Dongshan Guandi belief

Dongshan people worship Guan Yu from generation to generation, and Guan Yu statues and couplets are hung in the halls of every household. When a nephew gets married, my uncle must present a set of "mother-in-law's couplets" and Guan Di's statue and couplets, forming a folk custom in urban and rural areas. Why do Dongshan people hang Guan Di statues in every household? Guandi is a famous word cloud with long feathers. He was born in Baochi, Changping Village, Xiezhou, Hedong (now Changping Village, Yuncheng, Shanxi). He was famous for his loyalty all his life. He is loyal to the monarch and patriotism, brave and mighty, loyal to others and loyal to friends. He is admired by people of all ages and regarded as a god. Emperors of all dynasties have titles, from Hou to Gong, from Wang to Emperor. In the ninth year of Shunzhi in Qing Dynasty (1652), they were awarded the title of "brave Emperor Guan Sheng of SHEN WOO". By the fifth year of Guangxu (1879), Guan Yu's title had reached 28 words, which were collectively called "loyalty, SHEN WOO spirit, courage, sincerity to appease the people, and the first praise of Emperor Guan Sheng". As early as the Tang Dynasty, Zheng Chen and Chen Yuanguang led 58 soldiers to develop Minnan and build Zhangzhou. Some soldiers also went to Dongshan Island to develop and construction of the village, and attracted Guan Jun's incense from their ancestral home. In the 20th year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1387), on August 5th, Jiang Xiahou and Zhou Dexing went to Dongshan to build a bronze mountain city to prevent the Japanese pirates and build a temple, "carving a statue to worship it to protect the officers and men, and the officers and men to lean on it". There are many officers and men, and people go to worship, and the incense is flourishing. Because the temple was too small to hold many people, Zheng De was expanded by nine people, including Wu Ziyue and Tongshan Mountain Master, in the third year (1508). After four years of construction, it was completed in February of Zheng Deqi (15 12). The temple is grand in scale, the largest of the eight in Fujian, and its incense is flourishing. In October of the eighth year of Chongzhen in Ming Dynasty (1635), Huang Daozhou, a university student in Wuyingdian, wrote a couplet for Guandi Temple to express his admiration and love for Guandi. When Zheng Chenggong was stationed in Tongshan, he also made pilgrimages to Guandi Temple. It is said that he went to Dongshan Guandi Temple to draw lots before recovering Taiwan Province Province in 166 1, which strengthened his determination to recover Taiwan Province Province. During the reign of Emperor Kangxi, General Shi Lang set out from Tongshan to unify Taiwan Province Province, and also went to Guandi Temple for many times to pray and date. During the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court sent officers and men from Tongshan Shuizhai to defend Penghu and Taiwan Province Province. 166 1 year, more than 500 Tongshan youths followed Zheng Chenggong to Taiwan. In order to get away safely, these Tongshan people carry Guandi incense with them. In the third year of Kangxi in Qing Dynasty (1664), the Qing government carried out an inhuman policy of moving to the border, which made Dongshan Island a ruin. By the 19th year of Kangxi (1680), Tongshan had been unified, and only two or three of the ten had returned. The Qing government gave up its contempt for these returned Tongshan people, regarded them as traitors, and were not allowed to register in the household registration and bully them at will. Legend has it that after Guandi heard the news, he rode to Zhangpu to plead with the county magistrate Chen Ruxian and won the sympathy of the county magistrate, saying that he would make a memorial to Emperor Kangxi. After Guandi returned to the temple, he found the heads of the major surnames on the island and urged them to hold a meeting in Guandi Temple to discuss the application for naturalization. Parents will immediately gather in the temple and realize that Guandi had a dream. They were all grateful and bowed down and vowed to be descendants of Guandi. In the 40th year of Kangxi (170 1), Chen Ruxian, the magistrate of Zhangpu County, saw the simplicity of Tongshan people's feelings and was allowed to be included in the Yellow Book. Tongshan people cherish Guandi and believe in Guandi, so they established a household name "Guan Shixian", but it is still treated as a military record. In the fiftieth year of Kangxi (175 1), the elders of Tongshan wrote to apply for an account. After discussion, Tongshan's surname was established as one household, and the household name "Guan Yongmao" was approved, which was added to the six-digit household registration of seventeen capitals. Officially incorporated into the household registration of the Qing government, Dongshan people were approved to be recognized as Qing people, tax-free corvee. In this way, Tongshan people regarded Guandi as a protector, and their belief in Guandi became more and more extensive. In order to thank Guan Di for his kindness, from the date of registration, every household hangs Guan Di's idol and couplets as the protector of the family. May 13th (the anniversary of Emperor Guan Di's death) and June 24th (Emperor Guan Di's birthday) of the lunar calendar are the days for the people of the whole island to worship temples, which have been passed down from generation to generation and become the custom in Dongshan urban and rural areas.