Again it is time for the annual Vegetarian Festival in Phuket. The festivities will start on the 18th of October and last till the 26th. The main features are of course vegetarian food, chants, thousands of firecrackers and processions around town.

The Vegetarian Festival is taken place in Phuket for more than 150 years now. The story tells that this custom was started by a visiting theatre group from China in Kathu. The group had fallen sick during their stay in Phuket and believed that the reason for their sickness was their negligence to pay proper respect to the nine Emporer Gods of  Taoism. To praise the gods they held a vegetable festival, so that their bad luck would pass by. According to the story the chinese group was cured shortly after the festival, and since that day the festival became an annual event. In later years abstinence from sex and alcohol was added to meat abstinence.

The Festival will start next week with the raise of nine poles, one in each chinese shrine. The nine Emporer Gods will come down from heaven and follow the festival from the top of the poles. Phuket will be floaded with yellow flags, the symbol for the festival.  Food stalls, which show a yellow flag only serve vegetarian food. Many people will dress up in white as a sign of remaining pure.

Many processions and fireworks will take place durin the festival days. The most special procession is by a group of people which brings themself into trance and pierce their tongues, cheeks, nipples and other parts of their bodies with spears and other things.

More about the Vegetarian Festival