How much do you know about Mazu's birthday? There are different opinions about Mazu's date of birth and death in history.

In history, there are different opinions about the year of Mazu's birth and death.

Every year on the 23rd day of the third lunar month, people in Tian Fei can be seen doing all kinds of activities everywhere, because this day is the birthday of Empress Mazu. But do you know that there are many versions of Lin Moniang's birth year in history? What are the sources and credibility of these statements? Listen to the analysis of teacher Cai Xianghui, who has studied Mazu belief for many years, in Tian Fei's Epiphany and Mazu Belief!

When is Mazu's birth and death year?

The first theory says that he was born in the first year of Stegosaurus in Song Taizu (960) and died in the fourth year of Yongxi (987). Liu Kezhuang, a Putian writer, was born in the first year. Liu wrote in "Fengting Princess Temple":

"The princess with a woman, and stegosaurus reality excited at the same time, infinite joy, incense spread all over the world, boundless. 」

According to it. Such as Epiphany Record, Tianhou Zhi, Xu Baoguang's Biography of Zhongshan, and Huang Zhou's Biography of Ryukyu Kingdom all adopt this theory, while Epiphany Record further states that the date of birth is March 23rd, and it rose in Meizhou Island on September 9th, the 4th year of Yongxi (987). This statement has become a common practice. Since the Qing Dynasty, temples all over the country have held Mazu festivals.

The second theory is that he was born on March 23rd, the first year of Tang Tianbao (742), and the year of his death is unknown. The article "The Complete Works of Exploring the Sources of the Three Religions" published in Wanli Period of Ming Dynasty, Volume 4, "Tianfei Niangniang" records:

"Mother Chen, try the dream of Guanyin and swallow it with a good bowl of flowers. She was pregnant and was born in April, and was born on March 23rd of the first year of Tang Tianbao. ..... and swearing is not suitable for people, that is, parents dare not force them to die, so they sit up and wait for death. 」

Li Xianzhang's book A Survey of the Legend of Mazu in the Three Religions, centering on the biography of Tian Fei's mother and mother, once verified that the editor of the book wrote the biography of Tianfei Niangniang according to the biography of Mrs. Linshui in the first year of Tang Dali, so that the first year of Tang Tianbao was regarded as the year of Tian Fei's birth, so the statement was groundless.

The third theory is that he was born on March 23rd in the 8th year of Yuan You, Song Zhezong (1093) and died on February 19th in the 4th year of Yongxi (987). There are thirty-two pictures in Putian County Chronicle by Qianlong, which were interpreted by immortals. In Tianhou, this view was held, but in the year of birth, it was added: "A cloud is peaceful and rejuvenating the country for four years." 1979 Taiping rejuvenating the country for four years. Ganlong's Xianyou County Records also holds this view.

However, this statement is obviously wrong. If you were born in the eighth year and died in the fourth year, your birth year will be later than your death year, and vice versa. It is unreasonable to be born in Taiping for four years and die in Yongxi for four years, but he was only nine years old when he died.

The fourth theory is that he was born on March 23rd, the fourth year of Taiping Xingguo in Song Taizong, and died on October 10th, the first year of Dazhong Xiangfu (979- 1008). The "spiritual woman" in the genealogy of Nanzhulin holds this view and says:

"Song Taiping Xingguo was born on March 23rd of the first year of Dazhong Xiangfu and died on October 10th. In the Song Dynasty, Huiling helped Shun Yinglie's wife. In the eighteenth year of Yuan Dynasty, Xinghua Road was sealed to show Tian Fei. In the third year, Dade was sealed to protect the country, protect the people and shelter Tian Fei. 」

The genealogy of Nanzhulin was compiled during the Yingzong period of the Ming Dynasty, and has been rebuilt several times. The founder of this house is Sun, Jiu Mu Lin Zao VI. Lin's Genealogy of Nanzhu was written in the middle of Ming Dynasty, earlier than the version of Mr. Lu, and its credibility is not low, just because it is not widely circulated, scholars rarely quote it.

The above four statements, the first is that he was born in the first year of Stegosaurus, based on Liu Kezhuang's "Fengting Newly Built Princess Temple". Liu Wenben was praising Mazu for being born in the Song Dynasty. After his death, he will protect his country and people forever. This is not enough for Lin Mo to live in the first year of Stegosaurus. Moreover, in the first year of Stegosaurus, Putian was still in the separatist period and was not ruled by the Song Dynasty. Moreover, Maureen's great-grandfather lived in seclusion in Meizhou Island when Zhou Xiande was in power, and it was unreasonable to give birth to his seventh great-grandson two or three years later. The second theory, which was born in the Tang Dynasty, is from the Complete Book of the Origin of Three Religions, but it is inconsistent with the existing historical records of the Song and Yuan Dynasties, so no one agrees with it later. The third theory is that he was born in the eighth year of Song Dynasty. Comparing the temple records written by Liao Pengfei and Ding Bogui, Yuan You Bingyin (the first year, 1086) told Mazu to build a temple with a dream pier, which shows that the age division is too late.

The fourth four-year-old theory of peaceful rejuvenation comes from the genealogy of Nanzhulin. Some families in Fujian that have passed down for thousands of years have ancestral halls and genealogies, such as Lin's family in Nanzhu, Zhu's family in Shenzhen and Li's family in Baitang. Because these genealogies are not circulated in Fu Zi, it is difficult to see and quote them in academic circles. 1990 Jiang Weikun's "Mazu Literature" quoted the chapter of Lingnv in Nanzhulin's Genealogy, and its content is only known overseas. The founder of Nanzhulin family is the grandson of Jiumu Linzao VI. According to Lin Linluo's Preface to Mr. Tian Fei, Maureen is the ninth grandson of Shaozhou Secretariat (Lin Yun). Although there are differences in family division, he is of the same origin as the Nanzhulin family, and the historical materials are highly reliable. In addition, the statement that Lin Mo died in Taiping and Xingguo for four years, the first year of Dazhong Xiangfu, happened to be thirty years old, which is consistent with Shu Min's statement. This is a well-founded statement about Maureen's birth and death year.

Secondly, the fourth year of Taiping and Xingguo is the year when Putian was formally incorporated into the territory of Song Dynasty and Xinghua County was established, which is a new era for Putian people. Liu Kezhuang's song "Fengting Newly Built Princess Temple" said that "the princess was excited with a woman and a real stegosaurus at the same time, and she went to be a god". From the political point of view of Putian, Song Taizu is a symbol of the Song Dynasty, and the year of establishing a county is an exciting year for Putian. There are two reasons for this. One is that in the Five Dynasties, Putian was ruled by the King of Min, the known son was destroyed by the Southern Tang Dynasty, and Putian was ruled by Chen and Liu Congxiao. In the first year of Stegosaurus in Song Taizu, Jiangnan and Fujian were not included in the territory. After Song Taizong acceded to the throne, he was determined to develop the South. In the third year of Taiping (978), Chen occupied the territory, and the people of Putian were relieved of the suffering of exorbitant taxes and weapons, which was tantamount to a new life. Tian Fei Sage Record takes Song Taizu's birthday as the founding date, and pushes Tian Fei's birthday to 19, which is more metaphorical than Liu Kezhuang's statement.