Tianfei Palace | |||||||||||||
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Traditional Chinese | 天妃 宮 | ||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 天妃 宫 | ||||||||||||
Literal meaning | Heavenly Consort Palace | ||||||||||||
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Mazu Cultural Palace | |||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 天媽 文化館 | ||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 天妈 文化馆 | ||||||||||||
Literal meaning | Heavenly Mother Athenaeum | ||||||||||||
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Tianhou Temple | |||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 天后 宮 | ||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 天后 宫 | ||||||||||||
Literal meaning | Heavenly Empress Palace | ||||||||||||
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The Tianfei Palace, [1] [2] officially the Mazu Cultural Palace [3] and also known as the Tianhou Palace, [4] is a restored temple of the Chinese sea-goddess Mazu,the deified form of the medieval Fujianese shamaness Lin Moniang,located in Fangta Park in Songjiang,Shanghai,in eastern China. Officially classified as a museum,the Tianfei Palace conducts Mazuist rites twice a year,on the traditional anniversaries of Lin Moniang's birth and death. It is also used as the site for an annual commemoration of Songjiang's city god Li Daiwen.
The Tianfei Palace was first erected on Henan Rd. just north of Suzhou Creek in downtown Shanghai [1] in 1883. [5] By that time,the traditional celebrations of Mazu's temple festival during the week of the 23rd day of the third lunar month had already been curtailed. [5] It was the last of Shanghai's Mazu temples to be destroyed. [3] [lower-alpha 1]
Following on the heels of a renovation of Songjiang's Square Pagoda in the mid-1970s,Feng Jizhong conceived of the idea of creating a park around it to celebrate traditional Chinese architecture after the ravages of the Cultural Revolution. [6] As part of his design for Fangta Park,he sought to relocate and rebuild the ruins of the old Mazu temple. However,because Mazuism is not officially recognized as either Taoist or Buddhist,Chinese law considers it a tolerable but illegal cult and—at minimum—requires local government to demonstrate strong local demand for new temples before allowing their construction. [3] Songjiang figured that only about 10% of its population was religious in any sense and only a few migrants adhered to Mazuism anywhere within Shanghai; [3] nonetheless they were able to approve the plan as the Mazu Cultural Palace,a restoration of a historical monument under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and the management of the Parks Department. [7] The temple was moved in 1978 [8] [lower-alpha 2] and initial repairs completed by 1980. It was protected by the district-level government in October 1993. [8]
Another reason for Songjiang's approval of the temple was the belief that the presence of a temple to Mazu—a very popular deity on Taiwan—would encourage investment from Chinese businessmen there. One such businessman even funded completing the temple's restoration [7] in 2001, [8] allowing it to be fully opened in 2002. [7] It was protected by Shanghai's municipal government in April 2014. [8] [lower-alpha 3]
The main hall is a brick-and-wood structure 17 meters (56 ft) high [8] and covering an area of 330 square meters (3,600 sq ft). It includes authentic and restored Qing-era architectural forms,carvings,and inscriptions, [1] including calligraphy by Chen Peiqiu,Wu Jianxian (吴健贤,WúJiànxián),and Zhou Huijun (周慧珺,Zhōu Huìjùn). [8]
The temple includes an altar,burning incense,and recorded chanting but is unregistered with the religious authorities,it lacks a permanent priest,and all ticket proceeds benefit the parks department. For Mazuist immigrants and tourists,the Tianfei Palace hires Fujianese priests to visit and conduct religious services twice a year,on the traditional anniversaries of Lin Moniang's birth and death. [7] Without condoning the quasi-legal cult,the park workers consider that "this is just good business" (这是比好买卖). [7]
The temple is also the site of an unrelated annual commemoration of the birth of Li Daiwen (李待問,LǐDāiwèn),a Ming official who unsuccessfully resisted the Qing invasion of the area but became celebrated as one of Songjiang's city gods. Thousands of bowls of soy milk and youtiao are distributed to those who gather to burn incense in his honor. Because the celebration follows the Chinese lunar calendar,its date (18/6) varies from year to year in the Gregorian system. [2]
Mazu or Matsu is a Chinese sea goddess also known by several other names and titles. She is the deified form of the legendary figure Lin Mo or Lin Moniang, a Fujianese shamaness whose life span is traditionally dated from 960 to 987. Revered after her death as a tutelary deity of seafarers, including fishermen and sailors, her worship spread throughout China's coastal regions and overseas Chinese communities throughout Southeast Asia and even to the United States, where some Mazuist temples are affiliated with famous Taiwanese temples. She was thought to roam the seas, protecting her believers through miraculous interventions. She is now generally regarded by her believers as a powerful and benevolent Queen of Heaven. Mazu worship is popular in Taiwan as large numbers of early immigrants to Taiwan were Hoklo people; her temple festival is a major event in the country, with the largest celebrations around her temples at Dajia and Beigang.
Songjiang is a suburban district of Shanghai. It has a land area of 605.64 km2 (233.84 sq mi) and a population of 1,582,398 (2010). Owing to a long history, Songjiang is known as the cultural root of Shanghai.
Songjiang was a large town and the seat of Songjiang County in Shanghai. In 1998, Songjiang County was changed to Songjiang District and, in 2001, Songjiang was abolished to become Yueyang Subdistrict (岳阳街道). Songjiang is located southwest of Shanghai city proper.
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Chen Peiqiu was a Chinese calligrapher and guohua painter, often acclaimed as the foremost Chinese woman painter. She and her husband Xie Zhiliu were one of the most famous couples in Chinese visual arts. The government of Shanghai opened a museum in Nanhui New City dedicated to them.
The East Zhejiang Maritime Affairs/Folk Custom Museum is a museum located in Yinzhou District in Ningbo, Zhejiang, China. It is located in the Qing'an Guildhall, a reconstructed complex which once housed a temple to the sea-goddess Mazu. Originally built in 1191, the complex was destroyed and rebuilt several times. After its mid-19th century restoration by Ningbo's guild of Fujianese merchants, it was acclaimed as one of the most beautiful temples in China and was used by the merchants as their guildhall. It was destroyed in 1949 as the Communists were fighting the Chinese Civil War, and suffered further harm during the Cultural Revolution, but was repaired from 1997 to 2001. It reopened in June 2001 as a museum dedicated to eastern Zhejiang's maritime history and local arts and crafts.
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The Penghu Tianhou Temple is a temple dedicated to the sea goddess Mazu located on Zhengyi Street in Magong City, Penghu, Taiwan. It is usually considered the oldest Mazu temple in Taiwan and, despite differences in characters, is the namesake of the surrounding city of Magong. It is open from 7:00 am to 5:30 pm daily.
Yuquan Temple, formerly known as Palace of the Goddess, is a Buddhist temple located in Tianxin District of Changsha, Hunan.
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Baishatun Gongtian Temple is a temple located in Baishatun, Tongxiao Township, Miaoli County, Taiwan. The temple is dedicated to the sea goddess Mazu, who is the deified form of Lin Moniang. Gongtian Temple is noted for its annual Baishatun Mazu Pilgrimage, where worshippers travel to Chaotian Temple in Beigang, Yunlin on foot.
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