In a din of firecrackers, cymbals and horns, a team of devotees carried the shrouded wooden statue of a serene-faced woman, holding her aloft on a brightly decorated litter as they navigated through tens of thousands of onlookers.

在一阵鞭炮、铙钹和喇叭声中，虔诚的信徒们抬着一尊面容安详的木制雕像，把她高高举起，放在装饰鲜艳的銮驾上，从成千上万的观众中走过。

As the carriers nudged forward, hundreds of people were lined up ahead of them, kneeling on the road and waiting for the moment when the statue would pass over their heads.

銮驾缓缓前行，数以百计人排在他们前面，跪在路上，等待着木像从他们头顶经过的时刻。

Some wept after it did; many smiled and snapped selfies. “I love Mazu, and Mazu loves me,” the crowd shouted.

有些人哭了；许多人微笑着自拍。“我爱妈祖，妈祖爱我，”人们喊道。

Mazu, sometimes known as the Goddess of the Sea, is the most widely venerated of dozens of folk deities that many people in Taiwan turn to for solace, guidance and good fortune. The huge annual processions to honor her are noisy and gaudy. And yet for many, they are also deeply spiritual events, acts of faith showing that Mazu and other spirits remain vibrant presences here, alongside Buddhism and Christianity.

妈祖，有时也被称为海神娘娘，是台湾许多人寻求慰藉、指引和好运的几十个民间神灵中最受尊敬的一位。每年为纪念她而举行的盛大游行既喧闹又华丽。然而，对许多人来说，它们也是深刻的精神活动，这些虔诚的举动表明，像妈祖这样的神灵与佛教和基督教一样，在这里仍然充满活力。

妈祖的追随者在一座寺庙的妈祖像前鞠躬并点燃香火。抬着妈祖穿过人群。近年来，许多台湾年轻人参加了进香活动。

Taiwan’s two biggest pilgrimages for Mazu — named Baishatun and Dajia after the temples that pilgrims set out from every year — recently have been drawing record numbers of participants. And a striking number of them are younger Taiwanese, in their teens or 20s, drawn to experiencing the traditions of Mazu, like throwing crescent-shaped pieces of wood in a ritual to divine their futures.

台湾最大的两个妈祖进香活动以进香者每年出发的寺庙白沙屯和大甲命名，最近的参与者创下了纪录。其中有相当一部分是十几岁或二十多岁的年轻台湾人，他们被妈祖的传统所吸引，比如在一种仪式中投掷月牙形的木片来预测将来。

“I didn’t expect there’d be so many younger people taking the pilgrimage like this,” said Chou Chia-liang, 28, a fashion designer who had traveled from Taipei, Taiwan’s capital, for the Dajia pilgrimage, which starts in Taichung on the west-central coast. “People used to think the Mazu faith was for old people from the countryside. Look around here — it doesn’t seem like that.”

“我没想到会有这么多年轻人来进香，”28岁的时装设计师周嘉良（音）说。他从台湾台北赶来，参加从中西部沿海的台中开始的大甲进香。“人们过去认为妈祖信仰是农村老人的事。看看这里——似乎不是那样。”

Like quite a few other pilgrims, Mr. Chou, in a show of reverence, was pushing along a cart carrying his own small statue of Mazu, usually kept at the temple in Taipei where he typically prays.

像其他很多进香者一样，周嘉良推着一辆小车，上面载着他自己的小妈祖像，以示敬意。这尊小像通常放在他祈祷的台北寺庙里。

“This is a bit different from my family’s religion,” he said. “Most Taiwanese people are very tolerant. They don’t have the idea that ‘this is my faith and that is your faith, and they can’t go together’.”

“这和我们家的信仰有点不一样，”他说。“大多数台湾人都很宽容。他们不认为‘这是我的信仰，那是你的信仰，不能混为一谈’。”

妈祖进香曾是经沿着泥泞的小路经过稻田。现在，它发生在一个更加城市化的台湾。媒体的关注激发了人们对进香的兴趣，台湾高效的交通系统也让岛内的人们很容易参与到进香中来。

Many Taiwanese people say they are proud of their right to choose from an abundance of faiths, especially in contrast to the tight controls on religion in neighboring China. Taiwan’s religious diversity and vitality forms a kind of subsoil of the self-governed island’s identity and values.

许多台湾人说，他们对自己有如此繁多的信仰可供选择而感到自豪，特别是这与相邻的中国大陆对宗教的严格控制形成鲜明对比。台湾宗教的多样性和活力，构成了这个自治岛屿的身份认同和价值观的一种底色。

About one-fifth of Taiwan’s 23 million people count themselves as Buddhist, another 5 percent are Christian, and over half take part in Taoism and a range of related folk religions, including worshiping Mazu, also spelt Matsu. In practice, many people mix Buddhist and folk traditions as they pray for a healthy birth or a high score on an exam.

