Qi Niang Ma (Seven Mothers)

The mainstream legend of Qi Niang Ma is that of "seven fairy sisters who protect the infants of the mortal world."

As the story goes, the Heavenly Emperor had seven daughters, all compassionate and gifted at weaving. The youngest, the seventh, is the famous Weaving Maiden, known for descending to earth and falling in love with the Cowherd; the other six sisters stayed at their work in heaven.

One day the seven learned that infant mortality on earth was high and that many families had lost their little children to grief. Together they petitioned the Heavenly Emperor: they wished to descend and watch over the children of the mortal world until each grew safely up. Moved by their compassion, the Emperor granted the request and let them receive incense under the name "Qi Niang Ma." From then on each of the seven took charge of a stage of childhood — newborn, first steps, early learning, school age, and adolescence, all the way to coming of age at sixteen. This is the very origin of Taiwan's "Coming of Age at Sixteen" custom.

Another telling focuses on the Weaving Maiden herself: she guards not only children but also handicraft and women's needlework. On Qixi, traditional women would "beg for skill" — laying out offerings, threading needles, and praying to Qi Niang Ma for deft hands. The practice has grown rare on Taiwan's main island but survives on the outer islands of Kinmen and Penghu.

Worship of Qi Niang Ma has traditionally been the province of women and children, and the offerings are rich with the symbolism of childhood: oil rice and sesame-oil chicken (for new life); seven kinds of flowers, seven kinds of fruit, and seven-colored cotton threads (for the seven sisters); and rouge, mirror, scissors, and needle-and-thread (an extension of the Qixi "begging for skill"). Most distinctive of all is the paper "Qi Niang Ma pavilion," burned during the rite.

Families with a child under sixteen can hold a Qixi rite each year: set out the table, burn the pavilion, and tie a "guardian charm" — a red string strung with seven Qi Niang Ma coins — around the child's neck for protection. In the year the child turns sixteen, on Qixi, comes the "releasing of the charm": the guardian charm is untied, announcing the end of childhood.

To see the full ceremony, go to Kailong Temple in Tainan: crawling three times under the Qi Niang Ma pavilion, crossing the Qi Niang Ma bridge, and giving thanks to Qi Niang Ma — walk it through once, and the child has officially "become an adult."

**Qixi (Qi Niang Ma's Birthday)**: lunar 7/7. This is the central day of Qi Niang Ma worship — the protector of children and the day of coming-of-age ceremonies for 16-year-olds.

**Tainan Kailong Temple "Coming of Age at 16"**: Held annually on lunar 7/7 in Tainan's West-Central District, this is Taiwan's most complete and largest-scale traditional coming-of-age ritual. Activities include passing under the pavilion, crossing the bridge, and thanksgiving worship. It has been designated as intangible cultural heritage by the city of Tainan and attracts both local families and outside observers each year.

**The Begging for Skill Festival**: Traditional women on Qixi would pray to Qi Niang Ma (the Weaver Girl) for nimble hands and skilled craft. While rare in modern mainland Taiwan, the practice survives in offshore islands such as Kinmen, Penghu, and Matsu.

**Newborn Enrollment**: Many Taiwanese families bring their newborns to a Qi Niang Ma temple at one month or one year, ritually "entrusting" the child to her protection until age 16. This is a key family ritual marking the start of childhood guardianship.