Temple Opening Ceremony

It's a rare opportunity indeed to witness the opening ceremony of a major temple: the ceremony in which the temple god is officially moved in.

Robert and I did just that yesterday (November 23). We had been waiting two years for this event.

The temple is Hai Qing Gong, a huge, splendid, brand new temple built (mostly) using centuries-old traditional methods and materials. The temple is dedicated to Bao Qing Tian, a legendary Song Dynasty judge who, like other historic figures who have reached mythical status, has been deified.

We drove down to the town of Santiaolun, which is on the west coast, not too far from Chiayi. As we were driving along the No. 61 expressway, we saw bright lights in the distance, with searchlights. We got to our turnoff, where a two long strings of red lanterns lined the road, guiding the way to the temple. We got to the temple amid a flurry of noise and color, with throngs of worshipers and onlookers crowding the temple plaza, though it was nowhere near as crowded as at the Boat Burning Festival. As far as we could tell, we two were the only foreigners in attendance, and man people seemed surprised to see us there, some asking us how we know about it.



First we explored the temple grounds. Two tents filled with god statues from temples all around Taiwan were set up on either side of the temple plaza, and around the temple was a huge string of firecrackers. In the middle of the temple square, facing the main door, was a tent containing the statue of Bao Qing Tian, which had once taken the place of honor in the old temple in this area.

Firecrackers surround the temple.


A tentful of gods.


We made our way into the crowd in the temple square, where we could watch the activities. The temple doors were sealed, each with two yellow strips of paper forming an X. A ceremony was taking place in front of the doors. We watched as a priest unveiled the plaque bearing the temple name, above the central door. Then five figures ascended the temple steps: they seemed to be Chinese lions, or perhaps a mythical beast called a qilin. To me, their faces looked like cat demons. Their heads would tilt back and forth as a driving 4/4 rhythm of drums and gongs played.

Is it a lion? A qilin? I call it a "cat demon."


Soon the central beast started dancing more wildly. And then the main priest started going into a trance, dancing, whirling, and drawing characters in the air. The cadence of the drums grew faster, reaching a crescendo. More worshippers kept pouring into the area, some carrying large sticks of incense. Then at the appointed moment, the priest started bashing at the door, which after a few forceful thrusts opened wide. The other temple doors opened at the same time, and inside the doors firecrackers started going off, filling the area with sulfurous smoke. With a fanfare of trumpets, the temple god was now being carried on a litter toward the central door, and the smoke rendered his figure an imposing silhouette as he was brought across the threshold. Fireworks were shooting off above us. It was a powerful scene.

The temple doors are flung open!


The god is moved into the temple.


Fireworks shoot overhead.


I searched on YouTube, and someone submitted a video of it! The cameraman was standing about 15 feet in front of where Robert and I were. Click here to see the raw video. The doors are opened at minute 5:19. The god is moved into view at about 5:59. Unfortunately he moves the camera away when the god actually enters, but you can see the crowds and the smoke.

This video shows the part of the ceremony before the above. At about 5:00, you can see a good view of the lions with the twitching heads.

As we explored the area in the aftermath, people were lining up in the temple square to be blessed. There were more lion dances and a city god dance going on around the temple; people were still banging on drums and gongs. A raojing (procession) soon left the area on the way to other temples, and the crowds started to dissipate. A fireworks display was going on around the temple: in my estimation, the display went on non stop for an hour and a half. And these weren't dinky fireworks; they were of professional scale, the kind of big ones one would see at a 4th of July celebration. It must have cost the temple committee a fortune.

Fireworks


We came across some guys who gave us betel nuts to chew, tea to drink and tangyuan to eat, and we chatted a bit, though it was hard with all the noise. Robert had his photo taken with a god.

Finally, after hanging around for a bit longer, we left. As we drove away, we could see the fireworks still going off behind us. We followed the red lantern trail out to the expressway, and drove home, arriving in Taipei around 4 in the morning.

More of Bangkok

This is a filler; watch this space.

The marvels of Ayutthaya

Ayutthaya was the capital of the Kingdom of Siam from 1351 to 1767, when it was besieged and razed by the Burmese. In the ashes of the old kingdom came the new: the current Chakri Dynasty was founded soon thereafter, Ayutthaya being abandoned and the new capital established safely downriver in Bangkok.

Ayutthaya makes for a great day trip. A two-hour train ride, and you can see wondrous ruins of an old city.





A famous Buddha head, entwined by the roots of a bodhi tree (Ficus religiosa).

In Bangkok!

