And So It Begins... Raising the Lantern Pole for Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022

The lantern pole has been successfully raised at Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Temple today at midday. With that it marks the start of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022 at Ampang.

Tonight the Nine Emperor Gods invitation procession will depart at 7.15pm. As usual the lion and dragon dances will commence earlier.

Ampang Is All Set For Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022

After what seemed like weeks of never ending clean-ups and touch-ups, Ampang Nine Emperor Gods temple is on the final leg to being ready for this year's Nine Emperor Gods festival.

 

Not surprising as this would be the first time after a two-year hiatus that the festival would be celebrated in a grand scale post COVID pandemic. Hence the temple management and team had spared no effort in ensuring that this year's festival will be smooth sailing and as grand as possible.

It must be exhausting as well as exhilarating for the people involved, for what needs to be dusted was dusted, and what needs to be painted had been painted. In past two weeks, the temple became a gathering space for familiar faces coming together for this festival, very much like a big family reunion.

 

So in this post, the pictures are dedicated to the familiar faces and familiar sights that herald the start of the festival at Ampang Nan Tian Gong Nine Emperor Gods Temple (安邦南天宫). And as tomorrow is the eve of the festival, we will eagerly await the raising of the lantern pole and the invitation of the Nine Emperor Gods.

As a reminder, the schedule for the Nine Emperor Gods Festival at Ampang reverts to what it was before the pandemic, with the only exception being that the dormitories are not open this year. The rest of the activities are as before as listed below (times are approximates and invitation ceremonies usually start earlier than when the entourage leaves the temple):

Important Dates for Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022

25th Sept (Eve of the Festival)  : Raising the Lantern Pole  ( ~ 11am)

                                                    : Invitation of Nine Emperor Gods (starts ~ 5pm)

27th Sept (Day 2): Invitation of Finance Minister (starts ~ 5pm)

28th Sept (Day 3): Feeding the Heavenly Armies ( ~ 2pm)

1st Oct (Day 6)    : Feeding the Heavenly Armies ( ~ 2pm)

3rd Oct (Day 8)   : Bridge Crossing ( ~ 8pm)

4th Oct (Day 9)   : Feeding the Heavenly Armies ( ~ 2pm)

                             : Fire Crossing ( ~ 8pm)                          

Early hours of the 10th day - Sending off Nine Emperor Gods

5th Oct (Day 10) : Taking down the Lantern Pole ( ~ 10am)

 

Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022 Countdown - 5 More Days

5 more days to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022...

 

In Ampang, the anticipation for the festival is building up, as many are looking forward to the festival after a two-year hiatus.

Countdown to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022 - 10 More Days

It's just 10 more days to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2022...

 

This year the festivals starts on the 26th of September and ends on the 4th of October. Of course the invitation ceremony would happen on the eve of the festival. At Ampang Nine Emperor Gods temple, the 3rd, 6th and 9th day are also Feeding the Heavenly Army days (犒军).

 

Important dates:

Eve of Festival - 25th Sept 2022

Day 1 - 26th Sept 2022

Day 3 - 28th Sept 2022

Day 6 - 1st Oct 2022

Day 9 - 4th Oct 2022

Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2021... A Celebration Behind Closed Doors

Today is the second day of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, and as expected, it was quiet but still smoky at Ampang Nine Emperor Gods temple. Other than the numerous dragon joss-sticks burning away inside the temple grounds, it actually feels more like a non-celebration, being rather calm and without the usual endless stream of devotees coming and going throughout the day.

• Previous post - A Low Key Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2021 for Ampang

A Low Key Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2021 for Ampang

With it being two more days before the eve of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2021, the Ampang Nine Emperor Gods temple (安邦南天宮) is unusually calm and quiet compared to pre-Covid times. The usual stream of people dropping off rice, oil and other foodstuff as donations and offerings were completely absent this year.

 

 

However, there were more devotees present than in the previous week, probably making use of the weekend before the temple closes its doors for the festival to place donations and pay for coil incense to be lit on behalf of them during the festival by the temple staff. Outside, within the temple grounds, the dragon joss sticks were already up, and I was informed that more are coming on Monday. Towards the end of the day, more devotees turn up to offer their prayers in lieu of doing so during the festival as the temple will only allow their committee and limited number of members to attend the prayers during the festival to avoid any over crowding issues.

