Ma-Cho Temple, San Fernando菲律滨隆天宫（妈祖庙）

Type

Overseas Daoist Temples

Location

Philippines · La Union Province · City of San Fernando · Quezon Avenue, Barangay II; covers just over one hectare

Coordinates

16.6211, 120.3174 Map ↗

First built

Foundation laid on 11 September 1975; construction completed in 1977; consecrated on 8 December 1978 · The three dates appear in different sources; built by Chinese-Filipino devotees under the leadership of Li Kexiao, with architect Thomas Diokno and Taiwanese craftsmen taking part in construction

Overview

Ma-Cho Temple is the largest Mazu temple in the Philippines, dedicated chiefly to Mazu (Lin Moniang), and also enshrining the Earth God (Tudi) and Guanyin. Its foundation was laid on 11 September 1975, and it was built in 1977 by Chinese-Filipino devotees under the leadership of Li Kexiao, with its completion and consecration on 8 December 1978 (the three dates appear in different sources). Its construction was supported by the then Secretary of Tourism, Jose D. Aspiras; the architect was Thomas Diokno, and Taiwanese craftsmen took part in the construction. The temple has seven stories and eleven eaves, with a five-gate memorial archway, a pavilion pagoda, bell and drum towers, and twin circular ponds. Of greatest research interest is its annual procession: around the fifth day of the eighth lunar month each year, the image of Mazu is carried to the Basilica of St. Martin of Tours in Taal, Batangas Province, and then returned — an occasion on which devotion to Mazu and Catholic Marian devotion intermingle, a distinctively Philippine phenomenon of religious syncretism, and a striking example of the mutual permeation of overseas Chinese belief and mainstream local religion in Southeast Asia. Weekly consultations by casting divination blocks (Buyong) are also held.

Highlights

• The largest Mazu temple in the Philippines
• The Mazu image processes to a Catholic basilica
• Seven stories, eleven eaves
• Weekly divination consultation (Buyong)