 설행했던 곳이다. 수륙재는 조선시대 이후 사회통합을 이루기 위해 설행된 불교의례이기에 가치가 있다. 특히 삼화술륙재에서는 다른 지역 수륙재에 비해 전승공동체가 적극적으로 참여한다. 표면적으로 어산이 주도하는 것으로 보이지만, 모든 준비 과정부터 뒷정리까지 수륙재보존회원과 신도들이 동참한다. 진정한 의미에서 삼화사수륙재의 전승자는 신도들과 사대부중이다. 삼화수륙재의 조사지표는 1973년 국가무형유산으로 지정된 영산재의 조사지표를 토대로 일부 수정한 것에 불과하다. ‘예술적 완성도 및 기능적 숙련도’ 부문에서는 영산재보다 지표가 추가되었으나, 실제 전승 상황을 제대로 반영했다고 보기 어렵다. 삼화사수륙재에서 수인·범패·작법을 제외한 모든 사항은 수륙재보존회원과 신도들이 담당한다. 삼화사수륙재는 신앙공동체인 신도들이 주도했고 유지해 왔다고 해도 과언이 아니다. 수륙재에서 기반이 되는 지화장엄 제작과 설단, 의례음식의 진설과 고임새, 의례 진행 상황에 따른 모든 상황을 보존회원과 신도들이 조율한다. 삼화수륙재의 전승자는 삼화사수륙재보존회이고, ‘자율전승형 보유단체’에 속한다. 즉 “무형유산을 지역적 또는 역사적으로 공유하며 일정한 유대감 및 정체성을 가지고 자발적으로 무형유산을 실현·향유함으로써 전승하고 있는 공동체”로서 의무를 수행한다. ‘자율전승형 보유단체’를 유지하기 위해서는 핵심 기예능 조사지표를 수정할 필요가 있다. 삼화사수륙재 의례에 중심이 되는 구성요소는 지화장엄 제작과 설단, 의례음식의 진설과 고임새라고 할 수 있다. 그러나 아직까지 지화장엄의 의례음식에 대하여 정리된 자료가 충분치 않다. 향후 삼화사수륙재의 장엄과 의례음식에 대한 세부 조사가 필요하고, 체계화된 전승 매뉴얼과 교재 제작이 필요하다. 체계적 전승과 확산, 지속적인 보존과 계승을 위해서는 분야별 교재 또는 기록자료를 갖춰야 한다. 삼화사수륙재의 문화적 의미와 가치뿐만 아니라 전승되고 있는 현장의 실연 내용이 상세하게 기록할 필요가 있다. 전승공동체는 이를 위한 지혜를 모아야 한다.
Samhwasa Suryukjae has been valuable as a Buddhist ritual for social integration since the Joseon Dynasty. Compared to other regional water and land rituals, the transmission community takes the lead and actively participates. On the surface, it appears to be led by Eosan, but the believers complete everything from preparation to cleanup. In other words, the believers of Samhwasa are in charge of all matters except for the water seal, the Buddhist tablet, and the manners of performing the ritual. Although the Eosan group may change in the water and land ritual, there has been no case of the believers changing. The successor of Samhwasa Suryukjae is the Sabu Daejung. The National Heritage Administration included the ‘transmission community’ as the main transmission entity in 2022 and established the basis for supporting it. The Samhwasa Suryukjae Preservation Society also belongs to the group category and belongs to the ‘autonomous transmission-type holding group’. In other words, it fulfills its duty as a “community that shares intangible cultural heritage regionally or historically and voluntarily realizes and enjoys intangible cultural heritage with a certain sense of solidarity and identity.” However, there is a difference between the actual transmission content of the preservation society and the core skills and arts viewed by the National Heritage Administration. In the ‘National Intangible Cultural Heritage Item-by-Item Practical Ability Survey Index and Survey Index Calculation Formula’, based on Yeongsanjae, which was designated as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 1973, the core skills and arts are Buddhist music, Buddhist dance, Buddhist decorations, and crafts, including Buddhist ceremonial clothing, ritual clothing, and ceremonial clothing. The survey index of Samhwasa Suryukjae is only a partial modification of the survey index of Yeongsanjae, and in the ‘artistic perfection and functional proficiency’ category, indicators were added compared to Yeongsanjae. It is difficult to say that these indicators properly reflect the actual transmission situation. The core components of the actual Samhwasa Suryukjae ritual are the production of Buddhist ceremonial clothing, the altar, the presentation of ritual food, and the manners of going to the temple. In Samhwasa Suryukjae, all matters except for the water seal, Buddhist ceremonial clothing, and ritual are handled by the believers of Samhwasa. It is no exaggeration to say that Samhwasa Suryukjae was led and maintained by the believers as a religious community. The preservation society and believers coordinate all situations according to the progress of the ritual, including the production of the ground decorations that form the basis of the Suryukjae, the altar, the presentation and setting of ritual food, and the status of the ritual. In order for the decorations and ritual food to become the core functions of Samhwasa Suryukjae, detailed investigation is necessary. In the case of Jinkwansa Temple, which was designated as a Suryukjae at the same time, a geochemistry department was established in the Suryukjae School to teach the decorations necessary for the Suryukjae ritual. The program is divided into 32 sessions and systematically teaches the introduction to geohwa, materials for geohwa, tool production, jumang and beon origami, making of janggeomdeung, dyeing, making of geohwa, practice of doryang decorations, jaebong, and orchid. This was also published as a report. In order to systematically transmit and spread, and to continuously preserve and succeed, it is necessary to have textbooks or records for each field. It is necessary to record in detail the cultural significance and value of Samhwasa Suryukjae as well as the actual performances that are being transmitted. It is time for the transmission community to gather wisdom for this.