One of the most important events on Taiwan's folk calendar, the Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage started at midnight on Saturday. Thousands of devotees burned incense for the sea goddess at the Zhenlan Temple in central Taiwan's Dajia City.
Thousands of pilgrims swarmed into the Dajia City temple district to witness the start of the annual tour made by Zhenlan Temple's Statue of Mazu. Most of these dedicated devotees had been waiting for hours to get a brief glimpse of the Holy Roller.
The statue's journey started with a billowing cloud of incense smoke and a deafening blare of horns sounding the clarion call. On its eight-day and seven-night tour it will cover more than 300 kilometers and visit around 70 temples in four cities in central Taiwan. It's estimated that millions of people will pay homage to the goddess along the way.
Originating in Fujian Province over 1,000 years ago, the worship for Mazu has turned into a wide-spread belief across south China. Many Taiwanese have held on to their faith and kept the custom alive for more than a millennium.
The Mazu Culture Tourist Festival held in Fujian since 1994 has attracted a huge number of Taiwanese. The event has become one of the most important cross-Straits cultural links as it gives islanders the opportunity to search for their roots.
(CCTV.com April 7, 2003)
