Cheryl

Festival of the nine emperors

Heavenly Airport

September 30, 2010

On October 3, 2010, the Nine Emperor Gods Temple in Ampang will raise the 50 ft pole that will guide the spirits of the heavens to the temple for the Nine Emperor Gods Festival. This is the official start of…

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Ready in the Rain, a home for the festival for ancestors

Ready in the Rain

September 30, 2010

They say… that the rains come with the Nine Emperor Gods Festival. And if my personal experience holds true, there will be heavy rains again this year. I got my first taste of the wet last evening when I ventured…

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Roof of a temple

Inner Circle/Outer Circle – Geography of the Nine Emperor Gods Temple, Ampang

September 29, 2010

While we are (impatiently) awaiting the start of the 2010 festivities, we can learn something about the geography of the festival at the Nine Emperor Gods Temple in Ampang. Here is the Google Earth image of the temple grounds. It…

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Malay dancers

Two Processions – Sunday, Oct 3rd and Monday, Oct 4th

September 27, 2010

To mark the beginning of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2010, with great fanfare, the Emperor will be collected from the river on the evening of October 3rd, 2010 and brought back to the waiting throngs at the Nine Emperor…

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Dragon dance

The Golden Seal of the Emperors Arrives in Butterworth

September 26, 2010

The Seal of the Nine Emperor Gods Temple Association arrived at the beautiful Tow Boo Kong in Butterworth this week. The event was celebrated by an international community of temples, in a raucous, colorful and joyous parade. They told me…

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A person’s hand cleaning a sacred statue

The Emperor Gets New Clothes

September 22, 2010

Yes, the title of this post is a reference to the children’s story about the vain emperor who wandered through the streets naked because he believed he was wearing the most beautiful clothes ever made. I couldn’t help think of…

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Inside a temple

Finishing Touches on the Nine Emperor Gods Temple in Ampang

September 18, 2010

Interesting start – to say “finishing” – but a year of renovations are almost complete and the Nine Emperor Gods Temple in Ampang is looking quite exquisite. Inside and out it glistens. I quite thought that I wouldn’t like it,…

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