Lukang Tianhou Temple

{{Short description|Temple in Lukang, Changhua County, Taiwan}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2017}} {{Infobox religious building | name = Lukang Tianhou Temple | native_name = 鹿港天后宮 | native_name_lang = | image = 鹿港天后宮.JPG | image_upright = | alt = | caption = | map_type = Taiwan | map_size = 250px | map_alt = | map_relief = yes | map_caption = Taiwan | coordinates = {{coord|24.0593|N|120.4314|E|type:landmark_region:TW|display=inline,title}} | coordinates_footnotes = | religious_affiliation = | locale = | location = [[Lukang, Changhua|Lukang]], [[Changhua County]], [[Taiwan]] | deity = | rite = | sect = | tradition = | festival =  | cercle = | sector = | administration = | consecration_year = | organisational_status =  | functional_status = | heritage_designation = | ownership = | governing_body = | leadership = | bhattaraka = | patron = | religious_features_label = | religious_features = | architect = | architecture_type = [[List of Mazu temples|Mazu Temple]] | architecture_style = | founded_by = | creator = | funded_by = | general_contractor = | established = | groundbreaking = | year_completed = 1591<ref>{{cite web |title=天后宮 |url=http://crgis.rchss.sinica.edu.tw/temples/ChanghuaCounty/lugang/0702011-THG |website=Cultural Resources Geographical Information System |publisher=Academica Sinica |access-date=March 17, 2021 |language=zh-tw}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=鹿港天后宮 |url=https://www.taiwan.net.tw/m1.aspx?sNo=0001113&id=2155 |website=Taiwan.net |publisher=Tourism Bureau |access-date=March 17, 2021 |language=zh-tw}}</ref> | construction_cost = | date_demolished =  | facade_direction = | capacity = | length = | width = | width_nave = | interior_area = | height_max = | dome_quantity = | dome_height_outer = | dome_height_inner = | dome_dia_outer = | dome_dia_inner = | minaret_quantity = | minaret_height = | spire_quantity = | spire_height = | site_area = | temple_quantity = | monument_quantity = | shrine_quantity = | inscriptions = | materials = | elevation_m =  | elevation_footnotes = | nrhp = | designated = | added = | refnum = | footnotes = | website = }}

The '''Lukang Tianhou Temple''' ({{zh|t=鹿港天后宮|p=Lùgǎng Tiānhòu Gōng}}, alternatively "Tienhou"),<ref name=tb/><ref name=eit/> also known as the '''Lukang Mazu Temple''',<ref name=off>{{harvnb|Official site}}.</ref> is a [[Chinese temple|Chinese]] [[Mazu temples|temple]] dedicated to the [[Chinese god|Chinese]] [[Shen (Chinese religion)|Goddess]] [[Mazu]], the Goddess of Sea and Patron Deity of fishermen, sailors and any occupations related to sea/ocean. The temple is located at 430 Zhongshan Road<ref name=off/> in [[Lukang, Changhua|Lukang Township]], [[Changhua County]], [[Taiwan]]. It is one of the island's most famous and popular Mazu temples.

==History== The Goddess [[Mazu]] is the [[Shen (Chinese religion)|deified form]] of the Lin Moniang from [[Fujian]], traditionally dated AD{{nbsp}}960–987.<ref name=mazzystar>{{citation |contribution=Mazu Legend |contribution-url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/story.php?type=1 |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/ |title=''Official site'' |location=Lukang |date=2014 |publisher=Lugang Mazu Temple Commission }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref> Already popular among the Fujianese immigrants to Taiwan, her cult was particularly patronized by the [[Qing dynasty|Qing]], who credited her with [[Shi Lang]]'s [[Qing conquest of Taiwan|1683 conquest of the island]] from the [[Southern Ming|Ming]]-loyalist [[Kingdom of Tungning|Zheng clan]].<ref name=coolstorybro>{{citation |contribution=Miracles of Mazu |contribution-url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/story.php?type=2 |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/ |title=''Official site'' |location=Lukang |date=2014 |publisher=Lugang Mazu Temple Commission }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref>

The Lukang Tianhou Temple is sometimes claimed to date back to 1590,<ref name=eit>{{citation |title=English in Taiwan |contribution=Lugang's Amazing Tian Hou Gong Mazu Temple |contribution-url=https://www.englishintaiwan.com/travel-in-taiwan/central-taiwan-travel/lugang-tian-hou-gong-mazu-temple |url=https://www.englishintaiwan.com/ |date=2014 }}.</ref> though the earliest structure in the area dates to the end of the [[Ming dynasty|Ming]] in the 17th century.<ref name=co>{{citation |contribution-url=http://tourism.chcg.gov.tw/EN/hopSpotVR.aspx?id=284&chk=a433db1b-72c2-47a5-bfcc-dabd38bb2972 |contribution=Lukang Tianhou Temple |url=http://tourism.chcg.gov.tw/ |title=Travel in Changhua County |publisher=Changhua Government |date=2010 |location=[[Changhua City|Changhua]] }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref> The temple was moved to its present location in 1725 after [[Shi Shibang]] donated the land.<ref name=co/>

