Xiangtianhu Pasta'ay Ceremonial Ground
Main Deities
About
The lake surface flickers in and out of the morning mist, and along its shore a mournful, ancient ritual song echoes through the night — this is Xiangtianhu (Lake Facing Heaven), set in a mountain basin about 738 meters above sea level, the primary ceremonial ground of the Saisiyat people's Pasta'ay (Ritual of the Short Spirits), and the most mysterious and moving sacred site of indigenous ceremony in Taiwan. Ringed by mountains, the scenery is dreamlike and unreal. The Pasta'ay is held as a minor ritual every two years and a grand one every ten, running for three continuous days and nights by the lakeside, using solemn ritual songs and slow steps to repent to, give thanks to, and pray to the spirits of the ancient ta'ay people. The ritual is listed as an Important Folk Cultural Asset of Taiwan; beside the ceremonial ground, the Saisiyat Pasta'ay Museum displays vital ritual objects such as hip bells and ceremonial flags.
History
The origins of the Pasta'ay reach back hundreds, even thousands of years. Legend tells that in ancient times a people of tiny stature but immense strength, the ta'ay, lived side by side with the Saisiyat and taught them the arts of farming and of song and dance. But the ta'ay came to harass the Saisiyat's women again and again, until the tribe, pushed past endurance, tampered with the mountain-loquat-tree bridge leading to the ta'ay's dwelling, and the ta'ay fell and drowned as they crossed. Before dying, the ta'ay left a curse, and from then on the Saisiyat suffered failed harvests and unending calamity. To quiet the resentment of the dead and pray for good harvests, the Saisiyat began holding the Pasta'ay at Xiangtianhu. The songs of the ritual are said to be the very ones the ta'ay taught on the verge of death, their melodies mournful and ancient — a precious living fossil of oral literature. To this day, the Xiangtianhu ceremonial ground still keeps this ancient ritual tradition, the most important sacred site for the passing-on of Saisiyat culture.
Xiangtianhu Pasta'ay Ceremonial Ground
Nanzhuang Township, Miaoli County
Visitor Info
Address
Xiangtianhu, Donghe Village, Nanzhuang Township, Miaoli County
Region
Nanzhuang Township, Miaoli County