Xiang Tianhu

Xiangtianhu is located in Donghe village, Nanzhuang Township, Miaoli County, with more than 20 households and a population of more than 200 people. It is the largest saixia tribe. It is said that hundreds of years ago, it used to be a lake. In the past, people named it xiangtian lake, also known as Yangtian lake, because it looked up at the sky. Later, the tributaries of the Dadong River eroded to the source, cut through the lake bank, and the lake water was lost, leaving a fertile lake bottom, which became a mountain basin. The aborigines who migrated here turned it into cultivated land. [1] Xiangtian lake is 738 meters above sea level. It is adjacent to Luchang in the southeast, Penglai village in the southwest and Nanjiang village and Donghe village in the northwest. Guangtian mountain is a branch of the Kali mountains. On the east side, it is cut and eroded by the Dadong River, with steep cliffs; on the west side, it has gentle slopes and broad ridges. Xiangtian lake is located in the west side of the mountain. Terraced fields are widely distributed in the basin, surrounded by fir forests, miscellaneous trees and bamboo groves. Because of the high terrain, it is often foggy and misty in winter and spring, which is like entering a fairyland

Xiang Tianhu

Xiangtian lake, located in Donghe village, Nanzhuang Township, Miaoli County, Taiwan, belongs to the saixia tribe. The local low spirit sacrifice, which is held every two years and every ten years, is of profound historical significance and primitive mystery. It is the most important sacrifice in the minds of the saixia people.

summary

Xiangtianhu is located in Donghe village, Nanzhuang Township, Miaoli County, with more than 20 households and a population of more than 200 people. It is the largest saixia tribe. It is said that hundreds of years ago, it used to be a lake. In the past, people named it xiangtian lake, also known as Yangtian lake, because it looked up at the sky. Later, the tributaries of the Dadong River eroded to the source, cut through the lake bank, and the lake water was lost, leaving a fertile lake bottom, which became a mountain basin. The aborigines who migrated here turned it into cultivated land.

Xiangtian lake is 738 meters above sea level. It is adjacent to Luchang in the southeast, Penglai village in the southwest and Nanjiang village and Donghe village in the northwest. Guangtian mountain is a branch of the Kali mountains. On the east side, it is cut and eroded by the Dadong River, with steep cliffs; on the west side, it has gentle slopes and broad ridges. Xiangtian lake is located in the west side of the mountain. Terraced fields are widely distributed in the basin, surrounded by fir forests, miscellaneous trees, and bamboo groves. Due to the high terrain, it is often foggy and misty in winter and spring, which is like entering a fairyland.

pas-ta'ai

It is the most important ceremony of the saixia people. It has profound historical significance and primitive mysterious atmosphere. The short spirit Festival is held every other year around October 15 of the lunar calendar, covering four days and three nights. The saixia people hope that the people will visit the mountain with piety and respect for the aboriginal culture, and work together to preserve the original style of the saixia people's short spirit Festival. The main ceremonies are divided into three parts: informing, welcoming, meeting, entertaining and chasing. Among them, the most sacred and mysterious is the welcoming ceremony, which is not allowed to be attended by other ethnic groups. Generally, foreign tourists can only participate in meeting and entertaining. On the night of Huiling Festival, the local people wore traditional costumes and danced with the bell and sacrificial songs under the guidance of the dance cap patrol. On the next day's night of entertaining the spirits, the singing and dancing reached the climax. The moonlight flag and Xinggu flag kept shaking inside and outside the dance circle, filled with the mysterious atmosphere of uncertainty. The scene was huge and unforgettable.

The origin of the short spirit sacrifice: in the old days, the black dwarfs who were less than one meter tall had all kinds of skills. They taught the saixia people the methods of farming and worshiping gods, so that the saixia people had stable life skills. Every year when the crops were harvested, the saixia people would invite the Aihei people to the tribe to have fun and celebrate the harvest. Gradually, the Aihei people who accepted the invitation had a bad influence on the saixia women After that, farming was no longer as good as in previous years. In order to comfort the dead people, the "Ai Ling sacrifice" was held. Now it has been changed from one sacrifice every year to one small sacrifice every two years and one big sacrifice every ten years. The most recent memorial ceremony was in 1989 (2000) and the most recent memorial ceremony was in 1995 (2006).

Traffic information

After getting off the expressway from Toufen interchange Road, follow County Road 124 to Shanzhu lake, then provincial road 3 to Sanwan, then turn to county road 124a. After passing Longmen tunnel and nanzhuangqiao, you will encounter a fork road. Follow the left road eastward for about 1.8 km, and there is a fork road to Tianhu on the right. Turn into the fork road and go straight for about 5 km to reach Tianhu tribe.

Public transportation: take the train to Zhunan railway station, then take Miaoli passenger to Nanzhuang, then transfer to xiangtianhu, and get off at xiangtianhu.

Self driving: (1) southward to Zhongshan Expressway → Toufen interchange → tai3 line → Shanzhu Lake → Sanwan → 124jia → longmenkou → Nanzhuang (2) northward to Miaoli mansion interchange → tai6 line → Shitan → miao124jia → Xianshan → baguali → Nanzhuang

Address: Donghe village, Nanzhuang Township, Miaoli, Taiwan

Longitude: 121.03431480986

Latitude: 24.583149017359

Chinese PinYin : Xiang Tian Hu