The three mountain kings go out
The fifteenth of the first month, at Meihua village in Jinpu subdistrict, Chaoyang, Shantou: the three mountain kings of the Shangyuan temple leave the temple to tour their bounds, which locally is called welcoming the Shangyuan god. Several hundred strong men carry the image through narrow lanes behind banners, Chaoshan great gongs and drums and yingge, the file stretching out for several kilometres. The provincial item, the cult of the three mountain kings, was entered in the second batch in 2007.
1. On the fifteenth, Meihua holds more than one
On the fifteenth of the first month Meihua has both the three mountain kings of the Shangyuan temple and the lord Mingwang of Dagou going out; on the sixteenth there are the goddess of heaven at Gongqianma and the three mountain kings of the Longwei temple; the twenty-fourth belongs to the Buddha. The village divides its sessions by temple, and each has its own familiar name.
So “Meihua on the fifteenth of the first month” is not one scene but several at once. To see a particular one, establish the temple first: Shangyuan, Dagou, Gongqianma, Longwei.
| Year | Lunar date | Gregorian |
|---|---|---|
| 2027 | 15th of the 1st month | 20 February 2027, Saturday |
| 2028 | 15th of the 1st month | 9 February 2028, Wednesday |
| 2029 | 15th of the 1st month | 27 February 2029, Tuesday |
| 2030 | 15th of the 1st month | 17 February 2030, Sunday |
| 2031 | 15th of the 1st month | 6 February 2031, Thursday |
The Gregorian column is a calendar conversion and does not mean it will be held that way; no announcement for 2027 or later has been seen.
2. How the file is ordered
As described from the ground, the order runs roughly: centipede banners first, then the yingge troupe, the carriers of the “table”, the eight treasures, the great banner, the Chaozhou band, the flower baskets and the prince, and only then the god’s carriage; with it go the elders — newly married men and the senior men of the clan — and the Chaozhou great gongs and drums close the file. The form and the steps of yingge are in the yingge section.
The hardest stretch is the lanes. The image is tall and the lanes narrow, several hundred men carry it through, and the file stretches out for kilometres. Once that stretch is done, the roads of the whole village have been walked.
3. Who the gods are
The three mountain kings are local mountain gods of Chaoshan: Dushan, Mingshan and Jinshan. The gazetteers and the introductions say that they have their origin in the Sui, showed their power in the Tang and received their titles in the Song, which comes to about fourteen hundred years.
On the listing: the provincial item is called the cult of the three mountain kings, entered in the second batch in Guangdong in 2007; what is recorded here is the going out from the Shangyuan temple at Meihua in Jinpu. The name of the item and the name of the session are not the same thing and should be kept apart; for the hierarchy, follow the heritage lists.
Getting there: the nearest station is Chaoyang, for Meihua village in Jinpu subdistrict, then a change of transport; the lane stretch is crowded and getting in and out takes longer than the navigation estimate. In festival time village roads often run one way or are closed at short notice, and a navigation estimate excludes parking and the walk in; a night session often ends after nine, and the way back should be checked against the year’s timetable rather than reasoned from past experience.
4. Where to stand
Two layers: how past reporting describes it, and where this site suggests standing.
As past reporting describes it. The narrow lanes are the most crowded stretch of the whole route; the yingge troupe, the constables and those on duty keep order along the temple road; the report gives no fixed viewing area and no cordon.
An editorial note. To photograph the formation, stand at the mouth of a lane and not in the middle of it; when the file passes, people press inward, and a wall is steadier than a person; do not go down into the lanes with children. These are suggestions made here from standing at such sessions, not the rules of the organisers or the police.
5. Sources
| Source | Body | Date | What it establishes |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Shantou indulges you: a custom guide to wherever you point” | Nanfang Plus, Shantou edition | 13 February 2024 | the three mountain kings at Meihua in Jinpu on the fifteenth; hundreds of men carrying the image through narrow lanes; banners, great gongs and drums and yingge clearing the way; the file several kilometres long; the provincial second batch in 2007; the three-line formula about Sui, Tang and Song |
| “Shantou new-year processions by village: a guide” | a Shantou local media guide (reprinted by Toutiao) | January 2025 | the day-by-day table by district: Meihua in Jinpu on the fifteenth, Hepu on the sixteenth and seventeenth, Guanshan on the eighteenth, Yanzao on the twentieth and twenty-first, Zhanglin on the fourteenth of the second month |
Both can be opened. The detail of the file — centipede banners, the eight treasures, the flower baskets — comes from a village entry and is used only as a description from the ground, not as an official account.
6. What comes next
In lunar order: before it, Dachanglong, the lantern greeting on the fourteenth and fifteenth; on the same day, Xidong, leaping the fire pits and Hepu ying lao ye. Also in Shantou are the Guanshan pig contest and Yanzao, dragging the god.
Elsewhere on the site: the three mountain kings, yingge, ying lao ye: its form and the village days, Shantou routes.
Back to the Chaoshan procession calendar for all twenty-three sessions.
Home › Customs › The procession calendar › The three mountain kings go out
Last revised: 4 November 2026