The Chinese sea goddess Mazu is big business in Taiwan and the blockchain could make it even bigger.

The Mazu deity, known as a protector of seafarers and worshiped by Chinese communities around the world for centuries, is especially popular in Taiwan. The Dajia Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung city organizes an annual 300-kilometer nine-day pilgrimage with a statue of the goddess that draws hundreds of thousands of followers. 

The pilgrimages and related festivals have formed what is known as the “Mazu economy,” referring to donations and spending on Mazu-themed merchandise and business opportunities surrounding the religion. 

Dajia Jenn Lann Temple, which dates back to the Qing Dynasty in the 1700s, has decided to add a Web 3.0 element to its activities. It’s minting and selling sea goddess non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that act as a priority pass for the pilgrimage that usually happens in the Spring.

The MazuDAO NFTs went on sale in August at NT$ 18,880 (US$615) through the temple’s e-commerce platform MazuBuyBuy and elsewhere. So far, the temple has minted and sold more than 2,800 NFTs. 

“According to estimates the nine-day pilgrimage can generate more than NT$5 billion (US$163 million) in spending. On the day when Mazu returned to the home temple, we saw about 500,000 people joining the pilgrimage,” Mingkun Cheng, vice chairman of the board of the Dajia Jenn Lann Temple, told Forkast.

More younger people are joining the pilgrimage so the MazuDAO NFTs appeal to…