Temple Fair (Tea Garden Tour)

Guangdong
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The tea garden fair is the Dongyue Temple Fair, a traditional folk activity for worshipping Dongyue Emperor in Chashan, Dongguan. It is said that the Dongyue Temple in Chashan was first built in the early Ming Dynasty and was built by mistake by Dongguan Bo Hezhen. By the late Ming Dynasty, the tea garden fair had become a local custom. The "Chashan Township Chronicle" of the Qing Dynasty once recorded the grand occasion of the fair, "In the middle of the Wanli period, Dongyue descended in March, and the thirteen squares inside and outside the city were excited, and all the incense and flowers were waiting for him." The tea garden fair is held from the 25th to the 27th of the third lunar month every year. It is held before the birthday of Dongyue Emperor. It is also called "walking Bodhisattva" and "roasting pig meeting" in the local area. In the old days, the tea garden fair was organized by the local clans and squares, and the five squares took turns, each square was on duty for one year, and it repeated over and over again. March 25th is the day to welcome the gods. In the early morning of that day, Taoist rituals such as the ritual of presenting a table were held in the Dongyue Temple. Before dawn, people from all directions of the local squares flocked to the Dongyue Temple to worship, burn incense and pray. At noon, the villagers took the statue of Dongyue Emperor out of the temple to pray for blessings, which is called "setting up the meeting". After lunch, the parade officially began. The parade team was composed of "walking Bodhisattva team" and "performance team". The "walking Bodhisattva" was Lei Shuai, Kang Shuai, Zi Yi, Lu Yi, Tudi, Fulao, Guandi, Dongyue Emperor and other eight gods, carried by young and strong men, and ran all the way to the tea garden. The performance team followed closely. The first part was the "literary tour team", all of whom were beautifully dressed boys and girls; the second part was the "storytelling team (piaose)", with children dressed up as characters in folk stories; the third part was the "auspicious beast team", with dragon dance, lion dance, unicorn and other auspicious beast performances; the fourth part was the "flying report (equestrian performance)". The parade lasted for three days until the evening of the 27th, when the Bodhisattva was carried back to the temple and put back to its original place. This was called "Bodhisattva returning to the altar", and the parade ended. During the temple fair, each neighborhood also raised funds to invite a troupe to perform a big show (i.e. Cantonese opera). Every household in the tea garden warmly invited relatives and friends to come to the temple fair and watch the big show. They watched the temple fair during the day and gathered in the theater to watch the big show at night. On March 28th, the birthday of the Emperor Dongyue, the good men and women in the tea garden and neighboring villages carried roasted pigs and sacrifices to burn incense and receive "noble people" in the early morning to pray for blessings. After burning incense, they returned to the village and each household distributed the roasted pig. The tea garden fair mainly focuses on folk sacrifices and traditional parades, integrating various folk arts, and has become an important display venue for local folk customs and culture. It has important research value for folk beliefs, social culture, etc. in the Pearl River Delta region.

Intangible culture related to the heritage

China tourist attractions related to the heritage