Chen Jianquan

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Chen Jianquan, Male, Han, from Macao, China, is a fifth-batch national representative bearer of Mazu Memorial Ceremony (Ⅹ-36). The tradition is documented in Macao, China. Within the regional tradition and school record of Mazu Memorial Ceremony in Macao, China: In Macao, Mazu is called A-Ma, and the A-Ma Temple is also known to locals as the Mazu Pavilion, the Zhengjue Chanlin, the Haijue Temple, or the Queen of Heaven Temple; behind a single temple's many names lie the various ways the same body of believers refers to it, and the changing back and forth of the names is the mark of how the belief has taken root locally. The custom is run by the neighborhood communities on a rotating basis: the donation ledger is counted in public; the sacred cups are tossed, with one face up and one face down deciding the winner; and the winning neighborhood respectfully brings the statue home to worship it for a year, to be handed on to the next neighborhood the following year. In this way the statue moves back and forth between neighborhoods, tying the different districts of all Macao together. The Macao Mazu belief and customs are a folk-belief practice handed down by the people of Macao for more than 500 years, rooted in reverence for Mazu's great virtue and great love. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, most officials who traveled to Macao would go to the Mazu temple to burn incense and pray for blessings.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, Han, born in November 1947, a native of the Macao Special Administrative Region. He grew up at the A-Ma Temple from childhood, and from the age of thirty-five inherited the beliefs and customs of his forebears and took part in promoting Mazu belief culture. At forty he became chairman of the Macao A-Ma Temple Land and Water Theatrical Association, leading the faithful in jointly organising, preparing and taking part in the celebrations of Mazu's birthday. He took the lead in establishing a working group to promote Mazu belief culture, organised donations for people in impoverished areas and spread Mazu's great compassion. He has persisted in holding a series of cultural and artistic activities in the ritual theatre shed of the A-Ma Temple in order to promote and publicise Mazu beliefs and customs. Within the documented technical tradition of Mazu Memorial Ceremony in Macao, China: Through such forms as visiting the temple to burn incense, offering golden pigs in sacrifice, donating charitable funds, decorating with flower plaques, and staging operas to celebrate the birthday, the faithful pray for Mazu's protection for favorable weather and peace on water and land. The A-Ma Temple is one of Macao's oldest temples; originally called the "Mazu Pavilion," it also has such alternative names as the "Zhengjue Chanlin," the "Haijue Temple," the "Mazu Temple," and the "Queen of Heaven Temple." It sits at the foot of A-Ma Hill at the southern tip of the Macao Peninsula. According to historical research, its history can be traced back at least more than 400 years. The A-Ma Temple's standing has received official recognition: at the top of the stone wall behind the shrine of the "First on the Divine Mountain" hall, there is a stone inscription from the Wanli era of the Ming dynasty reading "Built by Li Feng, the palace eunuch and imperial envoy supervising the pearl-pool and maritime-trade taxes of Guangdong and concurrently in charge of the salt administration." Belief in Mazu has a long history in Macao and is deeply rooted in the people's hearts. The people of Macao have believed for generations that Mazu can protect safety on water and land, bring prosperity in business, and watch over their descendants; they respectfully call Mazu "A-Ma," and the conviction that "when people act, A-Ma is watching" is deeply rooted in their hearts. On ordinary days the A-Ma Temple is never without the smoke of incense; at Lunar New Year's Eve each year and on the 23rd day of the third lunar month, the birthday of the Queen of Heaven, the incense burns even more thickly. Pilgrims converge from all directions, devoutly burning incense, worshipping, and kowtowing in prayer. A rich variety of activities is also held on the site, with purple smoke hanging in the air above the A-Ma Temple and an atmosphere of peace and harmony all around. In the days around the 23rd day of the third lunar month, the people of Macao perform shengong operas on the open ground in front of the A-Ma Temple, expressing their reverence for Mazu. After more than a century, the annual A-Ma birthday shengong opera has taken on a fixed ritual form. When the donation ledger is opened, the funds raised are counted in public; the process is open and transparent, preventing those who hold the ledger from secretly taking a cut. The various neighborhood communities take turns tossing the sacred cups (shengbei); one face up and one face down counts as a win, and the winning community respectfully welcomes the statue of the Queen of Heaven into its homes to be worshipped. The idea that Mazu protects all people, high or low, rich or poor, is widely accepted by the people of Macao. The shengong banquet sets out tables on the ground in front of the A-Ma Temple, creating an atmosphere in which gods and people rejoice together. The stage and theater shed for the shengong opera are built on the open ground in front of the A-Ma Temple, with the stage facing directly toward the statue of Mazu, achieving a perfect fusion of entertaining the gods and entertaining the people. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The incense peaks of New Year and the birthday": Incense never ceases at the temple, but the eve of the lunar year and the goddess's birthday bring pilgrims from every quarter. "Opening the subscription book in public": Subscriptions are counted in public at the opening, so no one keeps the book and skims off the takings. "Casting the divination blocks": Each neighbourhood in turn casts the blocks; an upright pair wins, and that household carries the goddess home for the year. "The divination play of the birthday": For several days around the birthday the faithful stage merit plays in the square before the temple, the stage facing the goddess.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

National representative bearer of the Mazu Memorial Ceremony (Macao Mazu Beliefs and Customs), a fifth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. Third-generation transmitter of Macao Mazu beliefs and customs. He has long been devoted to the protection and transmission of Macao Mazu beliefs and customs, organising students to visit the birthday celebrations and training further transmitters through oral instruction and the telling of stories.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Chen Jianquan · National Representative Bearer Archive