EXPO 2025 to showcase Taiwanese folklore and magical creatures

Taipei, July 28 (CNA) The National Museum of Taiwan Literature will be holding an exhibition in Osaka in mid-August that showcases the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature.

The exhibition, which runs from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city's Central Public Hall, is part of the "We TAIWAN in EXPO 2025" exhibition series that highlights Taiwan's cultural sector's ties with the international community, said National Museum of Taiwan Literature Director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳).

Folklore and literature, among Taiwan's richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in this global dialogue, Chen said.

Taiwan's folklore will be immediately apparent at the entrance of the "Folktales and Magical Realism in Taiwan Literature" exhibition, where visitors will be welcomed by an image of a plaque reading "Er Lai Le" (爾來了, Literally "You have come").

It is an iconic inscription from the 350-year-old Taiwanfu Cheng Huang (City God) Temple in Tainan, one of Taiwan's oldest and most sacred sites, and serves as a reminder of the authority of the City God, whose judgment of one's deeds cannot be escaped.

The exhibition will also have special meaning, Chen said, because it is being held in conjunction with Japan's Obon Festival, a Buddhist tradition typically observed in mid-August when ancestral spirits are believed to return home to the living.

The timing, Chen said, will enable Japanese audiences to naturally connect with Taiwanese perspectives on ancestors, spirits, deities, and the unseen world, creating a cultural resonance that bridges both traditions.

Kuo Jung-che (郭榮哲), chairman of the City God Temple, praised the temple's collaboration with museum, saying the cultural initiative exemplified how local religious heritage can be shared with global audiences.

Wu Ming-hsi (吳明熙), deputy commissioner of the Tainan City Department of Civil Affairs, praised the temple's involvement in the exhibition as an excellent example of cross-sector collaboration and expected more similar tie-ins in the future.

(By Yang Ssu-jui and intern Chou Shun-hsing)

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