Festival of the Heavenly Empress Mazu in China

For the Chinese, the Heavenly Empress or Tianhou Mazu is the true mistress of the sea, the mistress of the elements, who can save from the destructive forces of nature, and when angry, send a deadly typhoon or flood Late Chinese mythology distinguishes the goddess as the most powerful and important celestial beings, capable of completely changing the destinies of those living today In China, many temples dedicated to the Heavenly Empress have been erected In them, Tian-hou is depicted as a proud woman sitting on a throne of waves or floating in the clouds You can find analogues using the traditional golden throne in an intricate embodiment with a bright interweaving of ornaments and figures Matsu is a central figure, but not alone As a rule, she is depicted with two servants, one of whom gazes intently into the clouds, and the other listens warily with his hand to his ear A distinctive feature of the Chinese goddess is the crystal clear whiteness of her face For example, in Taiwan, the Heavenly Empress is depicted with a black face, which does not in any way affect the level of her veneration and adoration among believers The cult of the goddess traces its origins back to the 10th and 11th centuries from a girl from a simple fishing village whose name was Lin A skilled fisherman had the ability to sail through the stormy sea waters on an old mat, and was transported from island to island on clouds Lin used her super abilities to save her loved ones who were in trouble in the depths of the sea When she turned 28, an even greater miracle happened - the girl ascended to heaven and became the mistress of all water Since then, the Chinese have considered Mazu the mistress of water movements, the patroness of fishermen and sailors Believers love and revere the goddess of water infinitely Initially, the Chinese gave her the name of Heavenly Concubine (Tian-fei), and then elevated her to the celestial empress (Tian-hou) There are over 200 million Mazu worshipers around the world Everyone whose profession or place of residence is connected with the sea firmly believes in the saving and destructive power of the goddess Her birthday is invariably celebrated, which is designated the 23rd day of the third month of the lunar calendar Traditionally, on the eve of the holiday there is a mass pilgrimage to the temples of the Heavenly Empress Hundreds of thousands of believers go to honor their patroness and enlist her support in worldly affairs A week before Tian-hou's birthday, circumambulation ceremonies are held with the image of the deity Dressed in gold, a luxurious statue in a specially decorated palanquin appears on the streets of all localities Locals believe that such “walks” of the goddess provide prosperity, peace and protection from the destructive power of the elements for the whole year Well-prayed statues are especially popular; as a rule, they are brought from big cities or ancient temples On Tianhou Mazu's birthday, a ritual of incense burning and offering of gifts takes place The action takes place only within the walls of the temple For this purpose, a temple with the strongest statue is selected, in front of which hundreds of incense sticks are lit You can bring your own statue to a temple with a solid history in order to imbue it with the strength and energy of a more powerful statue There are no restrictions on the choice of temples, so pilgrimages can often take place in the most remote areas Distance does not matter for believers; they can walk an impressive distance to worship the ancient statue of the Heavenly Empress Traveling to distant temples and inviting statues from other regions serves a positive social function This is a period of spiritual unity of the entire people, a sure way to remember and honor one’s roots, respect one’s religion, sacredly preserving its age-old truths