Nanzhou Township Welcomes the Grand Finale: The Burning of the King’s Boat This Saturday

Written/Compiled and Reported by Li Xinyi, MOOK Travel Life Network Scenic Spots Home

 

The three-yearly Wangye Welcoming and Peace Ritual of Xizhou Taisu Temple in Nanzhou Township, Pingtung County, held its “Inviting the King” ceremony on the morning of the 26th on the beach in Qifeng Village, Linbian Township. The event saw an influx of divine palanquins, ritual troupes, and worshippers, marking the official start of the six-day Wangye Welcoming Festival. This is also the last religious and cultural celebration in the “2012 Pingtung Wangye Fever”—the Xizhou Taisu Temple Wangye Peace Ritual in Nanzhou Township.

Starting at 7 a.m., nearly a hundred divine palanquins and ritual troupes from temples within Nanzhou Township and nearby areas successively gathered at Qifeng Beach. Although yesterday was not a holiday, the beach and surrounding open spaces were packed with devout followers and tourists, with some even taking leave from work to return home for this once-every-three-years local extravaganza. After Taoist priests conducted a divine invitation and camp-setting ritual and blessed the royal decree, the palanquin bearers entered a trance, holding the leading divining sticks and slowly walking into the sea to respectfully invite the King’s presence. Finally, the Great Thousand-Year King descended into the body of a bearer surnamed Wu—marking the first descent during the 17th Nanzhou-hosted Wangye Festival. After confirmation by the ritual officials, it was announced that the Great Thousand-Year King had arrived, and cannons were fired to proclaim the news to the world, completing the inviting ceremony.

From the 27th to the 29th, the Divine King will tour the area in his patrol, with processions starting daily at 7 a.m. as follows: On the 27th, the patrol will cover Qizhou Village, Xinan Village, Renli Village, Xibei Village, Yuangliao Village in Dingsiang, Nanwang’an, Youche Village, and Luojiazhuang and Fanzi Cuo; on the 28th, Mici Village, Tong’an Village, Nan’an Village, and Shouyuan Village; and on the 29th, Dapu Community, Linbian Township’s An’an Village, Nanzhou Township’s Wanhua Village, and Qikuai Village.

 

Starting in the afternoon on the 30th, the Wang Boat Ritual Ceremony and the Wang Boat Relocation Patrol will be held. Nanzhou Junior High School’s drum and lion dance team will also join the Wang Boat relocation. In the evening, the “Wang Boat Plague Exorcism and Calamity Suppression Ritual” and the “Crossing the Dragon-Tiger Peace Bridge and Thirty-Six Green Blade Alley Fortune-Changing Ritual” will take place at the Taisu Temple Square. The grand finale on the morning of December 1st will be the burning of the Wang Boat at Qifeng Beach to bid farewell to the Divine King on his patrol—an event expected to draw yet another wave of crowds. For details, please visit the Pingtung Wangye Fever website: www.pthg.gov.tw/cyw/index.html.