Brief introduction and customs of Mazu Festival

According to legend, Mazu, whose real name was his mother, was born on March 23rd in the Song and Yuan Dynasties (960). Song Taizong died in the 4th year of Yongxi (987) on September 9th. Mazu, also known as Tian Fei, Tianhou, Notre Dame and Tianmu, is a god believed by boatmen, sailors, tourists, businessmen and fishermen in past dynasties. In ancient times, sailing at sea was often attacked by wind and waves, and the ship sank and people died. The safety of the crew has become the main problem for seafarers, who place their hopes on the blessing of the gods. Before the ship sets sail, it is necessary to worship Tian Fei, pray for the safe blessing of the wind, and set up a sacred position for Tian Fei on the ship.

Mazu was born in the first year of Stegosaurus in Song Taizu (AD 960), and his grandfather Fu Lin lived in Fujian on March 3rd. Father Lin (only Yin), in the early Song Dynasty, was appointed as the capital of supervision. Before she was born, her parents had given birth to five daughters, hoping to have another son, so they burned incense early to pray for our son, but the baby was a baby girl, and their parents were somewhat disappointed. The night before the baby girl was born, neighbors saw the meteor turn from the northwest sky into a red light, dazzling, and dyed the rocks on the island red. Therefore, parents think that this baby girl must not be an idle girl, and she is particularly fond of her. Because she never cried from birth to the second month, she was named Moline, and her parents also called her Moline Niang. Maureen was cleverer than other sisters when she was a child. When she was eight years old, she was inspired by her teacher. She can not only read aloud from memory, but also understand the meaning of words. When she grows up, she is determined to do good deeds and help others all her life and never marry. Her parents obeyed her wishes. She is devoted to charity and public welfare. She has been studying medicine, treating people and teaching people to prevent and eliminate disasters. People praised her. She is calm and helpful. As long as she can help the villagers solve their problems, she is willing to do it, and often guides people to avoid misfortune. People are willing to discuss with her and ask her for help when they are in trouble.

Maureen grew up by the sea. She also knows astronomy and meteorology, and is familiar with water. There are many reefs in the strait between Meizhou Island and the mainland. Fishing boats and merchant ships wrecked in this sea area are often rescued by Maureen, so people say that she can "sit on the ground and cross the sea". She can also predict the weather changes and inform the boatman in advance whether she can sail, so it is said that she can "predict the strange" and call her "goddess" and "dragon lady"

On September 9th, 4th year of Yongxi, Song Taizong, Maureen died at the age of 28.

Song Taizong yongxi four years (987), matsu was 28 years old. The day before the Double Ninth Festival, Mazu said to his family, "My heart is so clean that I don't want to live on earth. Tomorrow is the Double Ninth Festival, and I want to climb the mountain. Say goodbye to you in advance. " Everyone thought that she was going to climb high and overlook, but she didn't know that she would become an immortal. The next morning, Mazu burned incense and recited scriptures, and said to her sisters, "Today, I want to climb a mountain and travel far away to realize my wish, but the road is difficult and dangerous, so you can't accompany me." Sisters smiled and comforted her and said, "Just swim, why bother!" Mazu then bid farewell to her sisters and went straight to the highest point of Mae Peak. At this moment, I saw the thick clouds on the top of Meifeng Peak, and a stream of white gas went straight into the sky, as if I heard the fairy music played by a string of silk and bamboo in the sky, which went straight into the sky and reflected the rainbow. Mazu flies in the sky by driving Xiangyun in Changfeng. Looking down at the world, it is looming. Suddenly, the clouds were mixed up and out of sight. Meizhou people looked up and were shocked. Since then, Mazu has often appeared, and villagers can often see her beside caves in rocks, or sitting in clouds, or Zhu Yi flying on the sea. Always show dreams and show saints, save people in emergencies and protect the country and the people. So people in the village built a temple in Mei Feng, and worshiped it devoutly. Later generations came to worship in an endless stream.

Because Mo Niang was kind to the people before her death, she was honored as the goddess of the sea by the coastal people after she ascended to heaven, and a temple was set up for sacrifice. Later, she appeared repeatedly at sea, and all the people who crossed the sea prayed for her. She is honored as the "psychic goddess", and temples are all over Haidian. Mazu belief has gone through 1000 years since its birth. As a folk belief, it has a long duration, a wide spread and a deep influence, which is not found in other folk worship.

There is one on Mazu Festival. The worship and praise of Mazu by emperors in past dynasties has promoted Mazu from a folk god to an official patron saint of navigation, with a higher and higher godhead and wider spread. From Puyi area to all corners of the country, it has reached the point where no one knows and no one can replace it.

