Experience the Beauty and Moving of "Mazu's Encounter"

        In Taiwan, the belief in Mazu is as natural as sunshine, air and water. There is a Minnan proverb, "Mad Mazu in March", which fully reflects the grand situation of Mazu in March of the lunar calendar. Although the time of Mazu Temple's encounter varies from place to place, Dajia Mama's encounter, the most popular encounter in the central region, usually falls on the Lantern Festival to determine the date of encounter.

---

        Last year was my fourth year of participating in "Dajia Mama's Entrance". I remember that in the first year of participating in this Taiwanese folk belief activity in the localization, apart from struggling with the company for nine consecutive days off, I hardly had much preparation to start from Dajia. I followed Mazu's sedan chair all the way to Changhua, but I didn't expect to fall down physically near Zhangji and be sent to the hospital for emergency treatment. It ended its first trip in just one day.
        
         Lying in the emergency ward at the moment, my heart has been regretting: "The hard-won vacation, unexpectedly so sour, what is the meaning of this trip? "Although I was very disappointed, maybe it was Mazu's blessing in the dark. Instead, I did a lot of health checks and started to get up early to exercise to make myself healthier. It was a great turning point for me to approach the age of perplexity.

        In the next two years, because of the relationship between work, I couldn't fully participate in the nine days and eight nights. One time, I followed Mazu to Xiluo and returned home. The other time, I followed Mazu to Xingang on foot in the first half, returned home to work for a few days, and then went back to Xingang to chase Mazu by bicycle. Because most of them are in the situation of one person rushing or falling behind, it's not the situation that I really want to experience. So, just last year, a complete journey was finally planned.
        
         This time, I first read the records and experiences shared by many people on the Internet. I wanted to take good pictures and keep records for myself on the way to the world, but I always felt like doing something more meaningful. Finally, I decided to share all these with my relatives and friends.
                 In an age of developed communities, the most convenient way to share experiences is to take pictures, type cards, send texts or broadcast live. But it's hard to get into the hearts of the people for that kind of itinerary record, which is almost like a running account. Sometimes people just slide their fingertips across the cell phone and don't care about the internal text at all. In addition to arranging holidays and adjusting my health, I also reorganize my friend's address. In addition to visiting friends along the way, I also want to take pictures of the experience in the process, print postcards, stamp Temple seals and stamps prepared by myself, and send a few sentences to relatives and friends. Unexpectedly, such a simple idea turned out to be an opportunity to interact with people on the way.
        
         In the process of following Mazu Dajia around the border, we can feel the devotion of the local people to Mazu, as well as the differences of local customs and customs. On the first day, the sedan chair starts from Dajia and passes through Qingshui, Longjing and Dawei. Because time is better controlled, the followers along the way will prepare midnight and breakfast for Suixiang followers, and even songs to boost everyone's spirit. In Zhanghua, because the people are very crazy about Mazu beliefs, it often causes delays in travel, besides larger refreshment stations, roadside usually also provides drinks. Water and food are freely available to pilgrims; in Nanzhanghua, Yunlin and other places, almost the whole family goes out on the roadside to distribute hand-made traditional food or local agricultural specialties, and once a grandmother said to me, "If you pass by us, you will not let everyone hungry. If you drive your car and forget to close the windows, the seats will surely be full of food." "
                 After walking for so many days, what impressed me most was not Taichung City's exuberant enthusiasm, but the night from Yunlin and Xiluo. Following the sedan car through the Xiluo Bridge and entering Xiluo Town, the battle said that it was not too bad to hold "Dajiama Running in the Border". However, starting from Xiluo Town that night, it was totally different from the previous busy journey and the supply stations everywhere. Often, only a few street lights or local temples could meet the supply for several kilometers.
        
         That day, I walked into a small mansion, because the car was a little far ahead of me, there were hardly any caterers in the street, and there were no convenience stores nearby. Suddenly, a grandmother slowly pulled out of the bench at home, prepared a large teapot, tea cup, a pot of white rice and her own sauce melon. Then she held the fragrance and began to wait for Mazu's sedan chair. When she saw our pilgrims, she also warmly greeted everyone to rest, even if it was just crude tea and meal, which moved my heart.
        
         At that time, I realized that the encounter culture of Mazu belief is actually a kind of mutual assistance, using their own way to help pilgrims on the way, if the interaction between people is fate, this is the relationship. It can make people find sincere and simple touches.
        
         Originally, I planned to take, photograph, print, cover, write and post postcards while walking. Later, I met so many people who helped me. In order to thank them, I would like to affinity these believers with postcards stamped with temple seals.
        
         "Pursue your meaning in your own way". During the nine days and eight nights, I published nearly 90 Facebook postings, 500 photos, and affinity postcards, each of which recorded my interaction with everyone, things and things. When I saw my friends'happy responses: "Looking at your Facebook, I felt like I was in the situation", "I found I had not experienced it." The details of the encounter and the "more interesting than going by myself" are the greatest gains of my "sharing the experience of encountering the world".