The temple was repaired in 1815<ref name=main/> and renovated in 1874.<ref name=co/> It was renovated again in 1927 under the direction of Wu Haitong and Wang Shufa,<ref name=main/> with most of its present structures completed by 1936.<ref name=tb>{{citation |title=Taiwan: The Heart of Asia |url=http://eng.taiwan.net.tw/ |contribution=Lukang Tianhou Temple |contribution-url=http://eng.taiwan.net.tw/m1.aspx?sNo=0002113&id=R133 |date=2016 |location=Taipei |publisher=Tourism Bureau of the Republic of China }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref> The woodwork was done by local artisans and masters from [[Quanzhou]] and [[Chaozhou]] on the mainland.<ref name=main/> It was made a 3rd-class historic site in 1985. The Mazu Folk Art Hall was opened in 1992.<ref name=co/>

==Legends== In addition to [[Lin Moniang#Legends|her many other legends]] and [[Lin Moniang#Myths|myths]], Mazu is credited with a number of miracles through the Lukang temple particularly. She was said to have answered the prayers of a gathering of 500 {{nowrap|people—}}including the vice-chairman of the provincial legislature, a [[National Assembly of South Africa|member of the national assembly]], and members of the [[Changhua County|county]] {{nowrap|council—}}on her birthday in 1960, ending an ongoing drought with a downpour at 2{{nbsp}}am the next morning. Thousands of residents gathered later that morning in appreciation.<ref name=coolstorybro/> On 10 May 1963, a bus carrying a group of teachers from Lukang's Haipu School and their relatives went off a wet road over the side of a cliff on the way to Taiwan's east coast. The believers among those saved by the trees which stopped the bus considered that the scene looked the same as Mazu's surname ({{lang|zh|{{linktext|林}}}}) and credited her divine protection. The bus stopped at the Lukang Mazu Temple on the way home and the entire group knelt and thanked her with incense.<ref name=coolstorybro/> In April 1972, Lin Tz-hang and his schoolmates from Jing Cheng High School went swimming in the ocean but found themselves miles at sea because of the rising tide. They had prayed to Mazu before they left and again in their extremity and were all saved by fishermen or oyster farmers returning home in the evening.<ref name=coolstorybro/>

==Architecture== [[File:Lugang Mazu Temple overview 20050730.jpg|thumb|right|200px|An overview of the temple complex, showing its [[paifang]], front hall, main hall, and rear hall.]] [[File:鹿港大天��宮藻井.JPG|thumb|right|200px|The temple's [[coffered ceiling]]]] The front or Sanchuan Hall<ref name=co/> has woodwork notably different from that elsewhere in the complex because it was added from Lukang's [[city god temple]] in 1933 when the Japanese began to destroy it as part of an urban replanning. The front hall's [[coffered ceiling]] includes sculptures of the [[Eight Immortals]] and paintings of the "Four Loves": fishing, woodcutting, planting, and reading. At its apex is a blossoming lotus. Its four corners are protected by stone [[Chinese lions|foo dogs]].<ref name=ceiling>{{citation |contribution-url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/history.php?type=4 |contribution=Bagua Coffered Ceiling |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/ |title=''Official site'' |location=Lukang |date=2014 |publisher=Lugang Mazu Temple Commission }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref> The ceiling's plaque was written by Wang Lan-pei in 1830 and invokes Mazu's protection (''Bo Hai Meng Xiu''). It is surmounted by a pair of toads carved by Shi Li, one holding a [[chrysanthemum]] in its teeth symbolizing long life and the other holding a [[camellia]] symbolizing a long and prosperous [[spring (season)|spring]].<ref name=ceiling/> Between the pillars are four beasts with [[Chinese dragon|dragon]] heads, fish tails, and bird wings carved by Lee Huan-mei. They are thought to offer the temple protection from fire.<ref name=ceiling/>

The main hall has three gates.<ref name=main>{{citation |contribution-url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/history.php?type=4 |contribution=The Main Hall |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/ |title=''Official site'' |location=Lukang |date=2014 |publisher=Lugang Mazu Temple Commission }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref> The passages to the temple's east and west wings are guarded by statues of [[Jing Zhu Gong]] and [[Zhu Sheng Niangniang]].<ref name=main/> At the rear entrance of the main hall are statues of a lion and an elephant.<ref name=ceiling/> Nearby are Shih Jin-fu's wood carvings of the "Four Best Things in Life": stretching, ear-cleaning, nose-picking, and scratching. A similar set done by Huang Lien-ji is located in the main hall itself.<ref name=ceiling/>

The rear hall was damaged in 1945 by [[Pacific War|the war]]. It was renovated in 1959 as part of the millennial celebrations of Mazu's birth.<ref name=pokerintherear>{{citation |contribution-url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/history.php?type=4 |contribution=The Rear Hall |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/ |title=''Official site'' |location=Lukang |date=2014 |publisher=Lugang Mazu Temple Commission }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref> It was renovated again in 1963, adding two doors to the original three and adjusting the balcony to create a larger octagonal shape.<Ref name=pokerintherear/>

