Temple Fair (Suzhou Zha Shen Xian Temple Fair)

Jiangsu
🎧  Listen to Introduction

Temple fair (Suzhou Zha Shenxian Temple Fair), one of the national intangible cultural heritages. "Zha Shenxian" was originally a folk religious activity, and later gradually evolved into a grand temple fair that integrates Taoist culture and folk culture. It has become a unique landscape that embodies the enduring folk cultural phenomena of Suzhou people. It is also a big stage for the extensive display of folk traditional arts such as dragon dance, lion dance, flower carrying, pavilion lifting, folk blowing and beating, etc., which plays a role in both entertaining gods and entertaining oneself. Over time, it has become a major folk festival in Suzhou, and it has also formed a market event that integrates folk crafts, agricultural production tools, flowers, birds, fish, insects, and local snacks. Since the Chunxi period of the Song Dynasty (1174-1194 AD), Suzhou has a custom that on the 14th day of the fourth lunar month, the birthday of Lu Zu (Lü Dongbin, one of the legendary Eight Immortals), Suzhou people and even some towns and villages in Wuxi, Shanghai, and northern Zhejiang spontaneously go to Fu Ji Temple (Shenxian Temple) to burn incense. According to folklore, on this day, Lü Chunyang will transform into a beggar, a doctor, or a small vendor to mingle among the crowd of people who come to Fuji Temple to help the world and enlighten the common people. Lü Chunyang is a master of medicine, and he is revered as the founder of Suzhou traditional Chinese medicine. Patients with difficult and complicated diseases who have no money to treat them often go to the temple to burn incense and pray for immortal prescriptions on the 13th or 14th day of the lunar month. Therefore, people squeeze and jostle in the temple of immortals. It is said that squeezing can get "immortal spirit", eliminate disasters and diseases, prolong life, and bring good luck and wealth. As time goes by, it becomes a habit, and it is called "squeezing immortals". During this temple fair, Xiatang Street inside Changmen, Suzhou, becomes a market, which is very lively and crowded. Every space and every corner of Xiatang is packed with people, and people squeeze and jostle each other, which is very lively. Whoever is lucky enough to squeeze an immortal will occupy the immortal spirit, and will naturally have good luck, wealth and honor in the future. Everyone who "crushes the gods" may be a god, and everyone who "crushes the gods" may be crushed by a god. Even if their feet are broken, their shoes are crushed, and their clothes are torn, they have no complaints, and they will not quarrel in the street. Instead, they feel that "the more they are crushed, the more gods they become", and they are very happy. In 2014, the temple fair (Suzhou Crush the Gods Fair) was approved by the State Council of the People's Republic of China to be included in the fourth batch of national intangible cultural heritage list, numbered -84.

Intangible culture related to the heritage

China tourist attractions related to the heritage

World heritage related to the heritage