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Yin Miao
In Taiwanese folk religion, ''yin miao'' ( zh, t=陰廟, p=Yīnmiào, l=dark temple) are temples dedicated to wandering and homeless spirits, as opposed to ''yang miao'', which are dedicated to deities. According to local beliefs, ghosts without a permanent resting place (as in a grave) wandering in the human realm and may cause trouble for the living. Therefore, ''yin miao'' serve as such resting places for these spirits as a form of respect and to maintain peace. Temples dedicated to deities associated with afterlife, like Cheng Huang Ye or Di Zang Wang, are not considered ''yin miao''. Architecture and location As opposed to ''yang miao'', ''yin miao'' are typically much smaller and less decorated. ''Yin miao'' will often display the words ''Yǒuqíobìyìng'' (有求必應). There are usually no paifang or any menshen at the entrance, and there are usually no statues inside the hall at all. However, some do get reconstructed into larger temples with more elaborate decorat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Keelung
Keelung () or Jilong () (; Hokkien POJ: '), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with its neighbors, New Taipei City and Taipei, respectively. Nicknamed the ''Rainy Port'' for its frequent rain and maritime role, the city is Taiwan's second largest seaport (after Kaohsiung). The city was founded by the Spanish Empire in 1626, then called La Santisima Trinidad. Name According to early Chinese accounts, this northern coastal area was originally called ''Pak-kang'' (). By the early 20th century, the city was known to the Western world as Kelung, as well as the variants ''Kiloung'', ''Kilang'' and ''Keelung''. In his 1903 general history of Taiwan, US Consul to Formosa (1898–1904) James W. Davidson related that "Kelung" was among the few well-known names, thus warranting no alternate Japanese romanization. However, the Taiwanese people have ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ghost Festival
The Ghost Festival, also known as the Zhongyuan Festival (traditional Chinese: 中元節; simplified Chinese: ) in Taoism and Yulanpen Festival () in Buddhism, is a traditional Taoist and Buddhist festival held in certain East Asian countries. According to the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in parts of southern China).Chow 2015 In Chinese culture, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm. Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (or Tomb Sweeping Day, in spring) and Double Ninth Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, during Ghost Festival, the deceased are believed to visit the living. On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taiwanese Superstitions
Taiwanese superstitions are widely believed among the Taiwanese people, Taiwanese population as these superstitions stem from Chinese mythology, legends, folklore, traditions, customs that have been practiced throughout generations, and many more. Societal superstitions * If students trim their nails during the examination period, they will end up with failing grades for their subjects. * When people point at the Moon, they will bring bad luck upon themselves. It is said that the Moon Goddess Chang'e, Chang’e finds the action of people pointing at the moon to be disrespectful, and as such she would sever the index finger of the person who pointed at the Moon. In modern times the superstition usually states that the moon will cut behind your ear. * During a meal, it is frowned upon for people to leave their chopsticks sticking up vertically in rice, be it leftover or a new bowl of rice. The image of having chopsticks sticking up vertically in rice is similar to the image of havi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Temple Of The Eighteen Lords
Temple of the Eighteen Lords ( zh, t=乾華十八王公廟, p=Gānhuá Shíbāwáng Gōngmiào) is a ''yin miao'' (temple for deceased people) located in Ganhua Village, Shimen District, New Taipei, Taiwan. Located on Provincial Highway 2 beside Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant, the temple is dedicated to seventeen deceased sailors and one dog. History According to legend, during the Qing Dynasty, a boat carrying seventeen people and one dog capsized near the coast of northern Taiwan. All of the people died, but the dog survived. When residents on the shore were burying the dead, the dog jumped into the grave to be buried as well. Locals then immortalized them collectively as the "Eighteen Lords". The grave was maintained by the Lian family (練) living in Ganhua Village. In the 1960s, a small shrine was built at the grave, and in 1975, the Lian family built a larger temple for the eighteen spirits. At the time, temples must worship one of the forty-seven deities recognized by the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Princess Babao Temple
Wanyinggong Temple ( zh, t=萬應公祠, p=Wànyìnggōng Xì), commonly referred to as Princess Babao Temple ( zh, t=八寶公主廟, p=Bābǎo Gōngzhǔ Miào), is a '' yin miao'' (temple to deceased people) in Hengchun Township, Pingtung County, Taiwan. The temple is known for its worship an allegedly Dutch princess known as "Princess Babao". Princess Babao According to legend, a Dutch ship wrecked off the coast of Hengchun, and all the men were killed by a tribe of indigenous people living in nearby Guizijiao (龜仔角, now Sheding 社頂). The indigenous people typically did not kill women, but afterwards, a woman named Margaret was killed by a lone tribesman, who either did so deliberately or mistook her gender. The tribesman took eight items off of Margaret: a pair of klompen, a silk scarf, a pearl necklace, a ring with gemstones, a leather suitcase, earrings, a feather pen, and paper; these eight items were later known as ''babao'' (literally "eight treasures"). H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maling Temple
