this 唤醒 me of my way of praying to gods at temple...

The Nine Emperor Gods consist of the following:

1. “Gou Chen Tian Huang Da Di 勾陈天皇大帝” (Vega Star)
2. “Bei Ji Zhi Wei Da Di 北极紫微大帝” (Polaris Star)
3. The 7 Northern Constellation Stars (called “Bei Dou Qi Xing 北斗七星”):
a. “Tan Lang 贪狼”
b. “Ju Meng 巨门”
c. “Lu Chun 禄存”
d. “Wen Qu 文曲”
e. “Lian Zhen 廉贞”
f. “Wu Qu 武曲”
g. “Po Jun 破军”

Who is Lord Xuan Wu?





Lord Xuan Wu/玄武 or Xuan Tian Shang Di/玄天上帝 (the Supreme Emperor of the Dark Heavens) is a major Heavenly warlord, a dispeller of evil spirits and patron of all martial artists. He has thirty-six Heavenly generals under his command, plus their respective armies.

Xuan Wu was once human, a warrior prince who gave up his throne after realising how much suffering his battles and campaigns had caused. He went off into the wilderness to become an ascetic, and to perform penance.

Whilst out in the wilderness, he helped lost travellers, defended isolated villages from bandits and did many other heroic/selfless deeds. His penance, however, culminated in him ritually disembowelling himself, so great was his guilt.

Immediately after he had performed this act, Guan Yin intervened. She was moved by his true repentance, and his sincere desire to become a better man. The prince became a divine warrior, a defender of the righteous path - Lord Xuan Wu.

His entrails, which he had removed upon disembowelling himself, turned into manifestations of the evil and sin that he had purged from his being - into a giant demonic serpent and tortoise, which caused great havoc and chaos in the land. Xuan Wu subdued them, thus finally overcoming his former wrongdoings. The serpent and tortoise now serve as his familiar animals/assistants.

When in doubt about a deity's origin story, always go with the earliest version of the legend; in the case of Lord Xuan Wu, the 'warrior prince' story is the earliest version.

It is interesting how Xuan Wu's story bears certain similarities to that of the Buddha.

The fellow who runs that website has a very dubious reputation, by the way - he is a self-styled 'doctor' who promotes unethical spiritual practices.

Many of the gods he describes as 'Taoist' are in fact not Taoist at all.

You have been taught the proper basic behaviour, which is highly commendable, although there certainly is more to the nuts-and-bolts of prayer. 

I make it a point to be at my most presentable before attending a temple. This includes having a shower and putting on fresh clothes. If you are female, visiting a temple when you are menstruating is not advisable; menstrual blood, so heavy in yin energy, is a substance that confounds/contaminates the temple's spiritual 'ecosystem' and prevents rituals from being optimally conducted.

Certain taboos exist where it comes to certain deities, and one should be mindful to adhere to them. For instance, one should not consume non-Halal items before praying to Datuk spirits, or offer them such items. It pays to do one's research where it comes to these matters.

Your first port of call when you get to the temple is the altar to the Heavenly Hosts/the Jade Emperor; this is usually represented by a large urn standing just outside the main entrance. An offering of three incense sticks, representing Heaven, Earth and Humanity, is the standard for most Heavenly gods, and applies here. As per folklore, incense sticks serve 'to waft your prayers/wishes to the gods', akin to smoke signals.

Standing with the urn in front of you and with your back to the main entrance, clasp the incense sticks in both hands, bow your head  or bow at the waist, and make your prayer while remaining bowed. Once you are done, place the incense sticks in the urn using your left hand; this hand is closer to the heart, the seat of Yang energy, and using it thus also creates a gesture of sincerity.

Most large temples have a double door as the main entrance, with small side entrances flanking it. Do not enter via the main entrance, but via the small entrance to the right of the double door instead (the right side is always favoured first, as this is the side that represents Yang, while the left represents Yin). The main entrance is reserved for the deities' use, and is also the prime conduit for the temple's spiritual energies.

Next, head for the main altar in the interior of the temple; this will display the principal deity to whom the temple is dedicated. This deity need not necessarily be the most senior deity enshrined within, but are nevertheless the next in line. A three stick offering will again be the order of the day - this is in deference to the fact that they are the 'guest of honour'. Same prayer procedure as before, with you facing the main altar this time.

You then similarly pay your respects to the other deities in the interior, travelling in an anticlockwise direction. In other words, once you have paid your respects at the central altar, you then make offerings to the deities enshrined to the right of the altar, and then the deities enshrined to the left of the altar (again, Yang over Yin). After this, you exit the temple through the small entrance to the left of the double door (once more, Yang over Yin), and pay your respects to any deities enshrined outside.

