After the lion and dragon dance performances, several helpers from the temple carry the large palanquin out into the main altar area and rest it on stacks of incense papers placed on the floor of the courtyard in front of the Nine Emperor chamber. The palanquin used by Yu Huang Dian Yu Hai Tang Guan Yin Tang is exceptionally large and heavy, requiring eight people to carry it. It is based on the original sedan chair, without too many modifications. It is said that it can fit a person if the inside is cleared.
The sedan chair is carried by eight committee members to pay respects to the different deities at the different altars before leaving the temple grounds. An assistant cracks the dragon whip at the gate of the temple to clear the way for the sedan chair. The lion dancers are lined up facing the sedan chair and did a short dance to pay respects to it before it left the temple. The temple committee members throw incense papers into the air as the sedan chair left.
The devotees are dressed in white shirts and trousers, while the temple committee members are dressed in sackcloth clothing with a yellow cloth tied around their waists and a white headscarf worn on their heads. Devotees either board the buses chartered by the temple or drive in their cars to East Coast Park. The temple committee, the sedan chair and other religious paraphernalia are transported to East Coast Park by lorry.
Upon reaching East Coast Park, the procession is led by the lion dance and dragon dance troupes, followed by Mr. Tan and Jenny holding the dragon staff and phoenix staff, two of the temple committee members hitting the gong, and the palanquin.
A ritual table is already set up on the beach before the arrival of the receiving contingent, with all the necessary religious paraphernalia for the receiving ceremony and rituals.
The appointed urn bearer (炉主) kneels in front of the palanquin, brings the censer out and places it on his head before bringing it to the table by moving on his knees across the sand. The same is done for the plaque bearing the name and title of the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas. Facing the ritual table, the censer bearer prays and pours three cups of tea and three cups of wine onto the sand while kneeling on two stacks of incense papers. This served as a mark of respect to the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas.
The committee members of the temple followed by devout devotees of the temple, are then called forward to pay respects to the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas.
After the committee members and devotees have paid their respects, the entourage is instructed to kneel down and pray to the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas for their blessings.
A temple member waved a black flag towards the sea throughout the ceremony to invoke the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas.
Piles of incense papers near the seaside are burned as offerings to the deities as the temple committee members prepare to go into the sea to receive the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas.
The receiving ritual requires a young boy, who symbolises purity, to walk into the sea carrying the incense urn and fill it with water. The boy, along with two other supporting adults, goes into the sea and submerged themselves completely to fill the urn with water, before returning to the shore. The censer is placed on top of the boy’s head, and as they were coming back, Jenny leads the shouting of “ Jiu Huang Pu Sa (九皇九菩薩)” in welcoming the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas.
As done earlier, the censer bearer puts the plaque and the censer on his head and back into the sedan chair by moving on his knees across the sand. The palanquin is carried to the lorry. The items at the beach are packed and everyone heads back to the temple with the Nine Emperor Bodhisattvas.
Back in the temple, Master Chen enters the temple with a group of committee members to prepare for the arrival of the first Emperor God. They are followed by the sedan chair.
The sound of the gong intensifies as Da Huang Ye (大皇爷) arrives through Chen Shifu. The temple members put on an elaborate head gear and robe for him and handed him two swords. After Da Huang Ye arrives, the temple’s members kneel down and proclaimed “皇爷千岁千岁千千岁!”. Da Huang Ye (大皇爷) holds on to nine joss sticks with his mouth and carried swords and joss sticks on both hands. Together with the temple members, Da Huang Ye goes to the Dou Mu altar (斗母坛) to pay His respects temple and the NEG chamber (九皇殿) to perform some rituals.
After that, the committee members follows Da Huang Ye back to the main hall of the temple. The temple committee members and the devotees then take turns to kneel before Da Huang Ye to receive blessings and advice from him. The guardians of the dragon and the pheonix staffs stand on each side of the Da Huang Ye, translating his instructions and advice to the devotees.
Nine Emperor Gods Project 九皇文化计划 