The annual making of the Pingan Turtle — a turtle-shaped rice cake to ask the Holy Lord of Splitting Mountains’ (開山聖王) blessing for a prosperous year, safety and peace — on Sunday surpassed its record weight at 18,888 jin, or 11,332kg.
The making of the cake is part of the deity’s birthday celebrations at Kaishan Temple in Nantou County’s Lugu Township (鹿谷), the temple’s management committee chairman Chen Chung-hsi (陳忠西) said.
Local residents gather annually near the temple to help make the turtle, with some preparing the source materials and others molding the cooked glutinous rice into the shape of a turtle.
Photo: Hsieh Chieh-yu, Taipei Times
The event was first celebrated in 1998, at which time the cake weighed only 1,320kg, Chen said.
This year’s turtle was 4,200kg heavier than the peach-shaped sticky rice cake prepared by the Shoutien Temple in the county’s Mingjian Township (名間), but unlike the peach, the turtle has a hollow spot under its shell housing bags of rice to be distributed to disadvantaged people, Chen said.
Nantou County Commissioner Lin Ming-chen (林明溱) and Central Taiwan Joint Services Center deputy head Tang Huo-sheng (湯火聖) also attended the ceremony.
The ceremony also included traditional events such as puppet shows and other performances, Chen said, adding that the temple held a concert and set off fireworks in the evening.
The temple’s diety is not a traditional deity, but was a mortal later deified by a Qing government official.
The temple said that it chose for the Pingan Turtle to weigh 18,888 jin, as the number eight in Mandarin sounds similar to the word fa (發), which is taken in the auspicious context of fa cai (發財, becoming rich and prosperous).
FUKUOKA SITUATION: Japanese media reported that the pathogen is expected to be identified by the summer, while the CDC downplayed the idea that it was hMPV A “mysterious cold-like illness” reported in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture does not seem to be a new disease, but Japanese authorities have been asked about the situation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. The Fukuoka Prefectural Medical Association on Wednesday told a news conference that a “mystery cold” that has become a hot topic on social media is “highly likely to be caused by some kind of viral infection,” Japan’s KBC News reported. “Many people are experiencing symptoms starting with a sore throat, followed by a runny nose, phlegm and a severe cough,” KBC News reported, citing association officials. Health authorities are
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) arrived in Taiwan yesterday ahead of upcoming AI and technology events, saying he plans to meet with clients and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) during his visit. After landing at Taipei Songshan Airport, Huang posed for photos with fans and handed out Yakult drinks to reporters and supporters waiting at the scene, saying he has “a lot to do” during the trip. Asked about reports that Nvidia’s planned headquarters site in Taipei’s Beitou Shilin Technology Park could break ground on May 27, Huang said that if the company holds an event, he would
Carrefour Taiwan is to begin using a new name from the start of July, but it cannot divulge the name until then, the chairman of the supermarket chain's parent company said today. President Chain Store Co chairman Lo Chih-hsien (羅智先) was asked by reporters after a shareholders' meeting to confirm whether the company has settled on a new name for the supermarket brand. In March, the government-registered name of two Carrefour Taiwan branches was quietly changed to "Le Chia Kang" (樂家康) in Chinese, raising speculation that has been selected as the name. Lo said that because of local regulations and contractual obligations, the
The Philippines would likely be involved in any conflict over Taiwan due to its proximity to the democracy claimed by China, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said, reiterating a stance that risks angering Beijing. “In the Philippines, we do not have a choice because Taiwan is so close to the Philippines and we have almost 200,000 Filipino nationals living and working in Taiwan,” Marcos said in an interview with Japanese media in Manila on Monday. The Philippine leader’s comments come ahead of a state visit to Japan next week, where he is to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to discuss security
RSS