Yesterday was the seventh day of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival. When I went to the temple at around 6 p.m. to pray, I saw people setting up a a big cauldron, a big cylindrical pot and a pyre. I was told that there was going to be some purification rituals carried out at around 9.00 p.m. One of the sifus is going to sit in the big cylindrical pot of boiling water for 35 minutes ( I think that was what the man said but then again my Mandarin is bad and I might have gotten the time wrong). The cauldron would have boiling oil and the mediums would dip their hands in them.
Then the pyre will be lit and another sifu would sleep on it. Faith in the power of the Nine Emperor Gods to cure sickness and confer luck, wealth, and long life is sufficient o induce devotees to participate in the rituals. Some of the purification rituals of this Taoist festival include playing with hot oil, sitting on beds of nails and being boiled. Truly amazing.
Too bad that I went too early and couldn't wait two hours to watch this religious spectacle.
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