Matsu followers seek U.N.’s approval of deity’s cultural heritage

The idea was proposed Friday at a Taiwan Matsu cultural forum at the Jenn Lann Temple in Dajia in the central county of Taichung, which is a historical site of worship of Matsu, also known as the Chinese goddess of the sea. The event was part of the 2008 Taichung County Matsu International Festival, which began Feb. 21 and is scheduled to end April 28.

During the forum, Matsu believers from Japan, South Korea, Australia and Singapore shared their views on various ways of worshipping the goddess.

Taichung County Magistrate Huang Chung-sheng, who also attended the forum, said that Matsu culture, which is interwoven with a series of original worship and pilgrimage ceremonies, is not just a traditional folk religion. According to Huang, belief in Matsu and her power to bless believers has spread and gained depth through an increasing number of religious and cultural activities, including the annual around-the-island pilgrimage of the Dajia Matsu statue.

For over 200 years, the Jenn Nann Temple in Dajia township has been a religious mecca for Matsu worshipers in dozens of local villages, and has also drawn huge numbers of followers from all over the island. The Dajia Matsu pilgrimage in Spring is an internationally renowned event that draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims every year to worship and honor the goddess of the sea.

The complex and creative Matsu-worshipping ceremonies and activities have been listed by the Discovery Channel as one of three major religious festivals in the world, according to the 18th-century Jenn Nann Temple.

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