Today we went to Wat Benchamabophit, known as the Marble Temple. Absolutely beautiful.





On the grounds of the temple was this amazing tree. It's called a cannonball tree (Couroupita guianensis). It has snake-like stalks that grow off the lower part of the trunk, at the end of which are these pink flowers. The fruits look like brown coconuts.



I made a side trip to the Bangkok Protestant Cemetery, only to find it was flooded from recent rains! Next time I should be sure to come here in the dry season!



However, despite the flooding, they had done some fantastic sprucing up of the cemetery, clearing out thick underbrush and planting new plants, including a bunch of young frangipani trees. After all, what's a Southeast Asian cemetery without frangipani?



Wat Arun at sunset.

Wang Yeh Boat Burning Festival Part II

Friday, October 16, was the final full day of the festival. Though the festival technically centers around the Wang Yeh, to onlookers it may as well center around the boat.

Here's the boat in its "garage." I took this photo back in August.


The boat is painstakingly built by a master boat builder, exquisitely painted, and decorated with carved figures of sailors from around the world. Too bad this fine work of art is destined to become ash.

Detail of three of the sailors.


So anyway, we met at Xindian Station and piled into Robert's car. But just before we left, we saw some people looking with amazement at the ground. It was a Common Bluebottle (Graphium sarpedon). Unfortunately the poor critter was injured. A spectacular specimen.



So we drove down south. First we stopped at B&Q to pick up some folding chairs. I also bought a portable step stool. A worthwhile investment, especially when trying to take photos in a crowd!

We decided to take a more scenic route this time, along the coast, which added some time to our trip, but it was worth it. We got to Kaohsiung in plenty of time to meet up with Katannya, who took the High Speed Train because she couldn't get off work earlier. We had a dinner at a dumpling house near this local landmark:


We arrived at Donggang at about 10:30 pm, and got to the temple square just as the pace of events was starting to heat up. The boat was in the square, having finished its tour of the area to collect disease and bad luck.



Here, a man is placing lanterns on the boat.



Between the boat and the golden arch, a group of Taoist priests chant prayers.


A Taoist priest burns a piece of paper. He did this at five different stations.


We returned to the temple to witness the Feasting of the Wang Yeh ritual. A total of 108 dishes are offered to the gods, who are represented by colored plaques. People not directly involved with the ritual couldn't enter the sanctuary, but we could look in. There was a good-sized crowd outside the doorway peering in, trying to get that perfect shot. Robert managed to do just that, and I've borrowed his photo here:



Here's a closeup of plaques that represent the gods.



A view of what was going on in the front area of the temple:


Colorful sedan chairs, illuminated with flashing LED lights and playing music, are lined up in front of the temple, ready to carry the Wang Yeh to the beach to board the boat. Each one is powered by a generator, which is wheeled along behind it.





At that time, Sunny and two of her friends arrived. She's a family friend who is studying in Taiwan, and they decided to come down and witness this rare cultural event. I'm glad she came down: it's a great glimpse into local culture!

A select group of men clad in yellow and wearing tasseled hats prepare for the big event: pulling the boat to the beach. Only men are afforded this honor.


Finally, at 2:00 am, it happens! We moved to the archway, which is the best place to watch the boat pass, and what occurs next is one of life's magical, sublime moments. It's a surreal feeling watching this huge boat, accompanied by the sound of drums, gongs and horns, and lit up by the flashes of fireworks, float by.

I took a great photo of it, but I felt that Robert's photo does more to capture the grandeur of this moment.


Here's one I took right as it passed by us:


The march down the street to the beach is lively with firecrackers and festivity. That's Sunny in the foreground.






As we approached the beach, the tide of people got congested. There's no choice but to go left or right. We went left, and found a spot on the beach near this sedan chair.



Next comes the wait. Slowly, the gods are invited onto the boat. The boat is surrounded by joss paper. Then one by one the masts and sails are raised: three in all. A bamboo stalk, complete with leaves, is hoisted up to serve as a windsock.

The entire process takes two to four hours. This time it took about two and a half hours. Here I again use Robert's photo, since he was up close and he has a fantastic camera.



Finally, all the gods are aboard. The anchors are placed on the boat. And at about 5:15 am, the boat is finally set alight. Firecrackers are used to ignite the joss paper kindling.



This guy looks like he walked into the depths of hell to take a photo:



Burn! Burn!


Soon the sky gets lighter as dawn approaches.


The little sailor figurines are engulfed in flame!




