What is the Phuket Vegetarian Festival ?

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival is a Taoist celebration that welcomes the nine deities from heaven. It’s celebrated for spiritual cleansing, physical health, merit-making, conferring good fortune in the future, and making sure of prosperity and long life. During the nine-day festival, devotees follow a strict vegan diet by omitting animal products, as well as onion, garlic, Chinese chive, and Chinese single-bulb garlic, to cleanse and purify the body. In addition to the vegetarian diet, devotees need to wear white and keep pure thoughts. Thus, they need to give up sex, alcohol, and stimulants.

In Phuket, devotees will assemble in every Chinese shrine and do religious processions. Beyond switching from meat to tofu, the Phuket Vegetarian Festival is known for its over-the-top and extreme rituals. Not only do devotees adopt a special diet, but a select few also prove their devotion by doing self-mutilation. At the height of the celebration, you can see the often-gruesome rituals. These include cheek piercing with extreme objects and barefoot walking over hot coals, among others. Devotees believe that the Chinese gods will protect them from harm.

The history

The history behind the Phuket Vegetarian Festival is unclear. The most widely accepted story goes that many years ago, a famous Chinese opera crew travelled to Phuket. As soon as they arrived, they fell ill with malaria. The group decided to go on a strict vegan diet and pray to the Nine Emperor Gods to purify their bodies and minds after traditional medicine failed to help them heal. Members of the opera group consequently regained their health, which aroused the people’s intense curiosity. The island’s Chinese community at the time accepted the practice widely. It has been passed down from generation to generation ever since.

The celebrations

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival showcases rich spiritual and religious practices, extending far beyond dietary restrictions. Participants engage in various rituals aimed at purifying both body and soul.

• Raising Bamboo Pole

  The annual Phuket Vegetarian Festival kicks off with the raising of a bamboo pole in every Chinese shrine in Phuket town. The pole is raised to invite the Nine Emperor Gods down to earth. Although this ceremony is generally quiet and calm, the following week of the Vegetarian Festival is chaotic and noisy.

• Visiting Sacred Shrine

  Devotees make their way to Chinese temples, offering heartfelt prayers and participating in intricate rituals honouring the Nine Emperor Gods. The air fills the whole room with the fragrance of incense and the warm glow of candles, while carefully prepared vegetarian offerings symbolize devotion and respect.

• Wearing symbolic attire

  White clothing becomes a popular wear during the festival, with participants dressing in pristine garments to represent purity of body and spirit. This visual unity is particularly striking among devout followers of the festival’s strictest guidelines.

• Being sober

  Beyond dietary restrictions, many practitioners embrace a sobriety approach to purification. This often includes restricting alcohol, tobacco, and sexual activities for the duration of the festival, fostering a state of heightened spiritual awareness.

• Doing meditative practices

  Devotees immerse themselves in ritualistic observances such as meditation and rhythmic chanting. These practices, conducted within the confines of Chinese shrines, serve to deepen spiritual connections.

• Self-mortification

  Participants or spirit mediums, known as “Ma Song”, are believed to be possessed by deities, and they undergo extreme acts of self-mortification, such as piercing their cheeks with sharp objects, walking on hot coals, or slashing their tongues. The Ma Song do not feel pain due to their belief that the gods protect them from harm, and they perform these acts as a way to absorb the community’s misfortune and bring good luck to everyone. While these rituals are controversial and intense, they are considered by many as an essential part of the Phuket Vegetarian Festival’s spiritual essence.

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival is deeply associated with Chinese culture and religion. While the main celebrations take place in numerous Chinese shrines in Phuket town, the festival’s influence reaches throughout Phuket. During this period, the entire island comes alive with various events and vegetarian food stalls.

The rituals

What exactly are the rituals of the Phuket Vegetarian Festival, and what do they represent? The festival is defined by a series of processions, including the street procession, the ceremonial bridge crossing, the fire-walking ritual, and the farewell ritual.

The street procession is perhaps the most striking event. Shrines across Phuket hold it on various days. The procession offers a unique opportunity for onlookers to witness the blessings of the deities who are believed to possess the spirit mediums. People set up altars outside their homes, adorned with Chinese embroidered table aprons. They light candles, burn incense, and display offerings like flowers, fruit, sweets, and tea.

Another significant ritual is crossing the ceremonial bridge. Devotees believe this act purifies them from impurities and misfortunes. After crossing, a red seal of the Nine Emperor Gods is stamped on their backs to mark their cleansing from any potential sins or calamities.

Equally significant is the fire-walking ritual. Symbolically, fire is thought to cleanse impurities and ward off evil. According to local belief, only those who are genuinely purified can cross the fire without being harmed.

The festival concludes with the farewell ritual. On the ninth and final day, the Jade Emperor and the Nine Emperor Gods are sent back to the heavens. At midnight, the streets of Phuket are filled with people eager to witness the grand send-off, particularly around Thalang Road, Phuket Road, Surin Circle Clock Tower, and the route leading to Saphan Hin.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49SUStA5hi8

The Vegetarian Festival in other cities

The Vegetarian Festival is primarily celebrated in Phuket. However, cities like Bangkok and Chiang Mai also hold their own versions of the festival, though the celebrations are more modest in comparison.

Bangkok

In Bangkok, the best place to celebrate the Vegetarian Festival is Chinatown or Yaowarat. This year, you’ll find numerous stalls selling a wide variety of delicious meatless dishes, especially in the Yaowarat Old Market (Yaowarat 6). Plenty of restaurants and hotels across the city are also offering Vegetarian Festival promotions.

Chiang Mai

If you want to celebrate in Chaing Mai, go to Warorot Market, Chiang Mai’s oldest market, where you can grab some delightful vegan dishes.

Are you ready to experience this gruesome but colourful festival? Remember to be respectful, especially when you’re inside a Chinese shrine. Moreover, wear white if you want to blend in with the local community. Lastly, be sure to bring your camera to capture all of the unusual and eerie sights — only if you can stomach it, of course!

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