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天公- 玉皇大帝
「玉皇大帝」，據說是三清所化身的太極界第一位尊神，也就是古人最崇敬的「天」，居住在玉清宮，上掌三十六天，三千世界，各部神仙，下轄七十二地、四大部州、掌管天上諸神、仙、佛，以及人間億萬生靈，因此尊稱為「玉皇大天尊玄靈高上帝」。 在道教的理論中，將天、地、人三界分得很清楚，天有十三層，一層有三萬里，天外的地方就稱為無極，而天內的天就稱為太極。太極的天分為五天，即東、南、西、北，「玉皇大帝」是宇宙中最高無上的神靈，而所有神靈皆須聽令於「玉皇大帝」。 農曆正月初九為玉帝誕辰（天公生）。正月為一年之初，四季之首，木氣之始，一切生命因而萌發；九為數字之極尊，代表「極大、極多、極高」的意義，所以一年中第一個初九（上九）為玉帝聖誕，正與他至高無上的地位相呼應。明代王逵《蠡海集》中說：「神明降誕，以義起者也。玉帝生於正月初九日者，陽數始於一，而極於九，原始要終也。」意思是說，神明降誕的日子都有一定的特殊含義。
The Jade Emperor (Chinese: 玉皇; pinyin: Yù Huáng or 玉帝 Yù Dì) in Chinese folk culture, is the ruler of Heaven and all realms of existence below including that of Man and Hell, according to a version of Taoist mythology. He is one of the most important gods of the Chinese traditional religion pantheon. In actual Taoism, the Jade Emperor governs all of the mortals' realm and below, but ranks below the Three Pure Ones. The Jade Emperor is known by many names, including Heavenly Grandfather (天公 Tiān Gōng) which is used by commoners; the Pure August Jade Emperor, August Personage of Jade (玉皇上帝 Yu Huang Shangdi or 玉皇大帝 Yu Huang Dadi); the Xuanling High Sovereign; and his rarely used, formal title, Peace Absolving, Central August Spirit Exalted, Ancient Buddha, Most Pious and Honorable, His Highness the Jade-Emperor, Xuanling High Sovereign (太平普度皇靈中天至聖仁義古佛玉皇大天尊). One of the myths describes how the Jade Emperor became the monarch of all the deities in heaven. It is one of the few myths in which the Jade Emperor really shows his might. In the beginning of time, the earth was a very difficult place to live; a much harsher place to live in than it is now. People were having tremendous difficulty coping with existence; not only did they have to deal with harsh conditions, but also with all kinds of monstrous beings. At this time, there were also not many gods or deities to protect them. Furthermore, a lot of powerful, evil demons were defying the immortals of heaven. The Jade Emperor was still at the time an ordinary immortal who roamed earth to help as many people as he could. He was, however, saddened by the fact that his powers were limited and could only ease the sufferings of humans. He decided to retreat in a mountain cave and cultivate his Tao. He passed 3,200 trials, each trial lasting about 3 million years. Unfortunately, a powerful, evil entity—a demon of sorts, which dwelt on earth—had the ambition to conquer the immortals and gods in heaven and proclaim sovereignty over the entire universe. This evil entity also went into retreat and meditation to expand its power, though later than the Jade Emperor. He passed through 3,000 trials each trial lasting for about 3 million years too. After it passed its final trial, it felt confident that no one could defeat it anymore. It re-entered the world again, and recruited an army of demons with the purpose of attacking heaven. The immortals, being aware of the threat, gathered themselves and prepared for war. The gods were unable to stop the powerful demon and it defeated them all. Fortunately, the Jade Emperor finished his cultivation in the midst of this war. He was changing the land to make it more liveable for men and repelling all kinds of monstrous beasts. Suddenly, he saw an evil glow emitting from heaven and knew something was amiss. He ascended and saw that a war was going on, he saw that the demon was too powerful to be stopped by any of the gods present. He went up and challenged the demon, and a battle ensued between them. Mountains shook and rivers and seas toppled; however, the Jade Emperor stood victorious due to his deeper and wiser cultivation, not for might but for benevolence. After defeating the demon, all the other demons were scattered by the gods and immortals. Because of his noble and benevolent deeds, the gods, immortals and humans proclaimed the Jade Emperor the supreme sovereign of all. The Jade Emperor's Birthday is said to be the ninth day of the first lunar month. On this day Taoist temples hold a Jade Emperor ritual (拜天公 bài tiān gōng, literally "heaven worship") at which priests and laymen prostrate themselves, burn incense, and make food offerings. |