The other deities will often consist of a mixture of Heavenly gods, Earth gods and Hell deities. As above, most Heavenly gods will warrant a three-stick offering - unless there are specific indications that individual offerings are a must, you can collectively offer three sticks to a group of Heavenly gods (this will be apparent when only a single incense urn is placed before two or more statues). There are one or two exceptions, such as the Five Camp Commanders, a group of Heavenly warriors who are collectively offered five sticks instead of three (I will speak more about them later).

The Earth gods are normally collectively offered five incense sticks, as they are fivefold, in charge of the soil of all five cardinal directions. And the Hell deities are normally collectively offered seven incense sticks. Seven is a number associated with the Yin aspect and death - each phase of the moon, a Yin heavenly body, is a seven-day cycle, seven seven-day periods, totalling forty-nine days, are how long it supposedly takes for a newly-deceased soul to sever itself from the mortal realm (see my previous posts on the 'bail period' that a soul receives prior to heading for the Netherworld), and the Hungry Ghost Festival takes place during the Seventh Lunar Month.

The general order in which one pays their respects is Heavenly gods first, Earth Gods next, and Hell deities last (you've got it - Yang over Yin). Once you are done, drop an offering into the temple's donation box if you feel like it. You are not obliged to make an offering, but if you do, the offering is traditionally commensurate with the seriousness of the problem for which you are seeking assistance.

As previously mentioned, it is very bad manners to bald-facedly make demands of the gods, especially if you haven't been a particularly good person. But a sincere, virtuous individual in genuine need of help - that's another story. You need not provide your particulars, nor need you necessarily go into all the nitty-gritty details; merely saying something along the lines of the following will do: "Sir/madam, I am in a time of need. I know I may not necessarily deserve help, but if you somehow deem me worthy of assistance and decide to smile upon me, I would be very much obliged. Thank you in advance." Neither does your prayer have to be said out loud.

Attending a temple with no desire to seek assistance is more than acceptable - in fact, I pretty much always attend temples with no requests in mind whatsoever. You adhere to the same procedure as above, but your prayer will obviously be different. Something along these lines is fine: "Sir/madam, I am here to pay my respects - I hope that you enjoy my offerings, and that you have a good day."

Hope this helps. 

Hi Energy,
Dying is all about letting go - about severing earthly ties, including ties with your surviving loved ones. Such ties will only serve to hinder spiritual cultivation on the other side, and hinder the process of escaping the cycle of death and rebirth.

It is for this purpose that the fates of the deceased, including the nature of the penance they are paying, plus whether or not they have reincarnated, are not something that is disclosed - not in detail, at least. The Hell deities are the custodians of such information, and it is only through them that such information may be obtained. They are the facilitators, the go-betweens.

In response to queries about deceased loved ones, the Hell deities may give some very general comments ("Don't worry; all is well." "He is undergoing his training." "She is making progress."). They may instruct one to increase the frequency of ancestral offerings, which may indicate that the deceased are progressing well or being model inmates, and thus deserving of more. They may instruct one to offer specific items on specific dates, which may be instrumental in assisting the spiritual cultivation of the deceased. They may occasionally convey a message from the deceased, although this is extremely rare and usually occurs only early in the game. Otherwise, don't expect very much to be revealed.

Do not put ANY credence in someone who claims to be able to directly channel the spirits of your deceased relatives (i.e. make them speak through him or otherwise possess his body). Souls cannot be raised or recalled to the human realm just like that.
Physical and mental health are matters that one should visit a doctor or psychiatrist/psychologist about, first and foremost. It is quite common for a deity to advise a sick person to seek medical or psychiatric help. Do not make a temple or sintua your first port of call when you are ill - dial the emergency services number or get to a hospital instead.

I will be posting some information about gods who specialise in these assorted matters later today and later in the weekend. Don't touch that dial.

Hi Energy, such a case of illness that is not responsive to repeated attempts at medical treatment would be appropriate to approach the gods about, yes.

Lord Zhang the Serpent-Queller is a Heavenly deity whom I have spoken about earlier in the thread; see the post below for more information about him:

https://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=72420996

There is a very prominent Lord Zhang temple, situated in Klang, that has a reputation for wonders. This is the Tian Hock Keng/天福宫, located at Lot 3115, Jalan Stakap, Jalan Tepi Sungai, Teluk Pulai, 41100 Klang (GPS coordinates 3° 3'1.09"N, 101°25'39.08"E).

The establishment holds consultation sessions on Wednesdays at 8 p.m., and on Sundays at 12:30 p.m. You can call Master Ng, the temple's medium, at 012-696-5555 to arrange a booking.

Hope this helps.




TQVM.

I do, as a matter of fact.

The fact that I pray to the Hell beings is actually quite relevant to my job as an ER doctor, as I deal with those who are at death's door on a very regular basis.