What are the customs of worshipping Fenggang Pearl Goddess on the 17th day of the first lunar month?
Introduction: Our country is vast and rich in resources. It is also a typical multi-ethnic country and therefore has rich folk cultural content. The first month of the lunar year is not only the Spring Festival, but also many folk festivals and activities. So, have you ever heard about the worship of Pearl Goddess in Fenggang on the 17th day of the first lunar month? Now, let’s follow the editor to learn about it. The festive culture of the Chinese New Year is rich and colorful, and extraordinary. If you want to know more related content, just search in the Spring Festival special topic carefully compiled by Mr. Shui Mo!customThe annual "Jigangma" folk activity is about to begin. The Chaoshan area is rich in folk activities, and the Haojiang District has also preserved many traditional folk activities with distinctive local characteristics. Among them, the annual "Jigangma" folk activity is the most representative and influential.Fenggang Village is close to the Haojiang River. There is a hill shaped like a chicken, which serves as a barrier for the settlement. In the middle of the Yuan Dynasty, a family named Zheng came here to fish and settled down, and they multiplied and formed a township, which was later renamed Fenggang Village. Fenggang Village is located near mountains and rivers, and has agriculture, fishing, salt and other industries. "Thin shells" are its specialty. Fenggang Village is also famous for its "Jigangma" folk custom. The "Jigangma" folk custom is centered around the worship of "Pearl Goddess". Every year on the 17th day of the first lunar month, in addition to the villagers worshipping, there are also thousands of foreign tourists who go to participate. There is an old saying that "Jigangma welcomes foreign guests". The celebration of worshiping the "Pearl Goddess" of Fenggang on the 17th day of the first lunar month is a folk activity with local characteristics in Dahao area and even in the eastern Guangdong area. "Fenggang Mother" is the common name for her, and her name is Pearl Goddess. Because of her miraculous powers, every year on the 17th day of the first lunar month, in addition to the villagers, there are thousands of devout men and women from other places who come to make pilgrimage. So when did the "17th day of the first lunar month worship ceremony" begin? According to legends from the old folks in the village, there are different opinions. One says it has existed since ancient times; another says it was during the Ming and Qing Dynasties; a third says it was in the late Qing Dynasty. However, these opinions have not been verified so far, so this question remains a mystery? It is said that in the old society, the worship activities on the 17th day of the first lunar month were not like they are now. The worship activities on the 17th day of the first lunar month were held in turns by the Yongsi and Baoben ancestral halls respectively. Each ancestral hall had a turn to hold the shrine and incense burner every two years, and each ancestral hall would invite "Goddess of Pearl" to their own ancestral hall for worship. The worship of "Fenggang Ma" was interrupted during the war and the Cultural Revolution. After the Cultural Revolution, the worship activities were resumed, breaking the tradition of holding the worship in the upper and lower ancestral halls separately, and were unified in the current "Pearl Niangniang Temple". There are tens of thousands of worshippers every year, and the gods will respond to all prayers (this is a bit superstitious). People from other places come here to worship the goddess of mercy. Under the correct guidance of the new religious and folk policies in the new era, the "Fenggang Mother" worship activity has become a local folk activity. Featured EventsThe "Pearl Goddess Temple" is located on the north side of the Jigang Mountain, facing the Haojiang River (it is unknown when the ancient temple was built), surrounded by woods, with a pool in front and a well on each side. It has a beautiful feng shui, as the saying goes "A mountain is not famous because of its immortals, not its height." The special activities of this folk activity include:1. Live table: During the worship activities, a rich and varied offering is placed in front of the "Pearl Goddess" shrine. This scene is not uncommon in superstitious activities in other parts of Chaoshan. The unique thing is that there are several live chickens, ducks and geese on the offering table during the "Fenggang Mother" worship activities. These guys showed no fear despite the crowds watching and the continuous roar of firecrackers, and they were just strolling leisurely around the tables. Some people may ask whether these live chickens, ducks, and geese have been specially trained and what their functions are? They are all raised by ordinary families, but are "enlightened" by the Pearl Goddess before being served at the table. They are returned to their owners after the worship ceremony. They are not just decorations on the table. Their main mission is to serve as health inspectors for the "Pearl Goddess". There are hundreds of offerings on the table. They will walk around in the table and turn over any unclean offerings they find. There is a rule in the village that after the worship activities are over, the offerings that have not been overturned will be distributed to each household in the village according to the household, so that they can eat in peace! Offerings that have been overturned by live chickens or ducks will have one phenomenon or another. Once, a needle was found in a cake, and once, a hair was found in the "base plate" (this type of cake). 2. Continuous firecrackers: Before the government banned fireworks, the sound of firecrackers was continuous in Fenggang on the 17th day of the first lunar month. If you stay at the scene for an hour or two, you will know its characteristics. Many worshippers have the habit of offering firecrackers for a good omen - prosperity. When worshipping, they offer a large string of firecrackers and check whether their firecrackers go loudly on the gun stand with the cannon stone. Is the fighting continuous or not? In this way, the firecrackers will keep ringing all day long, which is spectacular! pity! It no longer has the charm of that day! 3. Crisp candy towers: Crisp candy towers are also offered on the tables for worship activities. They are made of crisp candy and are shaped like a tower. Most of them are custom-made by the village collective, "associations" (small folk collectives), and outside units. In the past, there was a spirit of competition among "associations". Every year, they would compete to see whose crisp candy tower was the tallest. Crisp candy towers once developed to a height of 5 or 6 meters. Due to venue and height restrictions, the spirit of competition for crisp candy towers was later curbed. This is also rare in Chaoshan area. 4. The first incense stick: The so-called "first incense stick" is the first incense stick offered by the villagers of Fenggang Village on the 17th day of the first lunar month after a big incense stick. It is said that the "first incense stick" can bring good luck to the person who burns it, so every year thousands of people compete to burn the "first incense stick" in order to have good luck in the new year. The council would implement precautions when lighting the big incense sticks by the villagers. Once the incense offering ceremony was over, people vying for the "first incense stick" would rush in, creating a spectacular scene. 5. Squeezing through the stone gate: Those who have been there for the pilgrimage will surely remember that to enter the worship site, they had to squeeze through a stone gate in the crowd. This stone gate was formed by two large natural stones sandwiched together, and the stone gate only allowed two people to pass through at the same time. On the 17th day of the first lunar month, during the "Fenggang Mother" pilgrimage, tens of thousands of people squeezed through this gate. There are many legends about Shimen Village. The stone on the left is called "Turtle Stone"; the stone on the right is called "Crab Stone", both of which are named because they look like turtles and crabs. The turtle is known as the symbol of longevity, and the crab is known as the symbol of health, so this stone gate has the metaphor of happiness and longevity. There are many legends and contents in the "Fenggang Ma" worship activities, such as: praying for a son, worshipping big red peaches and so on. Summary: Through the above article, we know about the customs and activities of worshiping Fenggang Pearl Goddess on the 17th day of the first lunar month. I hope you will like the above content. I wish you all smooth sailing and good luck in the new year! After reading this article, there are more exciting content in the Spring Festival special topic, let’s take a look! |
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