A Sea Goddess Temple Built on a Planned Condo SiteThe story of Yokohama Masobyo, opened in 2006
Alongside Kanteibyo, Yokohama Chinatown has a second temple: Yokohama Masobyo. Opened in 2006, it is one of the newest buildings in the district.
Mazu, goddess of the sea
Mazu is a goddess widely worshipped along the Chinese coast and in Taiwan. She is said to have been a young woman named Lin Moniang who lived in Fujian about 1,000 years ago, in the Song dynasty.
Legend says she gained mysterious powers at 16 and saved people from shipwrecks and disasters; she was later given the title Tianhou, Empress of Heaven.
She is known as the guardian of sailors and fishermen, and is also believed to bring children, safe childbirth, good matches and success in study.
Where the Qing consulate stood
Masobyo stands next to Yamashita-cho Park. The consulate of Qing China moved to this area in 1883.
After the 1911 revolution it became the Consulate-General of the Republic of China, until it collapsed in the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake. It is said that Mazu was once enshrined here.
A temple born from a condo plan
In autumn 2003, a plan to build a condominium on this land was announced.
The Yokohama Chinatown Development Association opposed it for the sake of the neighborhood, and proposed buying the land to build a Mazu temple. After talks, the two sides agreed on the sale.
- 1883The Qing consulate moves here
- 1923The consulate collapses in the Great Kanto Earthquake
- 2003A condominium plan is announced
- 2006March 17: Yokohama Masobyo opens
The total cost, including land, was 1.8 billion yen. It is a two-story reinforced concrete building that applies traditional Chinese temple design with modern techniques. The main statue was made in Fujian, China. The bell and drum towers reuse Meiji and Taisho era bricks dug up during construction.
Five incense burners
At Masobyo, you offer incense at five burners in order. Each is dedicated to a different deity and blessing.
- 1Jade Emperor: peace for the nation
- 2Mazu: safe voyages
- 3Lady Linshui and the Birth Goddess: safe childbirth, children
- 4Wenchang and the Old Man under the Moon: study, matchmaking
- 5Tudigong, the earth god: wealth and the safety of property
Mazu’s birthday and the lantern festival
The 23rd day of the third lunar month is considered Mazu’s birthday, and the Mazu festival is held on that day. Its date on the Western calendar changes year to year, falling between mid-April and mid-May.
The temple’s official site lists its annual events as the Mazu Festival on Vernal Equinox Day marking the temple’s opening, matchmaking prayers on July 7, a New Year’s Eve countdown and Lunar New Year. The 9th day of the ninth lunar month is observed as Mazu’s ascension; in 2026 the ceremony was held on October 18 (Yokohama Chinatown’s Festival Calendar).
At the end of Lunar New Year 2026, the Lantern Festival was also held at Masobyo.
Sources
- Yokohama Masobyo official site: History (Japanese)
- Yokohama Masobyo official site: Mazu (Japanese)
- Yokohama Masobyo official site: How to pray (Japanese)
- Yokohama Masobyo official site: Events (Japanese)
- Yokohama Keizai Shimbun, 2006 (Japanese)
- Nippon Tabi Magazine: Yokohama Masobyo (Japanese)
- Nippon Tabi Magazine: Mazu festival (Japanese)
- Yokohama Official Visitors’ Guide: Masobyo (Japanese)
- Suehiro, T.: Formation of Yokohama Chinatown, University of Tsukuba (Japanese)
This article is an English edition of the Japanese original.