A woman with long incense sticks was worshipping at Wenchanggong

Worshipper in Wenchanggong — Worshipper in the Wenchanggong Temple

Walking in the park above the Shuanglian subway station, a temple appeared on the side of the road. It was clearly a Chinese-style temple. The building was decorated in primary colors, and red lanterns were hung in front of the temple.

Attracted by the messy atmosphere, I entered the temple grounds. This was a temple called Wenchanggong, where the god of learning is enshrined. The Emperor Lord Wen Chang enshrined here is said to be the Chinese god of learning and academic achievement. It is said that he is like Sugawara Michizane in Japan. Although the temple is said to be worshipped by the locals, there were hardly any worshippers in the temple grounds and it was deserted. This may be because it was July and not the examination season in Taiwan.

While I was standing in a daze in the deserted temple grounds, a worshipper appeared in front of the incense burner. She was holding a long incense stick, which is rarely seen in Japan, in both hands and began to pray silently on her own. This woman may have been planning to take an out-of-season exam.

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