3-day Fa Hui

There are four purposes of having this 3-day Fa Hui from 30th January 2015 to 1st February 2015. 

i) To show thanksgving to Bei Dou Xing Jun for His blessings in all aspects, e.g. health, business, safety, study and etc.

ii) To pray Tai Sui Xing Jun god. This practice is actually a taboo for Taoism believers. There are 60 Tai Sui Xing Jun and they take turn to record all the good deeds and bad deeds of humans. The people believe that Tai Sui gods are fierce. Each year, for example, this year is the year of goat, mean one of the 60 gods who is now His turn to carry out His duty. So, for those who have the zodiac of goat and also who are 6 years younger than the goat-zodiac people will go against with the god on duty. He or she needs to pray the god at the beginning of the year and show gratitude at the end of the year to avoid unfortunate incidents happened on them.

iii) To thank the gods for ensuring the safety and peace of the followers since they sometimes ask for blessings from the gods whenever they need.

iv) To respect the spirit of dead and show thanksgiving to them for providing the peace to the yang’s world. Every year end, the believers will prepare a small banquet for them to show gratitude. They always need to show compassion to the spirits so that to achieve win-win situation between ying and yang world.

My first ceremony/puja (Fa Hui) ever seen in Taiwan

Here is my first time visit to temple in Taiwan and hence will stay here for few weeks to accomplish my main objective of Global Citizen Programme (GCP). I'm feel gladly and grateful to have the pleasure to catch sight of the ceremony in Yuan Bao Temple. Without further ado, I will share my impression and some information towards the ceremony.

My first attention is：Tangyuan!!!

The traditional Tangyuan is consists of red and white colors which represent gold and silver separately. It is made by glutinous rice flour and water. Once people make and eat Tangyuan, it implication wealth, reunion and auspicious. Tangyuan of Yuan Bao Temple is very popular and it is free for the believers for the day!

The purpose of the ceremony is to thanks the gods for the benediction during the whole years. Therefore, it held at the year’s end of lunar calendar. The ceremony starts around 9.30am. There are few rounds of ceremony held and it end around 4pm. Few Scriptures recited by the Taoist priests with language of Taiwanese Hokkien (Min Nan) along the ceremony as every god has their own Scripture. The believers have to gratitude towards three worlds: world of desire (human, ghost, animals), world of form (free of baser desires, dhyāna-dwelling gods) and world of formlessness (gods).

Other than to show the appreciation towards the benediction by gods, the believers also have to give a salute to the spirits deceased for peacefully between human and spirits. Therefore, the offerings such as food will be prepared for the god and the spirits of deceased. Other than that, joss paper and incense also is necessity of the ceremony. The believers can send away their bad luck in year past and usher in good luck for the new year. 

Committee members of Yuan Bao Temple will help the believers that wish to participate the ceremony prepare the offerings. For those believers wish to prepare the offering by their own, they may bring along the offering to the temple before the ceremony of worship get started.

One dishes of the offering to the gods is longans that pluck from the 200 and more year’s old tree in the Yuan Bao Temple! I will share the information of this tree in future.

The spirit to manage the Ying’s world (spirit of deceased) will possess the statue after the red cloth removed.

It is a very good experience for me to know one of the ceremonies of the Taoist. I learn something new and feel the sincerity of the believers want to have a better life. On the other hand, we need do more charity and good thing since everyone will have their own karma. This ceremony is cool to me and valuable. 

= The ceremony is held from 30 January to 1 February in year 2015.