Onlookers lined up along the streets to witness the large number of religious troupes gathered in one event, a rare sight, as they are usually only seen at temples during deity pilgrimages. Rally organizer Lin An-le (林安樂), chairman of Wude Temple (武德宮) in Yunlin County’s Beigang Township (北港), said the temples attended the rally not to protest, but to protect religion and the passing down of beliefs. Wude Temple representatives last month formed the Defending Faith and Incense Alliance and called for other temples to join them at the rally in Taipei. “We have never mentioned banning incense burning,” EPA Minister Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) said on Thursday. The agency respects folk religious rituals and recognizes the temples’ autonomous efforts to reduce incense and joss paper burning, Lee added.

Source: Taipei Times July 23, 2017 15:56 UTC