2011 Taiwan Travel Planner - (Page 9)

If there’s one thing the Taiwanese do not lack on this magniﬁcently beautiful island, is spiritual sustenance, all fed by more than 5,000 temples, ranging in size from single-room shrines to vast multistory complexes. More importantly, all of these temples are not simply museums or relics of a bygone era, but active places of worship ﬁlled with the faithful at virtually any time of the day. There are three main varieties of temple in Taiwan—Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian, reﬂecting Taiwan’s religious make-up—with the oldest temple in Taiwan in the city of Makung, in the Pengu Islands, which has been in existence for over 300 years. Makung City (Tungpan Island and Huching Island) is the largest city in the Penghu Islands. Makung is also called the City of Matsu, named for the goddess of the sea by the locals. Penghu County—an archipelago of some 64 islands—has more temples than any other region in Taiwan. The main attractions of Makung City, in fact, are the temples that carry a long history of religious lifestyle. Interestingly enough, during the 50-year Japanese occupation of Taiwan there was widespread persecution of Taoism because it was seen as the embodiment of Chinese culture and as a result, Taoists had to secretly worship in Buddhist temples, which—instead of repressing Taoism outright—resulted in Taiwan’s unique blend of Buddhist and Taoist belief, along with the physical merging of the two temples into single structures. Individual Taoist and Buddhist temples and separate, simpler Confucius temples are also found, although in some temples, Confucian portraits are found alongside Buddhist and Taoist shrines, merging all three faiths into a single place of worship. One of the ﬁnest examples of Taoist temples is located in Sanshia just outside of Taipei. The Zushihi Temple, originally built in 1769, showcases elaborate architecture, beams decorated in real gold, carved stone pillars featuring dragons, birds, ﬂowers, and rhyming couplets, carvings on cypress and camphor, and bronze doors, pillars, statues and wall panels. Upon completion of reconstruction—it’s been rebuilt three times starting in 1833 when it was destroyed by a temblor; after the occupying Japanese army burned it in 1895; and after the island returned to Chinese rule in 1945. Kaohsiung City in the south is home to a large number and variety of temples including the Tianhou Temple located on Cijin Island and established in 1673, one of the earliest temples dedicated to the sea godess Mazu, with many of its artifacts dating back to the early Ching Dynasty, such as the dragon and tiger guarding the main entrance. At the end of WWII, Kaohsiung Harbor was bombed by the US Air Force and despite almost total destruction across the island, the Tianhou Temple survived with no damage. People who had taken shelter there claimed they had seen a lady wearing a long gown, deﬂecting bombs away with her long sleeves. After the war, malaria spread throughout Taiwan but Cijin Island remained unaffected and people believed it was because of Mazu’s protection that they did not suffer from malaria and survived the war. SUGGESTED ITINERARY Book a 1-day tour of Lugang Ancient Cultural Remains—Taiwan’s most important historical city—which features the Lugang Tianhou Temple, the Lugang Longsham Temple, with its priceless collection of ancient art works and architecture, and the Lugang Folk Art Museum. Here, too, is the stunning Yuanheng Temple, also called Rocky Temple, that was originally built in 1679 and rebuilt in 1926. It is Taiwan’s largest Confucian temple and the site of the annual Teacher’s Day celebration on Sept. 28 honoring the birthday of Confucius. Nearby on Lotus Lake are the Spring and Autumn Pavilions honoring Kuan Kung, the god of war and contrasting that is a statue placed in front of the pavilions representing Kuanyin, the goddess of mercy riding a dragon. Just south of that are the Dragon and Tiger pagodas where visitors enter through the dragon’s mouth and exit through the lion’s mouth symbolizing turning bad luck into good luck. Inside are scenes of heaven and hell, inspiring people to do good deeds during their life or suffer the consequences. In Taipei, the Xingtian Temple is one of the most popular temples in Taiwan with more than 20,000 visitors per day and advocating the building of a harmonic society from Confucian and Buddhist philosophies, thus establishing public goods to the communities. T9

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of 2011 Taiwan Travel Planner

National Parks
Adventure
Hot Springs & Spas
Tour Taiwan by Rail
Culture
The Temples of Taiwan
Culinary & Shopping
Festival Time!
Getting to Taiwan
Hotel/Resort Options
Cruise Lines & Transportation

2011 Taiwan Travel Planner