Before the Song Dynasty, Mazu's enlightenment began when he went to Korea in the fourth year of Xuanhe in the Northern Song Dynasty (1 122). The temple was built at the mouth of the river, and (Hui Zong) gave it to Shunji Temple. "Later, the reason for sealing Mazu in the Song Dynasty was' the fog hunger in spring' and' the sacred fire helped burn the bandits' (Volume II, title of Meizhou Island Records).

From the 26th year of Shaoxing, Song Gaozong (1 156) to the Qing Dynasty, emperors of all dynasties conferred titles 36 times, and the title was changed from 2 words to 64 words. In the Ming Dynasty, the title was changed from "Lady" and "Princess" to "Tian Fei", and the temple was built as the capital. In the twenty-third year of Qing Emperor Kangxi (1648), it was changed to "Tianhou". And included in the national sacrificial ceremony, for the spring and autumn festival. Therefore, the folk belief in Mazu has become more and more fixed, and the status of "Poseidon" has become more and more stable.

For thousands of years, Putian has preserved many folk customs about Mazu, reflecting the particularity of Mazu belief. His belief in manners and customs, Mazu's words and deeds, personality and so on were gradually absorbed by the people, forming many customs.

Mazu, as a folk god of praying and protecting the sea, has been circulating for more than 1000 years since Song, Jingyuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. Among the temples dedicated to Mazu, there are coastal provinces and cities in China and Mazu Tempel in other provinces except Qinghai, Xinjiang and Tibet. The Integration of Mazu Palace and Temple contains the records of articulated Mazu Tempel in more than 500 counties and cities in 30 provinces and cities (including Hong Kong and Macao). With the development of navigation and transportation in Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, China people have traveled all over the world, including Japan, Southeast Asia, Canada, the United States and even Paris. Mazu, also known as Tian Fei, Tianhou, Notre Dame and Tianmu, is a god believed by boatmen, sailors, tourists, businessmen and fishermen in past dynasties. In ancient times, sailing at sea was often attacked by wind and waves, and the ship sank and people died. The safety of the crew has become the main problem for seafarers, who place their hopes on the blessing of the gods. Before the ship sets sail, it is necessary to worship Tian Fei, pray for the safe blessing of the wind, and set up a sacred position for Tian Fei on the ship.

Mazu Tempel, located outside Meizhou Island, is famous overseas, and now it has become a holy place for China sailors to worship all over the world, and it is also a holy place that compatriots at home and abroad yearn for. Mazu Tempel's incense lasts all the year round. On his birthday and anniversary, there were a sea of people inside and outside the temple, and the incense was flourishing. Mazu customs, such as Mazu lanterns, Mazu dances, boat sails and dragon boat lanterns, reflect the far-reaching influence of Mazu culture.

Meizhou Mazu Festival is located in Meizhou, Fujian Province, and it is held on April 25th and June 4th, 5438+10/October 4th every year. March 23rd and September 9th of the lunar calendar were named as the date of Mazu's birth and death respectively. Every two days, tens of thousands of people come to worship Mazu. During the festival, we will also carry out Mazu culture research, folk song and dance performances and handicraft exhibitions.

Over the past 1000 years, Mazu has changed from a human being to a god, standing out from the Taoist female immortals, and from a "lady" to a "Tian Fei" and a "queen of heaven". Its followers, great influence and wide spread were rare in ancient times. How can it be simply explained by feudal superstition and religious belief?

After Mazu's death, people shaped her into a goddess of compassion and fraternity according to their own wishes and ideals, protecting the country and benefiting the people, with the aim of educating future generations and carrying forward the national spirit. "It is said that Li Ze is still alive, and after his death, he is still efficient and meritorious", which is the poem of Huang Gongdu, the champion of the Song Dynasty. "But you see me going back and forth, and I won't talk about it." This is a poem by Chen Mi, a scholar in the Song Dynasty. "Rain and dew are everywhere, the sea changes, and the waves are calm", which is a poem by Zhang Jian, a poet in the Yuan Dynasty. "Help the weak and help the poor, come at once, and go away." This is a poem inscribed by Emperor Yongle, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Politicians, thinkers and writers of past dynasties attached great importance to Mazu's educational function and the role of "national identity" belief, hoping to promote national prosperity, national unity and people's livelihood. Mazu spirit is undoubtedly the excellent cultural heritage of the Chinese nation.