As the sun came up, the crowd started drifting away. We watched the boat burn for a bit; then, tired and covered with ash, we walked back to the temple. We were greeted by the rising sun lighting up the gold-leaf-covered archway, with a blue sky backdrop. Nice!



Then we went to the other Golden Arches to wash up in the bathroom and enjoy Egg McMuffins for breakfast in air-conditioned comfort.

Then we drove back to Taipei, taking turns at the wheel.

Wang Yeh Boat Burning Festival Part I

Yesterday, Saturday Oct. 10, was the first day of the 2009 Wang Yeh Boat Burning Festival in Donggang, in southern Taiwan. It's one of Taiwan's prime festivals, and it takes place once every three years. We went to the final day of the 2006 festival, and this time around we decided to go to the first day of this week-long event. (Next week we'll go once again to the last day, which we just learned is Friday the 16th. The boat will be set alight on what will technically be Saturday morning.)

Robert wrote two interesting articles on this festival:

1. Taiwan Today
2. Wall Street Journal

We drove down south and overnighted in the city of Pingdong. The next morning we drove to Donggang, where the festival takes place.

Wang Yeh (wang ye, Royal Lords) are an aspect of Chinese folk religion. They are the spirits of what were once real, historical people, who centuries after their deaths have been elevated to divine status. Representatives from Wang Yeh temples all over Taiwan converge on Donggang for the festival, carrying their local gods in sedan chairs.

The festivities focus on Donglong Temple, with much of the activities happening in the temple square. On the first day, Wen Hong, the god of Donglong Temple, is carried outside and the doors to the inner sanctuary are ceremonially sealed during his absence.

Here's a scene from the ceremony in which the god is brought out. You can see, on the right, under the twin paper lanterns, the sanctuary door is open in the background.


The characters on the two lanterns above the doorway read "Inspection tour on behalf of Heaven," which is what is about to happen during the week: the gods go around on an inspection tour of the area, and will report their findings to Heaven.

A palanquin bearer, wearing the characteristic hat, inspects the sedan chair in which the temple god will be carried.


Music fills the air. Inside the temple, a group of young musicians play the suona, a double-reeded horn which sounds somewhat like a bagpipe.


Next, the gods are carried in their palanquins across the temple square, past the Wang Yeh boat still waiting in its "garage," through the golden arch on the far end of the square, and into the city streets.

The temple square is jam-packed with palanquin bearers, devotees and tourists. During this festival, Donglong Temple has been designated daitianfu: "Temple in Lieu of Heaven."


Make way for the King! Temple god Wen Hong is carried in his sedan chair.


Along the way, there are drums, gongs, fireworks along the pilgrimage to the beach. Finally, we approach the seaside.

A palanquin bearer cools down with a refreshing Taiwan Beer.


Dozens of palanquins are lined up on the sandy shore.


Lots of colorful characters can be seen here.




One of the gods arrives by sea.


Just beyond the lined up sedan chairs is a stretch of open sand in front of a stage, where another ceremony takes place. At this ceremony, the presiding Wang Yeh is chosen.



We had been told that the name is chosen by spirit mediums who write characters in the sand. We saw them carrying sticks presumably for that purpose, but either there were too many people or we were looking in the wrong place because we didn't see the sand-writing taking place. In any case, the name was chosen: with fanfare, firecrackers, cheers and a release of balloons, it was announced that the presiding Wang Yeh was named Luo.

Afterwards, the procession started in earnest, with all the sedan chairs being carried to another temple in the city, the first in a tour of many temples in the area.

We decided to go have dinner while we waited for the next major act of the day: the firewalk. On their return to the temple, the sedan-chair bearers walk barefoot through coals to purify themselves.

At around 7:00pm, the coals were burning with fierce heat.


The coals are smoothed out, and rice is tossed onto the coals as an offering. It bursts into a blaze with plumes of smoke rising into the night sky.


Next, salt is tossed on the coals, which lowers the temperature "so they don't get barbecued," the announcer said.


And across they go.


After crossing the coals, they left the temple grounds, went onto the street, and came back, forming a continuous loop of people streaming across the coals. I don;t know how many times they had to make the circuit.

Even SpongeBob was there to witness the festivities.


At night, the palanquins are lit up with colorful lights.


Festive fireworks enliven an already intense evening.




And this is only the first day!

On Friday the 16th, we go back down to Donglong Temple for the culmination of the festival: the Boat Burning!!

To get an idea of what it's like, check out the video I made for the last festival. Just click on the following YouTube link:

2006 Wang Yeh Boat Burning Festival