Phuket Vegetarian Festival: Rituals, Food & Activities

The Phuket Vegetarian Fest, or the Kin Jay Festival, is one of the most bizarre and highly celebrated traditions; it is a Chinese festival and is mainly followed by people based out of China in Thailand. During this festival, people give up meat for nine days to show devotion towards the Nine Emperor Gods.

Phuket Vegetarian Festival: When & Where?

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival schedule is based on the Chinese lunar calendar, which changes every year. The festival takes place around 6 Chinese holy temples in Phuket. Jui Tui Shrine is the main temple.

Traditions and Rituals

• Self-flagellation and Piercing

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival Thailand begins with the erection of a 10-meter lantern pole in a specific place every year; it is believed that this pole sends a message to the Chinese Gods about the commencement of the festival.

• Nine Emperor Gods

The people from the Mah-Song community take this festival to a different level with their devotion to the deities. The Mah Song is supposed to carry the spirits of the Nine Emperor Gods during the festival. These Gods are said to visit their devotees during these nine days. To show faith in the gods, the Mah Song tends to pierce several items, such as guns, blades, swords, flowers, etc.
Most localities tend to offer food and drinks to their deities by bringing them to the festival. It is believed that this helps the gods restore their aura/spirituality, which could later benefit the residents by allowing them to lead peaceful lives.

• Vegetarian Diet

During this festival, all the devotees abstain from having sex, meat, alcohol, milk, egg, and other food items like onion and garlic. This is done to keep thoughts pure in the mind. Also, people who are mourning and women who are pregnant and menstruating are not supposed to join the festival rituals.

Phuket Vegetarian Festival Schedule – Parades and Processions

Day 1: Beginning of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival

The lantern is raided through all the participating shrines across the island. The festival starts in a silent manner and with prayers at the shrines.

Day 2: Naka Shrine Procession

The street procession begins as early as 6 am. It is located on the outskirts of Old Town near the weekend market.

Day 3: Sapam Shrine and Gods Of Death and Birth

The third day begins in the north of Phuket town at Sapam Shrine. During this street procession, a lot more self-flagellation and firecrackers are expected. Then, in the evening, another procession will occur in the west of Phuket, Kathu. Here, the gods of death, Pak Tao, and birth, Lam Tao, are prayed to.

Day 4: Sam Kong Shrine and good food.

This procession goes through the Sam Kong shrine, where there are hundreds of food stalls where you can enjoy some of the best vegan food during the festival.

Day 5: Tha Rua Shrine

It is located in the Thailand area of Phuket and is one of the oldest Chinese shrines in Phuket.

Day 6: Fire Walking and Multi Shrine Procession

This day features multiple shrines carrying out their processions, including Bang Neow Shrine with Rua Shrine, Sapam Shrine, and Sui Boon Tong Shrine. The fire walking ritual usually takes place around 8 o’clock.

Day 7: Jui Tui Shrine and Bladed Ladder Climbing

7th day features the biggest of all the shrines in Phuket town. This automatically increases the crowd, the extremity of the rituals, and so on. There is also a blade ladder climbing in the evening.

Day 8: Kathu Shrine to Phuket Town Street Procession

The devotees walk from the Kathu Shrine to Phuket Town, which is said to be one of the longest processions of the festival.

Day 9: Final Parade

The final parade is an amalgamation of all the processions throughout the day. The crowd is just bonkers, and there are firecrackers and smoke everywhere, along with all the rituals such as bladed ladders, firewalking, and so on. The final parade is in Phuket town, which just lights up the whole city.

Phuket Vegetarian Festival History

No such backstories can date back and give us a brief beginning of the festival. However, it is said that this festival was brought in by a group of Chinese Artists in 1825. Then came the malaria epidemic, which affected the community. They immediately started praying to the Nine Emperor Gods by adopting a strict vegan diet. This cured all of them, and they began celebrating and honoring the Gods for their well-being. This is how it is assumed to have started during the 19th century.

You can also explore the best things to do in Phuket for a fulfilling trip.

Why Do Participants Wear White Clothes Mostly?

It is a religious festival, and all those who participate must keep their bodies and minds mentally and physically clean throughout the nine days of the festival. In addition, all the devotees must wear white clothes, which are supposed to be the purest of colors, as per tradition. Only the Mah song can wear colorful clothes/costumes, as they are the horses on which the spirits of gods ride.

So, if you plan to visit the vegetarian festival of Phuket, experience some of the most bizarre things you have ever seen. You have to be respectful and behave accordingly while enjoying the processions. Just go on and participate with an open mind and heart, and indeed, you will have a blast of a time during the festival.