Phuket vegetarian festival 2020

Fire-walking has been specifically included in the official programme of events for the festival produced by the Tourism Authority of Thailand TATreleased this week.

Across Phuket, especially in the Chinese communities of Phuket City, Thalang and Kathu, Chinese shrines fill up with devotees dressed in pure white. Some perform sacred rituals and physically challenging acts including walking barefoot over hot coals and climbing ladders of sharp blades. To discover a less gory side of the festival, visit some of the hundreds of food stalls that set up around the Chinese temples. Several restaurants around Phuket also switch their menus to vegan fare during the festival. The best place to find vegetarian food during the festival is in the Phuket Old Town area.

Phuket vegetarian festival 2020

Known as:. Nine Emperor Gods Festival. Phuket Vegetarian Festival is the annual nine-day event, celebrated by the Chinese Hokkien descendants across the island for the purposes of physical well-being, spiritual cleansing, merit-making, conferring good luck in the future, and ensuring prosperity and long life. In , when Phuket inhabited mostly by Chinese miners, the unnamed epidemic was spreading in Kathu Town and caused several deaths. Among many patients, some of them were the members of an opera troupe from China. In hope of finding a cure, the Chinese opera troupe started and led the locals to abstain from eating meat and prayed to the Jade Emperor God and the Nine Emperor Gods for a period of 9 days and 9 nights, as they used to practice during the ninth Chinese lunar month when they were in China. Consequently, members of an opera troupe recovered their health afterwards and caused great curiosity to the locals. The practicing then widely accepted in Chinese community on the island and passed down from generation to generation until present day. Celebrations are taking place at all 25 shrines across the island. During the parade, the possessed ones are all dressed up in Chinese customs to represent which gods have entered them and the most fascinating thing is that they piece their cheeks with swords or needles before the parade. Running across a bed of burning coals, climbing an 8-metre ladder made of sharp blades, and body piercing are made to invoke the gods and becoming mediums of those gods. Men and women puncture their cheeks with sharp items, including knives and skewers. It's believed that the Chinese gods will protect them from harm, resulting in little blood or scarring.

The masong bring and decide what they will be pierced with.

Visiting Phuket Vegetarian Festival. Always look for the silver lining. While I spent a couple of months mostly quarantined in my apartment, by June Thailand had effectively opened up. This meant there was time to explore parts of Thailand I had not been to before. The added bonus is Thailand had shut its doors to the 40 million tourists who annually visit the Kingdom.

Phuket Vegetarian Festival is the most popular in town for a reason. Like it or hate it but you can certainly not remain indifferent to it. Unlike other festivals and celebrations, this festival involves a lot of gory scenes besides fireworks and fancy attires. The phuket vegetarian festival takes place every year. Witness the captivating Phuket Vegetarian Festival , an annual cultural event featuring intricate ceremonies, colorful street processions, and delicious plant-based cuisine, celebrating the island's unique traditions. The annual Phuket Vegetarian Festival takes place during the 9th Lunar Month of the chinese calendar. It falls usually in the month of September or October. It celebrates the unique belief of the chinese community in the holiness of vegetarian food. They believe that adopting a vegetarian diet and paying homage to the nine Gods wards off the evil spirits.

Phuket vegetarian festival 2020

Last Updated on October 21, by Christine Kaaloa. Although the vegetarian festival is held nationwide throughout Thailand, Phuket Town is the place that the festival culminates with spectacles and feats. Practitioners must dress in white during the entire period and undergo a strict vegetarian diet, refraining from the eating or killing of animals for meat. One must maintain a clean body and mind during this time, with no sex, drugs or alcohol. Those who should not attend are those in mourning, women undergoing menstruation or pregnancy. The belief is that a purified diet will not only help with better health, but will also strengthen their inner peace and focus on the gods. During this time, mediums called mar song , go into trance to channel their deities one of the Nine Emperor Gods. Thus, there are many dangerous performances, from climbing bladed ladders, sword piercings and fire walking, which shows their test of faith. Aside from what many think, not all mediums are trained beforehand.

Top 50 aria

Next, they share some words of prayer, wave their flag around, and grab pieces of fruit which they present to members of this tabletop shrine. The posse is responsible for caring the masong. The masong will glide by with their flag unfurled with a prayer to drive away the demons. Leave A Comment Cancel reply Comment. Yes, you got to peel the onion back. Wander along Ranong Road near the Jui Tui shrine to find dozens of food stalls. Devotees and Mah Song spirit mediums will lead the procession from the Choor Su Gong Shrine while many local residents and visitors to the island are expected to line the streets to observe the procession. Opening time. Procession The drums thump, the horns blare. A couple of thousand Thais gathered lining up in front of several different bridges. In , when Phuket inhabited mostly by Chinese miners, the unnamed epidemic was spreading in Kathu Town and caused several deaths. The posses sometimes hold deities propped above their heads. Some of the masongs seemed to be indifferent to the pain, while others definitely feeling the pain. Walking would be somewhat challenging since the shrines might be located kilometers apart. It's believed that the Chinese gods will protect them from harm, resulting in little blood or scarring.

The most significant festival in Phuketian culture, the Phuket Vegetarian Festival, is celebrated in the ninth Chinese lunar month, which this year falls on October 6 — October The Phuket Vegetarian Festival is an annual nine-day event, celebrated by the Chinese Hokkien descendants across the island for physical well-being, spiritual cleansing, merit-making, conferring good luck in the future, and ensuring prosperity and long life.

Gongs and drums waft through the air. These adherents demonstrate their resolve with their extreme piercings. A large drum was placed in the middle of a circle as the men would stand with their weapon of choice to self-flagellate themselves. Walking would be somewhat challenging since the shrines might be located kilometers apart. This will denote that they are serving vegan food. November 23rd, 6 Comments. At some of the shrines, masongs also demonstrated their dedication in a cavalcade of fire walking. During the parade, the possessed ones are all dressed up in Chinese customs to represent which gods have entered them and the most fascinating thing is that they piece their cheeks with swords or needles before the parade. The masongs come under a trance and then submit themselves to some shocking body piercings. I had witnessed Muslim Shias in Lahore pursuing their piety with savage abandonment as blood spurted from their wounds. The provide water and wipe away saliva that drips down their chin. Yes, you got to peel the onion back. Bring your camera with a lot of extra batteries. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Their ancestors emigrated from southern China during the 19 th century, and originally worked in the Phuket tin industry, the main driver of the economy.