 

 

The unusual calmness and lack of activity during this time of the year does feel pretty disturbing, especially if you are so used to the chaos and cacophony that is the hallmark of the temple gearing up for the Nine Emperor Gods Festival. So here's to a quiet and uneventful Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2021.

 

Important Dates:

Eve of 2021 Nine Emperor Gods Festival: 5th October 2021 (Tuesday)

First Day of Nine Emperor Gods Festival: 6th October 2021 (Wednesday)

Ninth Day of Nine Emperor Gods Festival: 14th October 2021 (Thursday)

• Next post - Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2021... A Celebration Behind Closed Doors
  
• Previous post - Yet Another Year of Quiet Prayers behind Closed Doors - the Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2021

 

Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020 Day 6 - A Different Feeding the Armies (犒军) Ceremony at Ampang

The Feeding of the Heavenly Armies Ceremony (Ko Kun - 犒军) during Nine Emperor Gods Festival at Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Temple is usually a very crowded and vibrant event, with devotees and onlookers jostling to get a glimpse of what is happening.

However, this year with the Covid-19 pandemic and the government imposed movement control order, it has resulted in a very different and strangely quiet ceremony, carried out only by the temple committee members sans the priest, large amount of food, mediums and thronging devotees  in white.

 

A Smoky but Silent Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020 at Ampang

Today is the eve of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020, and I decided to pass by Ampang Nine Emperor Gods temple at 5pm to see how things were going. The gates were locked and as you can see from the pictures, it was a silent affair due to the lock-down imposed by the government recently.

 

Despite being quiet and very unbecoming of the festival we know of, it was still smoky, as the temple caretakers had already lit the large joss sticks that had been ordered by devotees prior to the lock-down.

A truly different take on the festival this year, smoky.... but silent!

No Go for Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020 in Ampang and KL

Despite not planning to hold the usual festivities associated with Nine Emperor God Festival this year at Ampang Nine Emperor Gods temple (安邦南天宫九皇爷庙) due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, they were all set up and ready for the coming festival to be celebrated in a simple manner, with areas for devotees to queue and orderly enter and exit the temple already drawn up according to the government required SOP. Even the huge dragon joss-sticks for the festival were ready and on display at the temple grounds since last weekend.

Alas, it looks like all Nine Emperor Gods temples in the whole Klang Valley area will fall silent this year, and devotees would not be able to celebrate the coming festival due to the recently announced CMCO (Conditional Movement Control Order) for Klang Valley starting October 14th by the government, which prohibits religious centers from operating at all and thus making the festival a no-go.

The decision on the CMCO for Klang Valley came quite suddenly, and temples in Klang Valley were caught off guard; for whilst most were not planning to hold large scale celebrations, nevertheless the majority of them were in the midst of prepping up their temples for low key prayers (like in Ampang) for devotees that still want to come in and pray during this festival. At Ampang Nan Tian Gong temple today, it was pretty heartbreaking to have witnessed the temple staff having to take down the colourful flags put up for the festival just days before the start of the festival.

Inside the temple, it was eerily quiet and quite obvious that the staff were not in high spirits, plus the inner hall was devoid of the usual donations of rice, cooking oil and other foodstuff that usually would have flooded the temple by this time of the year.

Perhaps this year is a good time to celebrate the festival in a calm and self-reflective mood, all thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.

UPDATE: Apparently places of worship are now allowed to open with max 6 people inside their premises during the CMCO. However I do not foresee this changing the decision already taken by the temples to closing their doors to devotees.

The Day The Music Died... How the 'New Normal' has Affected the Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020

Today is exactly 7 days to the eve of this year's Nine Emperor Gods Festival, and as the festival draws near, one cannot help feel a little disappointed as nothing much is actually happening due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

With the ongoing Covid-19 situation in Malaysia, the decision was made by the the Ampang Nine Emperor Gods temple management on the 16th of September to cancel this year's festivities altogether, although the temple will still be open for worshipers. For me, the once in a year 'life' of Ampang New Village has literally being 'silenced' by this decision.

And that means there will be no loud Chinese opera music from the temple this year, no clanging of temple bells and lion dance troupes bashing cymbals and drums on the eve of the festival this year, no loud announcements from the temple of people looking for their relatives etc....

