南台湾水仙宫探究.pdf

The Research of Ocean Gods Temple at Southern Taiwan We-lin Chen Department of Chinese National Kaohsiung Normal University ABSTRACT A popular saying is that there is one small temple within 5 steps and one big temple within 10 steps in Taiwan The various kinds of the Gods worshipped in the temples are closely coupled with the daily lives of the people living in Taiwan. Ocean Gods Temple and Heavenly Queen Temple, which worship the ocean gods, represent a Taiwanese traditional belief full of the color of oceanic nature due to the geologic environment of the island. Ocean Gods Temple worships the ocean Gods such as Ta Yu, Wu Yuan, Chi Yen, Wang Bo, and Li Pai. They are important historic figures and connect the critical historical events. Obviously Ocean Gods Temple is filled with the Confucian characteristic originating from the conventional Chinese culture. Therefore this temple is distinguished from the other temples in Taiwanese traditional belief which are the mixture of Confucian, Buddhism, and Taoism. However, the Ocean Gods Temple has been fading with the changing generations and has been less known to the people contrasted with the popular Heavenly Queen Temple. God, a symbol or a concept, can be discussed widely and thoroughly Temple is another token worthy of discussion. The purpose of the article is to research and discuss the history of Taiwanese folklore beliefs and implicit cultural meaning of Ocean Gods Temple by studying the related historia articles and surveying the field. From worshipping the God to understanding the God, it intends to discover the original spirit of the Taiwanese folklore beliefs to better understand our culture and custom. Keyword ：Ocean Gods 、Ocean Gods Temple 、Taiwanese folklore beliefs 南台灣水仙宮探究 The Research of Ocean Gods Temple at Southern Taiwan