In some large Taoism temples and famous
Taoist places, there is usually a peak season for burning joss sticks, which is
called the joss sticks time. There are also regular fete ceremonies, which are
called the temple fair.
Both the joss sticks time and temple fair
regards the temple and the main Gods therein as the center of the activity. With
the development of Taoism, many temples and famous mountains, which have a great
influence in Taoism and among folk people, have emerged, and some are the
original altar of a certain sect. Therefore, it has great rallying point both
outside and inside. These Gods placed in the temples can attract adherents and
pilgrims nearby or even from faraway to come to burn joss sticks. Especially in
the important festivals as the Gods' birthday, there are grand fete and
celebrations, which take temples as center and the Gods worship as the main
content. So these temple fairs often have different names. Sometimes, in order
to emphasize the content, it is called the joss sticks fair. To emphasize its
goal of repaying the Gods, people will hold large-scale folk performances, which
are called the match fair or gathering. Therefore, the temple fair is also
the all-round folk-custom meeting, which is based on the belief and fete to the
Gods.
The temple fair usually takes temple or the
surrounding areas as the center. At that time, there are ceremonious rituals in
the temples, and many adherents come to visit or participate, donate and
establish merits and virtues. The activities are mainly warding off calamities
and begging for blessings.
In the temple fairs, there are performances
to entertain people as well as the Gods. Sometimes, people also invite
professional drama groups to perform. Temple fairs are all centered in a certain area or a certain temple. The
first participants are mainly the people from the same place, then the people
faraway. In general, the joss sticks time and temple fair have the obvious
characteristics of local culture.