Looking back at one of my post from 2019 when I said that the festival has always been Same same but Different (click to read that post in 2019), little did I know that I would be be proven so wrong this year, with the festival turning out to be very, very different. Perhaps I should have taken back what I have said about the festival being a 'repeat year in year out'.

Perhaps all we can hope (and pray) for is that in 2021, the festival will return to normal, whatever normal might be then...

So here's a list of a few other things that we will be missing this year at Ampang without the Nine Emperor Gods Festival...

• Massive traffic crawl from Jalan Ampang leading to the temple.
  
• Friendly old aunties staying in the dorm (will miss seeing them having aged one more year)
  
• The crowd formed by devotees dressed all in white during the Feeding of the Heavenly Armies (Ko Kun)
• The stalls lining the roads leading to the temple and in the temple courtyard
• Processions for the invitation of the Nine Emperor Gods and Finance Minister
• Bridge crossing and fire walking and...
  
• Cheryl Hoffmann... she has gone back to be at her daughter's wedding (Congrats!!!)... I hope she will be back to join us in 2021
  

Next post - Covid-19 and the cancellation of Nine Emperor Gods Festival in Klang Valley:

• No Go for Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020 in Ampang and KL

Previous post in this countdown series to Nine Emperor Gods 2020 series:

• Fire and Purification - The Nine Emperor Gods Festival

Looking Back at Familiar Faces in Sacred Spaces - Countdown to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020

As a continuation to my series of Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020 countdown posts (click to see previous post - Nine Emperor Gods (九皇大帝) Festival 2020: What to Expect This Year??), we take a look at a familiar face in a sacred space from last year's (2019) Nine Emperor Gods Festival, knowing that many familiar faces would not be seen in this year's Nine Emperor Gods celebration, either due to cancelled celebration or they are socially distanced and safe behind face mask; the unfortunate outcome of the Covid-19 pandemic.

A familiar face of Ampang's Nine Emperor Gods temple during the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, is
Ah Boon sifu, shown here in trance during the 2019 Nine Emperor Gods Festival.

Next post in this countdown series to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020

• Will the Show Still Go On after Covid-19?? - Countdown to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020
  

If you need a quick introduction to what Nine Emperor Gods (九皇爷) and this festivals is all about, you can read about it in my brief introductory post about Nine Emperor Gods:

• Nine Emperor Gods Festival - All About The What, Who, Why, When and Where of this Festival 

Nine Emperor Gods (九皇大帝) Festival 2020 - What to Expect This Year??

The Nine Emperor Gods Festival for 2020 falls on 16 Oct 2020 (eve) till 25 Oct 2020 (ninth day). So what can we expect of this year's celebration? How different would it be from previous years' celebration? Already many Nine Emperor Gods temples in Malaysia are announcing that they will scale down and only allow prayers for this festival, sans all the procession, trances, stalls and festivities associated with this festival.

 

From a devotee's point of view, many are feeling a little lost as some may have vowed to stay in the temple for nine days due to prayers being answered in the previous year, of which now they cannot fulfil this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Some having 'borrowed' money from the temple (ie borrowed luck or wealth from the gods) are asking will they still be able to come and repay the 'debt' this year. Will there be vegetarian food stalls open for those who usually get their vegetarian meals outside?

Whilst we are keeping our spirits high, there are still more questions than answers for this year's celebration.... but hopefully all will be better the next year.

If you are unsure of what is this Nine Emperor Gods Festival all about, read my next post - Nine Emperor Gods Festival - All About The What, Who, Why, When and Where of this Festival

• See also my previous post - Let's Start With a Trip Down Memory Lane - Countdown to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2020

Sending the Nine Emperor Gods Home - The End of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival at Ampang

As all good things must come to an end, so after nine frantic and energetic days of  trances, vegetarian meals, rituals and prayers the Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2019 comes to an end. Here at Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Temple, the Nine Emperor Gods was sent off at 3.30am in the wee hours of the morning on the tenth day of the festival. Whilst the crowd wasn't as large as the invitation ceremony (probably due to the ungodly hour), the atmosphere was still very much charged with the religious fervour of the festival.

