Chinese deity, member of the Wufang Shangdi From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cangdi (the Bluegreen Emperor) is one of the five manifestations of Shangdi . He is associated with the wood and spring. He is worshipped as the god of fertility. The Bluegreen Dragon (青龙 Qīnglóng) is both his animal form and constellation, and as a human he was Tàihào 太昊 (Fu Xi).[1] His female consort is the goddess of fertility Bixia. His planet is Jupiter.[2]
The Confucian book, the Rites of Zhou, discusses the concept of the so-called "Wufang Shangdi". The Records of the Grand Historian, refers to the following: Cangdi (or Qingdi), Huangdi, Heidi, Chidi, and Baidi.[3]
| Cangdi | |||
| Chinese | 東嶽大帝 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 东岳大帝 | ||
| |||
Cangdi is known as Dongyue Dadi or the "Great Deity of the Eastern Peak" which refers to Mount Tai, a sacred mountain in China. [4][5]
He is worshipped in both Daoism and Chinese Buddhism with this name.[6]
Long ago, people believed that Mount Tai was a place where spirits of the dead gathered. They thought that the god of Mount Tai was the most powerful god of the underworld and controlled people's lives and status on Earth.[7] In Daoism, people say that Dōngyuèdàdì is the grandson of the Jade Emperor.[8]
During the Han dynasty, the Feng Shan ceremony was held on Mount Tai.[9] This was a very important ceremony, and the emperor had to complete it to show that he had the mandate of heaven.[10] The ceremony began in 219 BC, during the reign of Qin Shi Huang, who was the first emperor of China.[11]
Over time, the role of the Dongyue Emperor grew. He became more than a God of the local area. He became a god of life and death in general.[12] In Taiwan, people perform a ritual called the storming of the city (打城) to honor the Dongyue Emperor. This shows how his role has changed over time.[12][13]
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