在台湾2300万人口中，约有五分之一的人信奉佛教，另有5%的人是基督徒，超过一半的人信奉道教和一系列相关的民间宗教，包括崇拜妈祖。在实际生活中，许多人将佛教和民间传统混合在一起，祈祷孩子健康出生或在考试中取得高分。

“Local religions have re-emerged strongly since the ’80s and ’90s,” said Ting Jen-chieh, who studies religions at Academia Sinica, a top research institute in Taiwan. “Before, they were found more in the villages, but now it’s across middle-class society too.”

“自上世纪八九十年代以来，地方宗教重新强势崛起，”台湾首屈一指的研究机构中央研究院研究宗教的丁仁杰说。“以前，它们更多出现在农村，但现在也遍及中产阶级。”

进香路线上的景色。许多台湾人说，他们对自己拥有选择多种信仰的权利感到自豪，特别是这与临近的中国大陆对宗教的严格控制形成鲜明对比。大甲进香队伍从台湾中西部沿海的台中市开始。

The largest temples for Mazu and other deities are powerful, wealthy institutions that make money from donations and services, including memorials for the dead. At election times, candidates pay their respects here, as well as at Buddhist temples and Christian churches, mindful of the sway that religious organizations can have with voters.

供奉妈祖和其他神灵的最大寺庙都是有钱有势的机构，它们通过捐赠和服务（包括祭奠死者）来赚钱。在选举期间，候选人都会在这里以及佛教寺庙和基督教教堂参拜，因为他们意识到宗教组织对选民的影响力。

Beijing also tries to exert influence.

北京也试图施加影响。

For decades, the Chinese government, which claims Taiwan as its lost territory, has invoked shared religious traditions, including Mazu, to try appeal to Taiwanese people. Mazu also has followers in coastal eastern China where, the story goes, she was born around 960 A.D. in Fujian Province, and used her special powers to save seafarers from drowning.

几十年来，声称台湾是其失地的中国政府一直援引包括妈祖在内的共同宗教传统，试图吸引台湾人民。妈祖在中国东部沿海地区也有追随者，传说她在公元960年前后出生在福建省，用她的特殊能力拯救溺水的海员。

Whatever Beijing’s efforts, many pilgrims spoke of Mazu as a distinctly Taiwanese goddess, who happened to have been born on the other side of the strait. Some brushed away the politics, and said they were worried that the pilgrimages were being sullied by too much glitz, including the troupes of dancers and pop songs blaring over loudspeakers.

无论北京如何努力，许多进香者都将妈祖视为一位独特的台湾女神，只是碰巧出生在海峡对岸。一些人对政治不以为然，说他们担心进香活动被太多的浮华所玷污，包括舞团和喇叭大声播放的流行歌曲。

妈祖的銮驾配备了火焰喷射器。一些人说，他们担心进香活动被太多的浮华所玷污。舞团是进香的特色之一。

“Many people like the noise and sound and light effects,” said Lin Ting-yi, 20, a professional spiritual medium who participated in Mazu’s pilgrimage in March. But, he added, “Whenever I want to talk to deities, I like to feel and pray quietly, alone.”

“很多人喜欢噪音和声光效果，”20岁的专业灵媒林亭一（音）说。他在今年3月参加了妈祖进香。但是，他还说，“当我想与神灵对话时，我喜欢一个人静静地感受和祈祷。”

For generations, the pilgrimages involved mostly farmers and fishermen who carried Mazu statues through nearby rice paddies and along dirt paths.

过去的进香者主要是农民和渔民，他们抬着妈祖像穿过附近的稻田和土路。

Now, the pilgrimages reflect a much wealthier, more urbanized Taiwan. The Mazu processions pass by factories and expressways, where the chanting and fireworks compete with the roar of passing trucks.

现在，进香活动反映了一个更富裕、更城市化的台湾。妈祖出巡队伍经过工厂和高速公路，诵经和烟花声伴随着过往卡车的轰鸣。

During the processions, the Mazu statues have been known to stop at schools, military barracks, and, one year, a car dealership display room, whose employees hurriedly moved a vehicle from the spot where, the carriers told them, the goddess wished to rest.

在出巡期间，妈祖像会在学校、军营停留，有一年还在一家汽车经销店停下来。抬驾者告诉他们，妈祖希望在那里休息，经销店的员工急忙把一辆车挪开。

Along the annual routes, local temples, residents, shops and companies set up stalls to offer pilgrims (mostly) free food and drinks — watermelon, stewed tofu, cookies, sweet drinks and water.

在每年的进香路线上，当地的寺庙、居民、商店和公司设立摊位，为进香者提供大部分免费的食物和饮料——西瓜、炖豆腐、饼干、甜饮料和水。

在每年的进香路线上，当地的寺庙、居民、商店和公司设立摊位，为进香者提供大部分免费的食物和饮料。朝圣者表示敬意。当妈祖经过时，经常会听到“我爱妈祖，妈祖爱我”的歌声。

Despite the hubbub, some pilgrims described how, as they fell into a meditative walking rhythm, the noise of the firecrackers and loudspeakers fell away, and they sometimes struck up deep conversations, and friendships, with strangers walking beside them.

