What's there to pray for?

Answer 1

In China culture, there were many things to pay attention to when praying to a god. First of all, in terms of making wishes, there were two kinds of wishes that could not be made. One was that unrealistic wishes could not be made, such as praying to get rich overnight, which was contrary to common sense and could be obtained by praying to God. The second was that wishes that cursed others could not be made. This was immoral and blasphemous to God and Buddha. There were also three things that one should not ask for when worshipping Buddha. One was not to be sick, because a healthy body might breed greed. From the perspective of modern medicine, a small illness could help the immune system operate. The second was not to ask for one's own selfish desires. The idea of satisfying one's selfish desires was blasphemous to the gods and one's own personality. The third was not to seek escape. If one did bad things, praying for blessings and escaping punishment would often be quickly punished.

There were also some common taboos in different religious places. For example, one had to address the monks (monks, nuns, etc.) appropriately in the temple. One should call them "Master" or "Master"; do not casually ask the age of the monks or nuns; do not waste food when eating vegetarian food; do not step on the temple threshold; do not burn too much incense; dress appropriately, etc.

In Japan, there were also special requirements for praying to the gods. Different shrines had different praying functions. For example, the Miki Shrine was suitable for people who had hair loss problems to pray for; the Hakone Shrine was more effective for career success; the Ichibimai Shrine could pray for women's health, career, family, children, and other wishes; Izumo Taisha was very effective for marriage; and the Kawai Shrine was suitable for girls to seek beauty.