A-Ma Temple was built in the 16th century. Shown
is its main hall (Women of China)Macau, which
has been open to the outside world since the Ming and Qing dynasties
(1368-1911), is a place where Chinese and Western cultures have met. In Macau,
an area of merely 25 square kilometres, there are 43 ancient temples and 20
churches which were built during the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Oriental and
Western civilizations exist harmoniously, reflecting and shining with each
other, and creating a unique character of the culture in the area.
Macau,
open to the outside since the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), has become
gradually a unique place where Chinese and Western cultures melt with each
other. In Macau, an area of merely 25 square kilometres, there are 43 ancient
temples and 20 churches, built in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Even before
Macau became a port for foreign trade, the famous A-Ma Temple was built. The
temples in Macau are in a unique system, extremely rare to see in other places
whether it is in mainland China or in Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Worshipping of Heavenly Goddess is popular in
Macau (Women of China)
Among temples
there, Lin Fung Temple is the largest and most luxurious in its construction,
with both artistic and historical values. It was built by Qihe, an eminent monk,
in the Year of Wanli in Ming Dynasty.
The temple was originally only for
the worshipping of the Heavenly Goddess and an ancient horizontal inscribed
board from that era remains in the temple and is considered a precious relic of
at least 400 years of age.
Lin Fung Temple, A-Ma Temple and Kun Lam
Temple or Kun Lam Tong, also known as Pou Chai Sim Yun, are the main three
ancient temples which hold important positions in the history of foreign
exchanges. Special significance is attached to Lin Fung Temple since it is an
official temple.
In the summer of 1844, five years after the invention of
photography, a Frenchman, Jules Itier, took some pictures in Macau while he was
there as a member of a French delegation involved in the negotiation of the
Sino-French “Huangpu Treaty” which further specified French privilege in Macau.
One of the pictures was of the gate of A-Ma Temple. So A-Ma Temple became
one of the first Chinese photographs ever taken and also one of the important
witnesses of the blending of Chinese and Western cultures.
The Hall of Heavenly Goddess in Temple Kun
Lam (Women of China)The temples in
Macau do not have a strong religious colour and are mostly used for the
worshiping of ordinary people. Worshipping of the Jinhua Goddess, seen
everywhere in Macau, originated in Lingnan, an area covering Guangdong and
Guangxi. It is said that the goddess can not only ensure a smooth labour but
also bless children with safe growth.
There are more than 10 temples for Jinhua Goddess worshipping. Among them, Lianxi Temple and Baogong Temple are the largest, each having a dozen statues of Jinhua Goddess, with some holding a baby and some breast-feeding a baby.
Folk worshipping in Macau is mainly inherited from mainland China’s Central
Plains, such as Bodhisattva Guanyin, the Heavenly Goddess, Guan Di (Saintly
Warrior), the Buddha Sakyamuni, Lüzu (Immortal Lü Dongbin), Nüwa (the Chinese
legendary ancestor of mankind), Yandi (Divine Farmer), Caishenye (the god of
good fortune), Lu Ban (the Taoist Master Carpenter) and the Kitchen God. These
gods and goddesses have a deep influence on the belief of the citizens of
Chinese origin in Macau.
Temple art in Macau mainly includes six types:
the temple literature, architectures, sculptures, calligraphy, paintings and
theatrical art. With a long history and deep origin, the literature and art of
the temple in Macau is an indispensable subject for the study on the history of
literature in Macau. There are five forms for the Macau temple art: tablet
inscriptions, scroll couplets, plaques, travel notes and poetry.
Jinhua Goddess (the front) and Doumu Goddess (the
back) have a wide influence among the people in the delta areas of
Zhujiang River (Women of China)
Temples are considered special constructions for both gods and human beings,
so they, on one hand, are open and on the other hand, have to have a mystical
colour to attract devotees. Temple construction in Macau is mainly in three
styles: hall-style, garden-style and single room- or house-style.
In the
40 temples in Macau, there are more than 1,000 statues, an important part of the
sculpture art. Included in the architectural art of the temples are also the
tops of walls, tile ridges, stone and rock carvings and wooden carvings. The
number of the steles couplets in these temples is more than 1,000, in addition
to more than 100 murals, paintings and cliff engravings--quite a number of them
done by celebrities.
The celebration of gods’ birthdays is one of the
important public activities held at Macau temples. Such activities, in mythology
enjoyed by both gods and human beings, have lasted more than 100 years and have
still a strong life as a popular art form.
Macau is the Chinese city with
the longest history of being “open” to the outside world and foreigners and
Chinese live together there with Chinese as the majority. Generations of the
residents have created the marvelous temples―the treasure and pride of Macau
people.
(Source: Women of China English Monthly December
2004)
