A woman prepares incense sticks, binding them together with elastic bands. A priest performs a ceremony, painting in the pupils of the eyes of a god statue, cradling the leg of a statue with his hand. Both are taking part in a temple festival in the important Matsu temple of Chaotian Gong in Chiayi County, and both are absorbed in their duties, despite the distractions of the bustling crowds around them.
The woman remained absolutely intent on what she was doing, although I did get the impression she knew full well that I was hovering around her, taking photos. The priest, for his part, is an old hand at concentrating on the rituals he is performing, unbothered by the audience gathered around him.
They both have their implements laid out before them. The woman has a cluster of incense sticks on the table, and a bag of elastic bands with which to bind them. To her side, she has placed all of the bunches of sticks that are ready for use.
The priest has a collection of the implements he needs to carry out the ceremony: He has two bells with vajra (金剛) handles, an incense burner, a glass of holy water for sprinkling, and a brush for painting in the gods’ pupils.
The first two photos in the slideshow above were taken with a Ricoh GXR A12 mount digital; the second two were taken with a Leica M3. The one of the priest, a straight scan, shows an interesting comparison with the digital picture and, although it was taken with a current version of the 50mm summicron, retains that nostalgic feel. The film scan of the woman preparing incense was liberally adjusted with Nik tools.
Anonymous says
That sure is some purdy work!