Maling Temple ( zh, t=媽靈宮, p=Mālíng Gōng) is a temple located in the village of Chituqi, Houlong Township, Miaoli County, Taiwan. Origin Chituqi is located on top of a plateau near the coast along the Taiwan Strait. Historically, the area was mostly uninhabited and undeveloped for its remoteness and superstitions surrounding an unmarked mass grave there. In 1930, a ''yin miao'' (temple for ghosts) named "Wanshan Temple" (萬善祠) was constructed near the remains. According to legend, a pair of ghosts, one male and one female, dwelled in the area that would lead the way for lost travelers. Merchants claimed that every time the pair appeared, their business for the day would be good. Fishermen also claimed that a fireball would shoot up from the temple whenever the ocean's conditions were dangerous the next day. Therefore, The pair of ghosts were seen as deities, and in the 1960s, it was rebuilt and dedicated to the ghosts. According to temple officials, the female ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kailu Xianfengye Temple
Kailu Xianfengye Temple ( zh, t=開路先鋒爺廟, p=Kāilù Xiānfēngyé Miào), alternatively known as Qing'an Shrine ( zh, t=慶安堂, p=Qìng'ān Táng), is a martyr's shrine located in Su'ao Township, Yilan County, Taiwan. The shrine is dedicated to the thirteen men that lost their lives building Suhua Highway. Overview Kailu Xianfengye Temple is a ''yin miao'' located on the old section of Suhua Highway on Provincial Highway 9D, sitting above a steep cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Suhua Highway is the only road connection between Yilan County and Hualien County and is notoriously dangerous due to its mountainous terrain. On the altar, there is a stone plaque inscribed with "Kailu Xianfengye", roughly translating to "god of road construction pioneers", and the names of thirteen workers that perished during the road's construction. Two of those people are Japanese; the rest are Taiwanese. The latest to be inscripted is Ding Pei-jun (丁培俊), who died in 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joss Paper
Joss paper, also known as incense papers, are papercrafts or sheets of paper made into burnt offerings common in Chinese ancestral worship (such as the veneration of the deceased family members and relatives on holidays and special occasions). Worship of deities in Chinese folk religion also uses a similar type of joss paper. Joss paper, as well as other papier-mâché items, are also burned or buried in various Asian funerals, "to ensure that the spirit of the deceased has sufficient needs in the afterlife." In Taiwan alone, the annual revenue of temples received from burning joss paper was US$400 million (NT$13 billion) as of 2014. Traditional Joss paper is traditionally made from coarse bamboo paper, which feels handmade with many variances and imperfections, although rice paper is also commonly used. Traditional joss is cut into individual squares or rectangles. Depending on the region, Joss paper may be decorated with seals, stamps, pieces of contrasting paper, engraved des ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ancestor Veneration In China
Chinese ancestor veneration, also called Chinese ancestor worship, is an aspect of the Chinese traditional religion which revolves around the ritual celebration of the deified ancestors and tutelary deities of people with the same surname organised into lineage societies in ancestral shrines. Ancestors, their ghosts, or spirits, and gods are considered part of "this world". They are neither supernatural (in the sense of being outside nature) nor transcendent in the sense of being beyond nature. The ancestors are humans who have become godly beings, beings who keep their individual identities. For this reason, Chinese religion is founded on veneration of ancestors. Ancestors are believed to be a means of connection to the supreme power of Tian as they are considered embodiments or reproducers of the creative order of Heaven. It is a major aspect of Han Chinese religion, but the custom has also spread to ethnic minority groups. Ancestor veneration is largely focused on male ance ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tamsui River
The Tamsui River (alternatively Danshui River, ) is third longest river in Taiwan after Zhuoshui River and Gaoping River, with a total length of , flowing through Hsinchu County, Taoyuan, Taipei and New Taipei City. It is located in northern part of the island. Geography The Tamsui River begins at the confluence of Xindian River and Dahan River at the western boundary of Taipei and New Taipei City, just north of Banqiao District, and flows northward and northwestward, passing the eponymous Tamsui District, then emptying into the Taiwan Strait. Formerly known as the "Dolatok River", it is one of the few rivers in the island that flows along a north–south direction. The river's three tributaries are the Xindian River, Dahan River and Keelung River. The Dahan River is the main tributary and has its headwaters in the Pintian Mountain in Hsinchu County and flows through Hsinchu County, Taoyuan City and New Taipei City. As a river system including the Dahan River, the Tamsui ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shilin District
Shilin District (also spelled Shihlin District, zh, t=士林區, p=Shìlínqū, poj=Sū-lîm-khu) is a district of Taipei. The central command center of the Republic of China Navy (ROCN) is located in Shilin. History The name ''Shilin'' was derived from ''Pattsiran'', the indigenous Ketagalan word for "hot springs". It was then transliterated into Chinese as "" (), which has been written as ''Pat-chi-na'' or ''Pachina''. Prior to Han Chinese settlement, the area was home to the ''Kimassauw'' community () of the Taiwanese indigenous peoples. During the Qing era, a fort was set up, later called Zhilan Yi Bao (first fort/settlement of Pattsiran, ). By the late Qing dynasty, "many literary talents from Shilin had passed the imperial examination", prompting the local gentry to rename it ''Shilin'' (), meaning "congregation of scholars and talents".alternately, "scholars enter the forest" (). In the 1920s under Japanese colonial rule, the area was organized as and in 1933 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
