四川省しせんしょう山岳地帯さんがくちたいに佇たたずむ異色いしょくの廟びょう――神仏しんぶつに代かわり猫ねこ・犬いぬが祀まつられる信仰しんこうの背景はいけいとは

This article provided a detailed report on a temple in China that is very rare, as it enshrines cats and dogs instead of Buddhas or gods.

According to this article, the temple called Danmyouden was built in 2001 inside the Taoist temple Yuntaikan in Mianyang City, Sichuan Province, and served as the model for the Kitten Temple that appeared in the 2023 animated series Chinese Tales, which became a hot topic.

There are various theories as to why cats became objects of worship in this region. Some suggest that sacred cats were enshrined as guardians during the training of the God of Wealth, Zhao Gongming, while others propose that during the Ming and Qing dynasties, people began to worship cats instead of tigers—the mount of Zhao Gongming—in order to avoid the frequent tiger attacks that occurred in this province.

For whatever reason, the fact that cats are worshipped in place of Buddhas or gods demonstrates the diversity of religious culture in that region.

Furthermore, thanks to the fame of Chinese Chess Tales, Dan Mieu Dien has become one of the regions representative tourist attractions, drawing many visitors.

Among the visitors who come to worship, there are quite a few people who offer food to the cats or pray for the health and peace of their beloved pets.

Next, the article introduces the Old Tengu Temple located in Dujiangyan City, which is also in the same province. This is a temple dedicated to worshipping dogs.

The most common hypothesis regarding the origin of the construction is that it was to express gratitude toward a dog named Hong Tian Quan, who made great achievements in ancient flood control projects.

Furthermore, when the entire village was destroyed by an earthquake, this shrine was the only thing that was completely demolished. There is also a legend among the villagers that the dog god sacrificed itself to protect the whole village.

In addition, the Old Tengu Shrine located at the top of the mountain serves as the main shrine, and at the foot of the mountain there is also the Small Tengu Shrine. These two places are connected by a stone staircase.

It is common to see people and tourists offering food or dental chews for their pet dogs in front of the deity statue to pray for their dogs’ health, or visiting the shrine together with their dogs.

These examples show that beliefs about animals are deeply rooted in the local community.