The Chinese language goddess of the ocean, Mazu, is large enterprise in Taiwan, and blockchain might make it even larger.
Referred to as the protector of seafarers and worshiped by Chinese language communities world wide for hundreds of years, the deity Mazu is particularly widespread in Taiwan. The Dajia Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung metropolis hosts an annual nine-day 300-kilometer pilgrimage with a statue of the goddess that draws lots of of 1000’s of followers.
Pilgrimages and associated festivals have fashioned what is named the “Mazu financial system”, which refers to donations and spending on Mazu-themed merchandise and enterprise alternatives revolving across the faith.
Dajia Jenn Lann Temple, which dates again to the Qing Dynasty within the 18th century, has determined so as to add a Net 3.0 ingredient to its actions. It entails minting and promoting non-fungible tokens (NFTs) of the ocean goddess that act as a precedence move for the pilgrimage that normally happens within the spring.
MazuDAO NFTs went on sale in August at NT$18,880 (US$615) by way of the temple’s e-commerce platform MazuBuyBuy and elsewhere. To date, the temple has minted and bought greater than 2,800 NFTs.
“In accordance with estimates, the nine-day pilgrimage could generate greater than NT$5 billion (US$163 million) in spending. On the day Mazu returned to the house temple, we noticed about 500,000 folks be a part of the pilgrimage,” mentioned Mingkun Cheng, vice chairman of the Dajia Jenn Lann Temple board. Forkast.
Extra younger individuals are becoming a member of the pilgrimage, which is why the MazuDAO NFTs attraction to them, Cheng mentioned.
Gods on-line?
Many conventional cultural actions are adapting to digital and technological innovation, mentioned Mao-Hsien Lin, an affiliate professor within the division of Taiwanese languages and literature at Nationwide Taichung College of Schooling. Forkast.
Nonetheless, Lin, who researches Mazu’s faith, mentioned many older followers aren’t so positive in regards to the developments.
“They like bodily contact and direct contact with the statue of the deities,” Lin mentioned. They aren’t so positive that in the event that they worship on-line, the deities are additionally on-line to listen to their prayers.
Nonetheless, Lin mentioned that the pilgrimage precedence profit for NFT holders won’t be too interesting to conventional believers.
“Normally after we pray, the gap between you and the statue does not actually matter. It is not such as you get particular remedy should you’re nearer,” she added. “It is getting a bit too commercialized.”
To faucet into the standard believer market, the NFT mission staff organized offline advertising and marketing campaigns, a distinct method from most NFT initiatives that prioritize on-line advertising and marketing channels.
Jerry Yan, MazuDAO mission chief, mentioned Forkast that many older supporters did not even personal a smartphone and “lived largely in a Net 0.0 world.”
“We needed to arrange promotional cubicles in entrance of the temple to introduce MazuDAO NFT to these Web0 believers,” Yan mentioned, including that in addition they wanted a landline customer support staff as a result of it was the one solution to attain the temple’s older followers. .
“Typically over the cellphone we’d ask them to name their grandchildren to assist and arrange crypto wallets on their behalf.”
industrial mazu
Cheng mentioned the temple approved some on-line sellers to make use of its Mazu mental property to fabricate merchandise on the market on its MazuBuyBuy e-commerce platform.
Lin, the researcher, mentioned Mazu has turn into a extremely commercialized mental property in Taiwan, with Mazu-themed merchandise in comfort shops and main on-line buying websites.
“Once more, I feel a big a part of the essence of faith lies in providing that psychological consolation to believers. It is not essentially a great factor if it is overly commercialized,” Lin mentioned. “If we see the deity as a enterprise generator, she would lose the sense of divinity.”
Nonetheless, Cheng of the Dajia Jenn Lann Temple mentioned the temple’s annual pilgrimages have attracted an growing variety of younger folks, with many posting movies of the competition and pilgrimage on social media platforms similar to Instagram and YouTube.
A Taiwan-based Korean YouTuber (generally known as Korean Kimchengu, actually “Korean enoki mushroom”) joined the pilgrimage final 12 months and made a video that garnered greater than 580,000 views.
Logan Beck, an American YouTuber based mostly in Taiwan, additionally uploaded a video of the 2021 pilgrimage, which now has over 405,000 views.
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Blockchain gets religion? Temple in Taiwan minting NFTs to local sea goddess