In the thirty-second year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1640), Dutch colonists attempted to occupy Penghu. Under the protection of Mazu, China navy general Shen Yourong led a fleet from Xiamen to drive the colonists out of the waters of Penghu. Up to now, there is a stone tablet in Mazu Tempel, Penghu, which says "Shen Yourong ordered the red hair to go to Wei Malang". Another example is "Miscellaneous Notes on Making Ryukyu" written by China in the 22nd year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1683), which records in detail that with Mazu's blessing, the ship was named "trapeze", passed through Diaoyu Island, Huangwei Island and Chiyu Island, and quickly entered the waters of Mi Shan and Machishan in Ryukyu Kingdom, which surprised Zheng Yong 'an, the doctor who greeted him, as if "suddenly entered its territory". More importantly, through these original materials, some problems left over from history have been clarified. For example, Zheng He's inscription "Ling Ying Zhi of Tian Fei" recorded the process of seven voyages to the West in detail, which played a role in correcting and supplementing the mistakes and deficiencies in history books. It can be proved that Diaoyu Island has been the territory of China connected with Taiwan Province Province since ancient times.

In the history of maritime traffic trade and coastal port development, it is closely related to Mazu belief. From Northeast China to South China, the development history of many famous port cities in China is closely related to Mazu Tempel. The proverb "Niangniang Temple comes first, then Tianjinwei" is an image explanation of the origin of Tianjin Port. In the Song Dynasty, Huating (that is, Shanghai), Hangzhou, Quanzhou and Guangzhou were all jointly built with Mazu Tempel. Yingkou, Yantai, Qingdao and Lianyungang are all marked by the construction of Mazu Tempel, turning desolate fishing villages into prosperous port cities. The cliff stone carvings of the North Buddhist Temple in Hong Kong and the records of Mazu belief introduced from the Southern Song Dynasty in the Lin family tree of Wangcun, Peng Pu, Kowloon are the earliest historical documents in Hong Kong. The Portuguese name of Macao is Macao, which is a transliteration of "Marco" in Cantonese. Taiwan Province compatriots call Mazu, who was schizophrenic in the early stage, "Mazu who started Taiwan", which fully shows that Mazu's crossing Taiwan is directly related to the development of Bao Dao.

Mazu Tempel also has a unique position in the history of science and technology. In ancient times, there was a custom of sailing. When a new ship is launched, it is necessary to make a model to be enshrined in Mazu Tempel, so that Mazu will always be concerned about the safety of the ship. Many Mazu Tempel have left a large number of ancient ship models. There are more than 350 ancient ship models in Mazu Temple, Miaodao Island, Changdao, Shandong Province, including the Weiyuan model enshrined by Deng Shichang, a national hero, which has become an important material for studying the history of ancient shipbuilding in China. There are a number of ancient buildings in Mazu Tempel, such as Tianhou Palace in Quanzhou, Fujian, Jingdezhen in Shandong, Chenghai in Jiangxi, Zhenyuan in Guangdong, Zhenyuan in Guizhou, Qing 'an Hall in Ningbo, etc., which are extremely precious works of ancient architecture art from temple structural modeling to various carving components. In addition, Mazu Tempel has preserved some special scientific and technological relics. For example, there is a star map of Ming Dynasty in Tianhou Palace, Hanjiang, Putian, which is a rare material for studying ancient directional navigation in China by using the star map. The fire fighting "water machine" stored in Tianhou Palace in Tianjin is one of the earliest mechanical fire fighting equipment discovered so far.

The formation of Mazu culture itself has also left considerable spiritual wealth to mankind. At present, only the historical documents of Mazu belief are directly recorded, and the most conservative estimate is more than one million words, involving topics in many fields such as economy, politics, military affairs, diplomacy, literature, art, education, science and technology, religion, folk customs, overseas Chinese, immigration and so on. The content is quite rich and the historical materials are of high value. Famous historians in China, such as Gu Jiegang and Ke Zhao, have published many papers about ancestors and the day after tomorrow, which have aroused repercussions in academic circles. After 20 years' research, Li Xianzhang, a scholar from Taiwan Province, finally wrote The Study of Mazu Belief, which became the first highly academic monograph on Mazu in China. Since 1980s, Taiwan Province Province, Macau, Xiamen and other places have set off a research upsurge, held many academic seminars on Mazu culture, and published academic monographs 100, such as Scholars at Home and Abroad Studying Mazu, Essays on Mazu Research, Compilation of Mazu Research Materials, Compilation of Mazu Literature Materials, Mazu Belief and Ancestral Temple, Meizhou Mazu and so on.