The Wind Lion God風獅爺

The "Wind Lion God" has other names such as "Wind Lion," "Stone Lion God," or "Stone Lion Lord," and so on. During the end of the Ming dynasty and the beginning of the Ching dynasty, the people of Kinmen suffered much wind damage. In order to protect themselves from the wind and get rid of(1) the evil spirits, people erected(2) Wind Lion Gods in front of temples or at their village entrances as their angel guards. Hence the Wind Lion God was believed to be a protector of Kinmen.
『風獅爺』也稱為「風獅」、「石獅爺」或「石獅公」。金門在明朝末年清朝初年時，居民常為風患所苦惱，為了鎮風驅邪，各村居民開始在廟口、村口豎立風獅爺，用以守護家園。因此，至今風獅爺也成為金門的守護神。

The Wind Lion God was given its shape to represent a ferocious(3) lion hopefully to suppress(4) strong winds and ward off(5) demons. In Kinmen, Wind Lion Gods can be classified into two varieties. One is those standing at the village entrances, called "Village Wind Lion Gods;" the other is those standing on the rooftop, called "Roof Wind Lion Gods". Both have the same function of preventing strong winds and disasters, but they just vary in shape and material, generally from clay to stone sculptures. Their postures(6) and facial expressions vary, too. Some are lying or sitting, and others standing. Some are laughing, while others have a terrifying appearance. Accordingly they can be put into three groups, namely, "Literary(7) Wind Lions," "Military Wind Lions," "Fortune Wind Lions."
風獅爺是以威猛的獅子的外形來鎮風並且嚇阻四面八方的邪魔妖怪。金門的風獅爺可分為二種，一種是樹立於村口的「村落風獅爺」；另一種是放置在屋頂上的「屋頂風獅爺」。二者皆具有鎮風止煞的功用，但其形狀、材質皆不太相同，有水泥的、石頭的，或臥、或坐、或站、或笑、或威嚴等。目前，市面的商家依其外型的不同也可將風獅爺區分為：『文風獅』、『武風獅』和『財風獅』三類。

The 12th Day of the Fourth Lunar Month-Celebrating Chenghuang Lord's Birthday
農曆四月十二日─迎城隍

In celebration of the 12th day of the fourth lunar month when the Garrison Command of ancient Kinmen was transferred to downtown "Houpu" (nowadays called "Jincheng"), the people of Kinmen designated this day as Chenghuang Lord's birthday. Thus, this day of greetings is always accompanied by the "Lord's patrols," and has become the biggest religious feast in Kinmen. The Lord's patrols are divided into a "Grand Patrol" and a "Minor Patrol". The Grand Patrol is a parade that takes place once in every leap year,(8) while the Minor Patrol is held once a year. The former involves taking the idol on a tour of 13 suburban villages around Jincheng and all of downtown Jincheng, but the latter is a parade just around downtown Jincheng. Normally the Lord's patrols are accompanied by a parade of lion dance teams, gong and drum teams, and martial arts performances, etc., all highlighting the happiness of the celebration. Worshippers and pilgrims with burning incense sticks just follow the parade and crowd the streets. Along the streets sacrifices are offered to the idol by every household. At night, they also invite friends and relatives to join their festival parties.
金門居民為了紀念總兵署搬至『後浦』（也就是現在的『金城』）的日子，便將當日農曆四月十二日作為後浦城隍爺的生日，迎城隍生日這天也就成了金門最盛大的民俗慶典活動。城隍的出巡可分為『大巡』和『小巡』兩種；大巡即要繞境十三個村莊和後浦四境（即金城鎮區的東門、西門、南門和北門），每三年逢閏年舉行一次；小巡繞後浦四境即可，每年都有。巡境遊行時，會有獅陣、鑼鼓隊、藝陣等表演將廟會活動帶入高潮；而善男信女則拿香緊跟在遊行隊伍之後，眾多的人潮將街道擠的熱熱鬧鬧。在這一天，每家每戶都會擺出大魚大肉祭拜，同時，邀請親朋好友共享歡慶。

■1. get rid of-擺脫。
■2. erect-(vt.)豎立，設立，建立。亦可當形容詞，指「垂直的」、「直立的」。
■3. ferocious-(adj.)凶猛的，殘忍的。
■4. suppress-(vt.)鎮壓；壓制。
■5. ward off-避開。ward通常當名詞用，指病房、牢房，或保護、護衛。此處作為動詞，指「避開」。
■6. posture-(n)姿態、姿勢；心境；態勢。
■7. literary-(adj.)文學的、文藝的。
■8. leap year-閏年。
資料來源：金門縣政府