Tian Hou (Thien Hau) Goddess: Mazu

Our Lady of Mazu was referred to the residents of Southeast coast of China and Southeast-Asia Chinese as our Lady of Heaven, Tian Fei, Tian Hou, Tian Hou niang niang or Mazu. According to the Legend, Mazu was born in Song Dynasty, the first year of Jian Long Emperor (A.D. 960), in MeiZhou Island of the Putian County, in the FuJian Province. Mazu was the daughter of Lin Yuan who was the Capital Patrol Forest Inspector. Her birth’s name was Lin Mo Niang, born into this world with plenty of red rays to brighten the room and without crying, a truly extraordinary phenomenon. A true worshiper and emulator of Buddha when she was young, she was kind, charitable and generous; she helped and rescued people at sea. According to the Legend, she did not reach thirty years of age when she passed away. Mazu could rescue disasters thousands of miles away, especially when a ship was in distress. As long as the people on the ship recited the Mantra of Holy Mazu, Mazu would come out to rescue them. Mazu would save the capsized boat to prevent any lives from being threatened. The legend of the Holy Mazu spread and people would wish and worship her to avoid chronic illness, difficulty in child birth, to achieve wealth and success in their business (agricultural or economical), etc…As long as they were kind and honest, their wishes would be met.

Mazu’s generosities and good deeds were well known throughout many generations of people in China. Many kings throughout the history of China brought recognition to the people of China by establishing temples and titles to her. During the fifth year into the reign of Yi He Emperor (A.D. 1123) of the Song Dynasty, he established a temple for Mazu named as “Shun Ji Temple”. Yuan Dynasty Emperor, Wu Zong or Kulug Khan (A.D. 1281) gave the title to Mazu as “The Protector of Country Ming Zhu Goddess”.

Around the Southeast Coast of China and Southeast-Asia, many Chinese gathered together and built temples to worship Mazu, especially after the Southeast-Asia refugees migrated to the Western World. Throughout history over thousands of years, the number of worshipers increased day by day. Celebrations are held during the first and fifteenth of each month and on Mazu’s birthday (March 23rd of the Lunar calendar). Crowds of people garner incense to worship her at the Mazu temples, especially on Lunar New Year’s Eve and Lunar New Year, setting off firecrackers, lion dancing, and gong and drum can be heard throughout the area. The people are lively, and the traditions are unprecedented, long-lasting, and unchanged. In October 2009, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) selected Mazu’s Culture to be part of their World Heritage List.

Guan Yu

Guan Yu is one of the best known Chinese historical figures throughout East Asia. Guan Yu was a general under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of China. He played a significant role in the civil war that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty and the establishment of the Kingdom of Shu, of which Liu Bei was the first emperor.

Guan Yu was deified as early as the Sui Dynasty and is still being worshiped today among the Chinese people variedly as an indigenous Chinese deity, a Bodhisattva in Buddhism, and a guardian deity in Taoism. Guan Yu is sometimes called the Taoist god of war as he is one of the most well-known military generals in Chinese History. In general worship, Guan Yu is widely referred to as Emperor Guan. He is respected as the epitome of loyalty and righteousness.

Guan Yu is traditionally portrayed as a red-faced warrior with a long lush beard, often carrying his weapon called Green Dragon Crescent Blade. The idea of his red face could have been borrowed from opera representation, where red faces depict loyalty and righteousness.

Fu De

Fu De, also known as Tu Di Gong, is a local earth god worshiped in China. A popular Chinese deity, he is worshiped by Chinese folk religion worshipers and Taoists. A formal name for Tu Di Gong is Fúdézhèngshén (福德正神), meaning the earth god of wealth and merit. Commoners often called Tu Di Gong “Grandpa”.

In China, every village had a shrine to Tu Di Gong, the deity who was in charge of administering the affairs of a particular village. In traditional times, village concerns were primarily agricultural or weather-related. This god was not all-powerful, but was a modest heavenly bureaucrat to whom individual villagers could turn to in times of drought or famine.

Today, he is still worshiped by most Chinese, with many housing small shrines with his image, commonly located under the main altar or below the house door. Worshipers make prayers to him for wealth and their well being. Tu Di Gong is portrayed as an elderly man with a long white beard, a black or gold hat and a red or yellow robe, which signifies his position as a bureaucrat.