At the age of 36, Zhang Fude served as the chief tax collector of the imperial court. He was an honest official, sympathized with the sufferings of the people, and did many good things for the people. People respected him very much. Later, he lived to the age of 102 and died. Surprisingly, on the third day after his death, he still looked the same as when he was alive.
Later, a poor man built a stone house with four big stones to worship Zhang Fude. Soon, the poor man became rich from poverty. People think that this is Zhang Fude's blessing. Considering the benefits of Zhang Fude's ruling, people have invested in building temples, carving golden bodies for him and honoring him as the "God of Fortune". Businessmen often offer sacrifices to him in the hope that their business will develop better. Since then, "Ford Shen Zheng" has become a land god, that is, a country god.
There are many legends about the land god among the people. Legend has it that the land Lord is the parent, and he can take care of things in the field, no matter how big or small. Ghosts, monsters and evil spirits have also been registered in this land, and even the Monkey King, who caused havoc in heaven, sometimes looked for him. When Wukong guaranteed Tang Priest to fetch Buddhist scriptures in the Western Heaven, he always called the local landowner out to find out.
There are also stories and legends about land gods helping people in trouble. In ancient times, there was a place where tigers and wolves often appeared in the mountains, and local people were often attacked by wild animals when they went out to farm and cut grass.
One day, a brother and sister went up the mountain to get firewood. When they tied up firewood to go down the mountain, suddenly, a tiger jumped out of the Woods and jumped on their sister. The younger brother was frightened, shouted for help, threw down firewood, grabbed an axe and threw it at the tiger. The tiger got an axe on his ass, turned around and roared, jumped up and pounced on his brother. At this critical moment, an old man with a white beard suddenly appeared. He waved his wand at the tiger, and the tiger ran obediently to the depths of the forest.
Brother and sister are very grateful to the old man with white beard for saving his life. They are busy asking him your name and where he lives. But the old man just smiled, leaned on the ground with crutches twice and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
When the brothers and sisters came home, they told the villagers what had happened. Everyone in the village was surprised and thought that the old man was the land god. So everyone began to build a temple on the mountain to worship the earth god, praying for God's peace, good weather and disaster relief.
Land God is one of the earliest and most widely believed folk gods in China. In the process of historical development and evolution, the belief in land gods has gradually enriched, which is not only the sustenance of people's good wishes such as praying for peace and ensuring a bumper harvest, but also the formation of colorful land worship culture and customs.
In the folk, the second day of the second lunar month is regarded as the birthday of the land Lord. On this day, every household has to knead rice husk into something in the shape of a big and small round cake. Each chaff is printed with patterns such as melons, fruits and ears of rice to symbolize prosperity, auspiciousness and wealth, commonly known as "the cook of the earth god".
When worshipping the land god, prepare a wine and fruit feast, burn incense and be pious, and worship the land god "Fude Shen Zheng" enshrined in the hall of the house, praying for good luck, prosperity of six animals, lucky money and family safety. From this day on, farmers began a one-year farming activity.
Among the numerous folk protoss in our country, the land god is the most popular god. People affectionately call the land god "Land God" or "Land God" or "Land God". Most of the land gods have white hair and beard, holding a dragon staff in their right hand and an ingot in their left.
Land temples are spread all over every village, and a grand festival party is held every year to worship the land god. Later, this kind of gathering evolved into a temple fair and became an important folk custom.
In some places, on the first and fifteenth day of the first lunar month, people from all over the country, mostly women, come to the earth temple in groups of three and five, burning incense and kowtowing, which is called a small meeting. Every year, the sixth day of the sixth lunar month is the birthday of the earth god, and it is a general meeting. There will be five or six plays at the same time. The village gongs and drums teams, yangko fans and martial arts acrobatics will appear one after another, selling snacks, daily necessities and so on. , but also taking advantage of the situation to do business. The people in the village will help the old and bring the young, and they will be bustling. Inside and outside the land temple, the mountains are all over the world, colorful flags are flying, drums and music are loud, and people are buzzing, which is very lively.
In China, Taiwan Province Province and other areas, people think that the land god is a powerful god. The land god can not only bless the bumper harvest of agriculture and the smooth business of businessmen, but also bless passengers to travel safely and even protect graves from evil spirits.
People's worship of land expresses people's protection and gratitude for the land, and also reflects people's desire to pray for peace, which is a simple folk custom in China culture.