The Dajia Matsu Pilgrimage, the largest annual religious procession in the nation, concluded on Sunday with the return of sea goddess Matsu to Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung’s Dajia District (大甲).
The procession, which took the sea goddess on a 340km journey through Taichung, and Changhua, Yunlin and Chiayi counties and back, began on the night of April 8 and ended at the temple on Sunday night.
The number of attendees at the nine-day procession was markedly lower than previous years, due to soaring local COVID-19 cases, event organizers said.
Locally transmitted COVID-19 cases in Taiwan increased sharply during the pilgrimage, with the
Annual Matsu pilgrimage starts
Staff writer, with CNA
The annual Dajia Matsu Pilgrimage started last night at Jenn Lann Temple (鎮瀾宮) in Taichung’s Dajia District (大甲), for the first time livestreamed in 11 languages by Radio Taiwan International.
The nine-day pilgrimage the largest religious event in Taiwan passes through Changhua, Yunlin and Chiayi counties, before returning to the temple.
The procession in the past few years attracted hundreds of thousands of participants, with the exception of last year, when the event was scaled down due to concerns over COVID-19.
A huge sky lantern is released at Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung’s Dajia District yesterday night to pray for rain to alleviate the drought as the annual nine-day Matsu pilgrimage began.