When is the Phuket Vegetarian Festival held and what are its origins?
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Nine Emperor Gods Festival also known as The Phuket Vegetarian Festival.
The parades feature the ‘mah song’, a ‘possessed’ man or woman who leads the parade with body piercings that can be from mild to grotesque.
The ‘vegetarian’ aspect of the festival is to ‘cleanse’ your body of evil spirits and eat a vegetarian-only diet for the ten days each year.
The Phuket Vegetarian Festival takes place in September or October. The event always takes place over nine days, starting on the first evening of the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar. In 2020 it will be held in October, 16-25.
The 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.
There are 10 rules that participants in the vegetarian festival must follow.
Spectators don’t need to follow all the rules to enjoy the festival. The rules are for the participants only.
History of The Phuket Vegetarian Festival
It is believed that long time ago a famous Chinese opera crew travelled to Phuket island for their performances on the largely Chinese inhabited island, the whole cast fell gravely ill with malaria. With no luck of getting better, they decided to go on a strict vegan diet and pray to the Nine Taoist Emperor Gods to purify their minds and bodies. To everyone’s disbelief, the crew recovered, which at the time was a difficult feat. Celebrations of the Nine Emperor Gods now became an annual event.