Taipei City Government

In West, Valentine's Day falls on the 14th day of the second month, February. But in Chinese culture, the big date is the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, and is customarily called Qi Xi or “Seventh Eve”, also translated simply as“Chinese Valentine's Day” and falls on the August 16 this year. According to ancient lore, long ago a mortal cowherd fell in love with an immortal maiden up in heaven known as the“weaver girl.”Their love, however, was forbidden, and ever since they have only been able to see each other once a year, when the“Weaver Girl Star”, known as Vega in the West, and the“Cowherd Star”, Altair, are high in the summer sky and look upon each other. Look up at the night sky on this day and you will feel the two bright twinkling lights seem to head toward each other. Look close by and you'll espy a cluster of paler stars, said to be a great flock of magpies who show pity on the star-crossed young husband and wife and form a temporary bridge to allow them to be together. On this day, drizzle is a common event and is said to be the tears of the lovers.

The tradition lives on in Taiwan, and many activities are organized focusing on sweethearts on Qi Xi. Many couples head to what are colloquially called Lovers' Temples , asking the gods to bless and protect their happiness.

Situated on a slope fronting massive Battleship Rock, the temple is formally known as Zhaomingjing Temple or Zhaoming Temple . Though enshrined within is the Four-Faced Thousand Hand Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, who protects devotees' health, marriage, wisdom and wealth, the temple also once displayed waxen statues of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl as well as Sima Xiangru and Zhuo Wen-jun, another couple famous in Chinese lore for having eloped. Hence the popular name Lovers' Temple. Beside is the Wishing Pond, in which you'll see six large earthen bowls, each representing a different wish—romantic love, health, wealth, and so on. Beside the pond is the Wishing Pavilion, on which you'll see inscribed characters declaring:“True Love No One Can See; False Love Heaven Will Know”. Sweethearts hang up wooden tablets with their wishes here, or write them on slips of paper that are then placed inside a Wishing Box beside the Guanyin icon.

On Dihua St. is the renowned XiaHai ChengHuang Temple, which is home to an icon of the Chinese Cupid, the Old Man Under the Moon, known to be particularly proficient. The old fellow leans on his cane, and holds a marriage registry in his hand. Singles come here to ask the old one to bring true love to them, and each year about 6,000 couples on average come to give him cakes and other goodies in thanks for bringing them together. But the Old Man Under the Moon is not the only heavenly personage working on mortal relationships here; women come to ask the City God's wife to keep their husbands on the straight and narrow. The City God, just like an old-time mandarin official, is in charge of the administrative district around a temple, and everyone knows his wife has his ear. Ladies ask for pairs of Happiness Shoes for peace and contentment on the home front .

Over at the Longshan Temple in Wanhua District, always busy and with great clouds of incense smoke wafting about, you'll find what is popularly called the“'Rear Hall' Old Man Under the Moon”. This fellow is also famed for a high rate of effectiveness. You'll see devotees standing before him, silently communicating key personal info: date of birth and horoscope details, name, address, and the type of person they'd like to meet. They ask the Old Man if they can take a red thread from his sleeve, then throw divining blocks. If the two blocks come up with one rounded and one flat side up—three times in a row— you have shengjiao or a “divine answer,”meaning “yes.”Carry the thread with you person and chances are high that your true love will appear.