Each of the three halls is fronted by a pair of pillars entwined with sculpted [[Chinese dragon|dragons]].<ref name=drag>{{citation |contribution-url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/history.php?type=4 |contribution=Dragon Pillars |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/ |title=''Official site'' |location=Lukang |date=2014 |publisher=Lugang Mazu Temple Commission }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref>

The rear of the temple includes a fountain<ref name=eit/> and various historical plaques are preserved on the premises, including three bestowed on the temple by the [[Yongzheng Emperor|Yongzheng]], [[Qianlong Emperor|Qianlong]], and [[Guangxu Emperor]]s and another from [[Wang Shaolan]], governor of [[Fujian]].<ref name=co/>

==Statues== [[File:鹿港天后宮─佑濟昭靈.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Statues of Deities]] The present hardbody main statue of Mazu (''Zhen Dian Ma'') was sculpted with sand by Shi Li in the 1930s as part of the temple's reconstruction. It is the largest statue of the deity in the temple and is located in the Main Hall.<ref name=actionfigures>{{citation |contribution=Deities |contribution-url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/history.php?type=5 |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/ |title=''Official site'' |location=Lukang |date=2014 |publisher=Lugang Mazu Temple Commission }}. {{in lang|zh}}{{nbsp}}& {{in lang|en}}</ref> It is flanked by its protectors [[Qianliyan]] and [[Shunfeng'er]], carved by Lian Yong-chuan in [[Quanzhou]]. Another set of Qianliyan and Shunfeng'er [[door gods|guard the doors]] of the hall.)<ref name=actionfigures/> The previous softbody statue was kept as a secondary Mazu (''Zhen Dian Er Ma''). It dates to a [[Qing dynasty|Qing]]-era reconstruction and was built by Lian Lai in [[Quanzhou]].<ref name=actionfigures/>

The [[Meizhou]] Kaiji Er Ma, allegedly brought to Lukang by [[Shi Lang]]<ref name=eit/> or by Lan Li and a monk from Meizhou, is known as the Dark-Faced Mazu (''Heimian Ma'') from the coloration produced by offerings of incense over its years of veneration. It is now usually kept in a separate hall.<ref name=actionfigures/> This statue was almost stolen from Lukang's faithful when they took it with them on a pilgrimage to the [[Mainland China|mainland]] at the end of the [[Qing dynasty|Qing]]. Prior to the 1922 pilgrimage, the temple president commissioned the Quanzhou carver Lian Yong-chua to produce another similar statue for use on such trips. This is now known as the Jinxiang Ma and is placed in the Main Hall except on occasions when the Meizhou Mazu is brought into that room.<ref name=actionfigures/>

The 12 villages of Xia Shi'er Zhuang have protected their crops with visits by the Guda Ma or Haoshou Ma since at least 1831. It is now kept at the Lukang Tianhou Temple, although the villagers requested the Jinxiang Ma replace it in 1995.<ref name=actionfigures/> The Gold Mazu (''Jin Mazu'') was built in 2002 from more than {{convert|150|kg|sp=us}} of gold donated by pilgrims. It is also inlaid with diamonds, emeralds, pearls, and rubies and flanked by a pair of angels constructed at the same time.<ref name=actionfigures/> The diminutive {{convert|8|inch|adj=on|sp=us}} Chuantou Ma is a specimen of the many statues of Mazu carried by Taiwanese sailors in shrines at the bows of their ships. It is carried to the Houzai Runzhe Temple during the Shisan Wangye Festival.<ref name=actionfigures/>

The rear hall also has statues of the [[Jade Emperor]] and the [[Sanguan Dadi]].<ref name=pokerintherear/>

==Gallery== <gallery class="center"> File:Lugang Mazu Temple gate 20110203.jpg | The [[paifang]] File:台灣省彰化縣鹿港鎮天后宮-1.JPG | Front hall entrance File:台灣省彰化縣鹿港鎮天后宮-8.JPG | One of the wings File:Inside-lugang-matzu-temple-.jpg | The courtyard File:台灣省彰化縣鹿港鎮天后宮-6.JPG | Main hall File:Wall-paintinglugang-matzu-temple-taiwan.jpg | A wall painting File:Dragon-lamp-lugang-matzu-temple-taiwan.jpg | A detail of the temple's lanterns File:Lugang-matzu-temple-taiwan.jpg | Stacks of small buddhas </gallery>

==References== {{reflist|30em}}

==External links== {{commons category}} * {{citation |url=http://www.lugangmazu.org/home.php |title=''Official site'' |ref={{harvid|Official site}} }}.

[[Category:Mazu temples in Changhua County]] [[Category:National monuments of Taiwan]] [[Category:1591 establishments in Taiwan]] [[Category:Religious buildings and structures completed in 1591]]