Folk Culture Lecture Series from Across Taiwan: 'Songs for Guiding the Dead: Benefiting Both Realms'

Has everyone heard of Songs for Guiding the Dead?
Do you know how intricate the techniques of Songs for Guiding the Dead are?

Songs for Guiding the Dead were an important ritual in early Taiwanese society's funeral ceremonies, guiding the deceased on their path. Nowadays, however, they are becoming increasingly rare. But in Houpi, Tainan, there is a group called the "Feng-chung-teng Songs for Guiding the Dead Troupe" that is still passing down this ancient culture. Their key figure is the lecturer for our final Taiwanese folk customs lecture of the year at the park, Teacher Lin Tsung-fan (林宗範).

Teacher Lin Tsung-fan (林宗範) is definitely a person of action. From apprenticeship until now, he not only makes his own instruments but also goes out to perform. The year before last, the Feng-chung-teng Opera Troupe represented Taiwan at the Paris Cultural Olympics, and it was he who personally rewrote the libretto. All this tireless day and night work is to let Taiwan's beautiful traditions become known and appreciated by the world.

What splendid content is contained within Songs for Guiding the Dead, which blend literature, opera, and religion? What meanings do these rituals aim to convey? Hurry and sign up to hear how the young national treasure, Teacher Lin Tsung-fan (林宗範), explains it.