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Land God’s Cash |
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| Land God’s Cash |
| The Land God Cash of Zi Nan Temple upholds What is |
| taken shall be paid back. |
| In the beginning, the civilians in Taiwan had a hard time as |
| Japan returned Taiwan to the R.O.C.; therefore, Zi Nan |
| Temple made the Land God’s Cash available to the reside- |
| nts in Sheliao area for urgent relief and help, which prev- |
| ented the native residents from economic challenges as |
| well as offered economic help for running business. |
| Consequently, the Land God’s Cash was taken home by |
| the native pilgrims on the 15th and 16th of lunar Jan in |
| 1961-1977 without limiting the maximal sum of cash. A |
| field interview shows that a sum totaling NT$ 4,000 (NT$ |
| 2,000 equivalent to the monthly wages in that area at |
| that time) was taken home. |
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| From 1977 to 1982 when the reform was finished, the na- |
| tive taking the Land God’s Cash home used to run business |
| elsewhere and the Land God’s Cash of Zi Nan Temple was |
| known by the outsiders in addition to the native pilgrims. |
| This urged the pilgrims elsewhere to visit Zi Nan Temple for |
| taking the Land God’s Cash home. In the first place, a pil- |
| grim elsewhere was in need of a native resident in Sheliao |
| Village as the guarantor to take the Land God’s Cash home. |
| In 1983, the first-term Board of Managers of Zi Nan Temple |
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| (the Board) was founded. The temple management was unable to deal with the pilgrims nationwide in need of taking the |
| Land God’s Cash home for the shortage of budget; therefore, the Board decided to stipulate the Code for it making it |
| available to the public, and resolved the upper limit of the Land God’s Cash to be NT$ 200 per pilgrim and a specific staff |
| member was in charge of the affairs concerned in 1983. The folklore event Taking the Land God’s Cash home hereby bec- |
| ame a routine available to the public 24/7. The pilgrims taking the Land God’s Cash home are under blessing and protect- |
| ion of the Land God and obtain what is asked for. A pilgrim even paid back a total of NT$ 200,000 to the Land God. In |
| the end, the number of pilgrims visiting Zi Nan Temple for taking the Land god’s Cash home is increasing year by year, |
| which secures the bountiful budget to run the Temple. |
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| In 1987, the second-term Board of Managers of Zi Nan |
| Temple determined to advance the upper limit of the Land |
| God’s Cash by NT$ 600 per pilgrim since 6 in China implies |
| good luck. This resolution becomes the catalyst of the fo- |
| lklore event Taking the Land God’s Cash home and pilgrims |
| are accustomed to wish making at Zi Nan Temple in terms |
| of blessing and protection of the Land God via blocks div- |
| ination. Those making wishes and obtaining the Holy Blocks |
| can take the Land God’s Cash (a total of NT$ 100-600 as |
| the footstone of fortune and wealth) home at the service |
| counter of cash taken home and pay the cash back at the |
| service counter cash paid back in one year. Pilgrims taking |
| the Land God’s Cash home are under His blessing and pro- |
| tection and therefore the number of new pilgrims in need |
| of taking the Land God’s Cash home totals an increase by |
| 40% in terms of word of mouth. The number exceeding |
| 120,000 pilgrims in 1998 is an increase of 100%. The 921 |
| Earthquake in 1999 prevented the pilgrims from visiting Zi |
| Nan Temple temporarily. Fortunately, pilgrims returned to |
| the shopping area of Zi Nan Temple in 2 months and this is |
| indeed a miracle of the Land God. In the following 3 years, |
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| Sheliao area regained the boom with help and care of respective public authorities in association with Zi Nan Temple and |
| community residents. |
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| The SARS in early April of 2003 caused the vanishing pilgrims in the shopping area of Zi Nan Temple due to panic and |
| unrest state of mind around the Island. The group pilgrims visiting here by tour bus dropped the most, but the SARS |
| under control made pilgrims return in early May and 80% of pilgrims came to visit Zi Nan Temple in June. This is another |
| miracle of the Land God. The Board of Managers of Zi Nan Temple has been running the Temple with all devotion and |
| dedication and improved the financial balance as well as challenges concerning the Land God’s Cash taken home and paid |
| back, which is the good footstone of the sustainable development of Zi Nan Temple. |
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| The business hours of taking the Land God’s Cash home |
| are 07:00 a.m. – 05:00 p.m. 24/7 (07:00 a.m. - 06:00 |
| p.m. on Sunday) (off only on the Eve of the Chinese New |
| Year). The procedures are as follows. A pilgrim worships |
| the Land God of Zi Nan Temple by incense burning in |
| person and subsequently informs one’s name, address and |
| wishes in mind and performs blocks divination after taking |
| a bow in front of the statue. The Holy Blocks of the first |
| time implies a total of NT$ 600 to be taken home. One |
| failing to obtain the Holy Blocks can try again after taking |
| a bow and informing one’s name, address and wishes in |
| mind. The Holy Blocks of the second time implies a total of |
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| NT$ 500 to be taken home. Likewise, the Holy Blocks of the third, fourth, fifth and sixth times implies a total of NT$ 400, |
| 300, 200 and 100 to be taken home respectively. The failure of the Holy Blocks for the consecutive 6 times implies that |
| pilgrims might apply for it the next time. |
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| The pilgrim obtaining the Holy Blocks can finish the proc- |
| edures at the service counter of Zi Nan Temple by filling |
| out the personal profile and the sum along with showing |
| the personal ID card or any certificate of one’s identity (1. |
| original ID card; 2. original driver’s license; 3. original Nat- |
| ional Health Insurance IC card with photo; and 4. those |
| without any certificate can apply for the Land God’s Cash |
| and return it at the site). |
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| The pilgrim taking the Land God’s Cash home will return it |
| in one year. The wishes made by pilgrims cover business, |
| job, academic performance, gold finding, car finding and |
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| peace of family. Normally, the Land God responds to what is wished for and therefore pilgrims return the sum exceeding |
| that is taken home. Some pilgrims apply for the Land God’s Cash as returning the cash to Him as a proof of peace keep- |
| ing. They are also the faithful pilgrims of Zi Nan Temple. |
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| The business hours and procedures of taking the Land God’s Cash home apply to paying it back. Please take the personal |
| certificate and a red envelop with the cash paid back to the Land God in it and give it to the clerk at the service count- |
| er. The clerk will give the receipt to the pilgrim. |
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| The Land God’s Cash that helped the native residents in the early days becomes the impressive achievement of commu- |
| nity management as well as the faith center of pilgrim nationwide. The residents are hired and Sheliao can be developed |
| constantly. It is crucial to employ such resource to benefit the local residents. |
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