God＇s Birthday Festival as a Temple Festival Variation in Chinese Indonesian Tradition

This research is to describe Chinese belief. God＇s worship （baishen 拜神） is one form of Chinese belief. God＇s worship tradition can be seen in god＇s birthday festival. By using Xuan Tian Shangdi＇s （Hian Thian Siang Tee 玄天上帝） birthday Festival in Hok Lay Kiong Temple, Bekasi West Java and Xuan Tian Shangdi Temple in Welahan, Jepara Central Java as unit analysis. The author will describe the variations in Chinese Indonesian tradition. The festival is on the 3rd day of the third month of Chinese lunar year. Xuan Tian Shangdi＇s birthday festival shows the similarities and differences in variations of tradition. The festival of god＇s birthday is also a temple festival involving various groups which are aimed to integrate. This research is qualitative research conducted by field research. Data collection methods are interview, observations, and participant observations to gain an understanding of Chinese belief.