EPISODE 12:

THE KING SETS SAIL IN FLAMES

LIUQIU ISLAND, TAIWAN

By 6:00am, a fleet of 28 fishing boats waving yellow flags on bamboo masts have already begun circling the southern Taiwanese island of Liuqiu. Mortars and bottle rockets sound the seabound procession, and on-board each vessel is a team of temple assistants who proudly escort their gods in flashing, LED-lined palanquins - one boat for every temple on the island. This is the decadent signal for the gods of Wang-ye to return, as they do once every three years to purify the island and its 13,000 inhabitants of all illness and misfortune. 

For four days, from morning to night, the gods are carried in their palanquins on a procession covering every single road on the island. On their way, traditional chinese mediums channel ancient deities, and bring the streets to life. On the final day of the festival, a giant wooden boat is prepared for voyage and sent sailing back to the stars through the fire and billowing smoke of a midnight inferno. 

Liuqiu’s festival offers a unique vision of the theatrical quality of spiritual possession found in Taiwanese tradition. The gods take to the streets and interact with their followers in a mass theater that has real-world effects. Everywhere you look, there are events unfolding under the instruction of spirits, who occupy the minds and bodies of their believers. This incredible festival turns the island of Liuqui into a stage on which its inhabitants perform their beliefs, and together as a mobilized community, they tell the story of a celestial king who binds them together in faith.