So long, farewell... devotees from Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Temple sending the Nine
Emperor Gods off at the end of the festival.

Exhausted and drained, it was a rather solemn and quiet affair as devotees escort the Nine Emperor Gods on the journey back to the river, and with hope and certainty that next year we will meet again...

Dates for Nine Emperor Gods Festival in 2020:

• Eve of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival - 16th October 2020
• 1st Day of Nine Emperor Gods Festival - 17th October 2020
• 9th Day of Nine Emperor Gods Festival - 25th October 2020

Click here for the 1st post in the series of 2020 Nine Emperor Gods Festival Countdown post.

It has begun... the Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2019

The sudden heavy downpour this evening at Ampang, which threatened to make this year's Nine Emperor Gods invitation ceremony a repeat of last year's rain drenched event, did not deter the participating devotees at all. Furthermore many had learnt a lesson from last year's event and thus came prepared with raincoats, ponchos and umbrellas.

Fortunately for them, the sky quickly cleared and by the time the procession was making its way back to the temple through the main road of Ampang old town, it was a clear and breezy evening. With the start of this festival, the usually quiet Ampang New Village is transformed into a hive of activity as devotees and casual visitors from near and far all pour in to see or participate in this festival.

Same same but Different - the Nine Emperor Gods Festival

If you ask me which temple is better to see or shoot Nine Emperor Gods Festival, my reply would be... they are all 'same same but different'. And if you ask me if what has changed over the years that I have followed this festival, my answer would still be... 'same same but different'.

In my opinion, this popular South-east Asian phrase 'Same same but different' very aptly describes this festival.... and here is why I feel it is so:

• Same same rites and rituals but there are (minor) differences...
• Same same schedule of event every year, with minor tweaks and additions or omissions...
• Same same people participate every year, except they are one year older...
• Same same deity but the invitation timing is different...
• Same same concept of invitation (from a body of water) but locations are different (river, sea, etc)
• Same same God that they pray to but rules of who can participate in the festival and/or fire walking is different from temple to temple
• Same same kind of vegetarian food, but prices are way way different.
• Same same shots taken... but many different stories can be told from the shots of the festival...

So my advice is... go and enjoy this 'Same same but different' festival and don't fret it if you miss something this year... there is always next year... as it will be... 'Same same but different'

So my countdown to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2019 posts comes to a close today with this post as tomorrow (28th Sept 2019) will be the eve of this festival... Remember that some temples will carry out the invitation ceremony tomorrow in the evening whilst some do it much closer to midnight... same same but different ya!

Counting down to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2019

4 more days to Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2019....well, 3 more days to the eve of the festival. Many who participate in this festival would most likely be starting their bland vegetarian diet today so as to be 'clean' during the invitation on the eve of the festival. Many temples that celebrate this festival would also already be bustling with the preparations for this annual festival.

Welcoming the Nine Emperor Gods @ Ampang

Despite the heavy downpour, the invitation of the Nine Emperor Gods at Ampang Nan Tian Gong temple goes on as usual. The rain did not dampen the spirit and devotion of the devotees, who pushed on to invite the Nine Emperor Gods from the river back to the temple.

Going out to get the Nine Emperor Gods....

The Nine Emperor Gods, being represented by an urn held out of public sight under the royal yellow canopy, was escorted back to the temple with pomp and glory by an entourage of soaking wet and tired mediums, priest and devotees that arrived back at the temple around 9.30pm.

Here come the Nine Emperor Gods... escorting the urn back
to the temple.

The Festival begins at Ampang Nine Emperor Gods Temple

And so it begins, the start of the nine day vegetarian festival at Ampang Nan Tian Gong, with the raising of the lantern pole at midday today (8th Oct 2018). As per tradition, this temple will go out to 'invite' the Nine Emperor Gods from a nearby river later in the evening (7.30pm). Noticeably the temple grounds is filled predominantly with two very significant colours that are associate with this festival, yellow and white.

Yellow is of course the colour of royalty in the East, and hence things associated the Nine Emperor Gods or divinity during this festival would be clad in yellow. The other colour is white, being a symbol of purity (the strict vegetarian diet) or mourning (associated with certain stories of how the festival arose) and hence devout devotees/followers would wear all white including covering the head with a white scarf for the duration of the festival.