When the gates of the netherworld close and Ghost Month draws to a close on Wednesday night, the people of Toucheng Township (頭城) in Yilan County will gather by the sea and appease the “wandering ghosts” (孤魂), who perished during the Han Chinese migration into area, before they return to the land of the dead.
There will be two competitions — beginning with an easier fanpeng (飯棚) challenge to provide rice to the ghosts, followed by the main gupeng (孤棚) event with duck, fish, pork and other offerings. For the main challenge, teams of five people will race to climb 13m-tall greased poles with the help of ropes and make their way up to the main platform, where offerings can be obtained on 30m-tall structures located above the platform. To win, they must obtain the flag on the very top. About 120 gallons of butter is reportedly used that night to grease the poles.
Festivities will begin on Sunday morning with a welcoming the gods ceremony, with other rituals and performances through Tuesday, when a water lantern ceremony will be held at the mouth of the Chuan River (竹安河) at 7pm. The lanterns will be set off at 8pm.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
The main show takes place Wednesday night, when a ceremony to appease the wandering spirits will begin around 8pm. Once the ceremony ends at around 11pm, the grappling begins.
■ The majority of the festivities will be held at 71, Kailan E Rd, Toucheng Township, Yilan County (宜蘭縣頭城鎮開蘭東路71號)
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
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