Sunday, March 22, 2009

Macau 2009 A Ma Temple

The first tour bus stop was Lotus Square. The Golden Lotus Sculpture was presented to Macau by China, marking the transfer of sovereignty. The gold building in the background is a casino.

The second stop was the A-Ma temple. [Be prepared for a deluge of pictures.] Official history has it that the temple was originally built in 1488 during the Ming Dynasty to commemorate Mazu [a sea goddess who protects sailors], but I suspect it was a place of worship pre-dating the 1488 structure. Why? Recorded history of the peninsula goes back to to 200BC and without a doubt fishing was a major activity even then--and so was the impact of typhoons. And...


[Looking out at the square in front of the temple. It's a popular destination.] One of the most interesting things about the temple is that it's actually a series of small structures devoted to different deities and faiths winding up a hillside. This reminds me of an idea in Neil Gaiman's American Gods: A Novel that there are places of power that attract and often become the site of worship. [In America, as we began to worship the car, these places of power became roadside attractions.] So, taking the two things together I suspect the A-Ma Temple was a place of worship from the time humans got there.


Interior courtyard, first level.

Many interesting shapes and textures.

Check out the broom.

Entrance, another angle.

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