Wuqih Chao Yuan Temple Introduction
The early residents of Wuqii primarily made a living through "fishing." The plaque "Yongkang Sihai" on the main hall of Chaoyuan Temple best reflects this. Located on Wuqii Old Street, Chaoyuan Temple is respectfully referred to by the locals as "Mazu Temple." The main deity enshrined in the temple is the Heavenly Mother, commonly known as Mazu in folk belief. The faith in Mazu is crucial in Wuqii, as the early inhabitants relied on fishing. Whether it was in commercial trade with China or engaging in fishing and near-shore aquaculture, they sought the protection of Mazu, the guardian of the sea, for calm waters and favorable winds. Chaoyuan Temple currently preserves a statue known as "Kaiji Mazu," which is a branch spirit from the Tianhou Temple in Meizhou, Fujian, China. It is said that Lin Yinde, the Salt Supervisor, rented the temple in Meizhou to respectfully invite the statue to Wuqii for worship. Later, during the Xianfeng era, a Mazu temple was built on the west coast of Wuqii, and since the Mazu statue enshrined there is one of the six foundational Mazu statues from the Ascension Cave of the Meizhou ancestral temple, worshippers commonly refer to this statue as "Kaiji Mazu."