尽管喧闹，一些进香者描述说，当他们沉浸在冥想般的行走节奏时，鞭炮和扬声器的噪音仿佛消失了，他们有时会与走在身边的陌生人进行深入的交谈，建立友谊。

“While you’re walking, you can give yourself more time and space to think deeply about things you haven’t thought of before,” said Hung Yu-fang, a 40-year old insurance company employee who was doing the Dajia pilgrimage for a fourth year.

“走路的时候，你可以给自己更多的时间和空间，来深入思考你以前没有想过的事情，”40岁的保险公司员工洪玉芳（音）说，她已经是第四年来参加大甲进香了。

While the nine-day Dajia pilgrimage follows a preset route, the Baishatun pilgrimage is more fluid. It doesn’t set a precise path in advance, leaving followers to intuit which turns in the roads the Mazu statue will take and where she may stop.

九天的大甲进香遵循预定的路线，白沙屯进香则更加灵活。它没有预先设定具体的路径，让信徒凭直觉判断妈祖像会在哪条路上转弯，在哪里停下来。

When her carriers reached an intersection this year, a tense air settled over the pilgrims, waiting while the statue bearers shuffled and turned this way and that — by their account, waiting for Mazu to decide which direction she wanted to take. They cheered when Mazu headed off again.

今年，当她的銮驾走到十字路口时，一种紧张的气氛笼罩着进香者们，他们在等待着，抬像者们犹豫地转来转去，按照他们的说法，他们是在等待妈祖决定要走哪个方向。当妈祖再次出发时，人们欢呼起来。

At night, the carriers rested the Mazu statue in a temple, and hardier pilgrims slept in the temple or on the nearby streets. unrolling thin rubber mattresses.

晚上，抬像者们把妈祖像放在寺庙里休息，比较能吃苦的进香者会展开薄薄的橡胶床垫，睡在寺庙里或附近的街道上。

尽管喧闹，一些进香者描述说，当他们进入冥想般的步行节奏时，鞭炮和扩音器的噪音仿佛消失了。晚上，比较能吃苦的进香者会在寺庙地上铺一张薄薄的橡胶床垫过夜。

As Taiwan industrialized, it seemed possible that such rituals might survive only as symbols of the island’s fading rustic roots.

随着台湾的工业化，这些仪式似乎可能只会作为台湾衰落的乡村根源的象征而存在。

“For some time, it was for the lower rungs of society. Just a few hundred people would take part in the pilgrimages,” said Professor Ting, the religion researcher. “Now it’s popular, but a lot of the new, younger participants only walk for a few days — not the whole journey — to experience it as Taiwanese culture.”

“有一段时间，它是为社会底层服务的。只有几百人会参加进香，”宗教研究者丁仁杰说。“现在它很受欢迎，但许多新的、年轻的参与者只走几天，而不是全程，他们是来体验这种台湾文化的。”

In recent years, the surge of participants has been spurred by media attention (Taiwanese TV covers the pilgrimages like they were major sporting events), online enthusiasts (Mazu’s progress can be followed on the temples’ phone apps), and ease of travel (trains are fast and efficient).

近年来，由于媒体的关注（台湾电视台对进香活动作的报道就像重大体育赛事一样）、网络爱好者可以通过寺庙的手机应用程序上跟踪妈祖的进程，交通便利，火车快捷高效，这些都令参与人数激增。

In 2010, the Baishatun pilgrimage drew around 5,000 registered participants; this year, nearly 180,000 pilgrims signed up, a figure that doesn’t include the tens of thousands who joined informally along the way.

2010年，白沙屯进香吸引了约5000名预约参与者；今年，有近18万进香者报名参加，这个数字还不包括沿途非正式加入的数万人。

When the pilgrimage reached the Beigang Chaotian temple in southern Taiwan — its main destination before turning home — Mazu was greeted by an eruption of fireworks and gongs, and overwhelming crowds. Nearly 500,000 people turned up that day, a record, said organizers.

当进香到达台湾南部的北港朝天宫时——这是进香队伍回寺前的主要目的地——妈祖受到了烟花和锣声的迎接，人群拥挤不堪。组织者说，当天有近50万人参加了活动，创下了纪录。

Despite the heat and crowds, people lined up for hours to squeeze inside the temple and catch a glimpse of Mazu, wearing an embroidered headdress draped with pearls.

尽管天气炎热，人群拥挤，人们还是排了几个小时的队，挤进庙里，一睹戴着绣珠头饰的妈祖的风采。

“I couldn’t squeeze inside the temple,” said Mr. Chou, the clothes designer, who this year managed to walk part of both major pilgrimages. “But that didn’t matter. This time I also invited friends along so they could also get a taste of more traditional culture.”

“我挤不进庙里，”服装设计师周嘉良说。今年，他成功地走完了两次大进香的部分路线。“但这并不重要。这次我还邀请了朋友们一起来，这样他们也能体验到更多的传统文化。”

人非常多，一些进香者无法挤进寺庙。