The worship ceremony of Mu Zu (Goddess of the Sea) refers to sacrificial activities closely related to the Ma Zu culture. It is prevalent in the coastal regions of Chinese mainland as well as Hong King, Macao, Taiwan and Southeast Asia. The worship ceremony of Mu Zu is known as "Three Major Worship Ceremonies in China" together with those at the Yellow Emperor Mausoleum and the Confucius Temple. Grand ceremony is held annually on the birthday of Ma Zu (the 23rd day of the 3rd lunar month) in the Ma Zu Temple on Meizhou Island, Fujian Province, China, which is the cradle of the Ma Zu culture.
Originally named Lin Mo, Ma Zu was born in the first year of Jianlong reign in the Song Dynasty. She was extraordinarily bright as a child. Due to her familiarity with astronomy and meteorology, Ma Zu often assisted the fish men in preventing epidemics and warding off calamities. In addition, she took the charity cause as her lifelong pursuit. After she passed away, people held her up as goddess of the sea and built temples to offer sacrifice to her. Since the Song Dynasty, emperors of Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties frequently granted honorable titles to Ma Zu and sent officials to offer sacrifice to her.
By now, the worship of Ma Zu has evolved from a sheer folk belief into a folk-custom culture of far-reaching influence. The annual memorial ceremony held in the Ma Zu Temple on Meizhou Island is joined by numerous disciples of Ma Zu including overseas Chinese. The ceremony is commenced under the masterminding of the officiant, assistant officiant and deaconry in the form of firing a solute, tolling and playing music. After that, people will take their own place, devoutly offering incense as well as kneeling three times and kowtowing nine times. The next steps are offering presents, playing music, and burning fete diction and precious silk. Finally, the ceremony is concluded in the thundering sound of bell, drum and fireworks. All adherents of Ma Zu from various places will devoutly offer incense, kneel and kowtow, with the whole course of ceremony presenting dignity and solemnness. Worship activities related to Ma Zu also include Inspection Tour of Ma Zu, Oblation of Vessel Model, and Sea Sacrifice, etc.
Ma Zu culture has been spread to the five continents with the footsteps of overseas Chinese in the long history. Other than creating strong cohesiveness among the Chinese in every corner of the world, Ma Zu culture serves as a cultural bridge and spiritual bond for solidifying overseas Chinese and communicating with the rest of the world in terms of culture. In 2006, Meizhou Worship Ceremony of Mu Zu was included in the List of National Intangible Culture Heritage.
