Have you ever come across the old insult, "that guy's got his brains up(or down) in his arse" ? I've been putting it to good thought lately and have come to theorise that many people in this world,particularly Singapore, do manage to fulfill the essence of this phrase.

That being that, let's move on. As I spent the night talking to Cindy online, half of it was channeled to the research of ghost sites in Singapore and reading up on local folklore,beliefs and extremely baseless religious practices.

The one that got me the thinking the most was the 'Tang-Ki' article. In case some of you didn't know, 'Tang-Ki', I believe, is the hokkien term for 'Taoist Medium'. There is just one problem with these guys. The kind of practice they indulge in. It is not only disturbing, it's very bloody, and very bloody stupid if I may add on.

In case you havn't been to one of these taoist processions, I suggest you prepare yourself to witness the bizarre in case you happen to drop in on one.

The main thing that a Tang-Ki does is to allow himself to get possessed by spirits for purposes such as 'helping the weak','healing ailments' and of course, the classic demonstration of giving out winning 4D and toto numbers. How he does this, is another story.

Ok, that's what he does. Now let's go through how he does these rituals. If you're like me and have been watching too many chinese ghost stories, you'd naturally portray the typical taoist priest as a man in yellow robes, long white beard carrying a tangram,wielding a wooden sword and burning ashes for people and telling them it's pretty good tea wouldn't you?

Tang-Kis however, look nothing of the sort. These guys are most of the time, drunkard fat men with an affinity for occult practices. How the entire thing starts out is, you find the Tang-Ki seated on a lavish sedan chair carried by people. Gongs and Drums are all you hear. He's seated on the chair and you find him swaying his head sluggishly. The moment his head starts to get hit by the disco fever, ie. shaking violently, you'll know he's enticing a spirit to enter his body.
The freaky thing about this is, they believe that they are calling upon a deity. The sad truth which these guys refuse to accept however, is that they are allowing stray spirits to possess them. Which makes it all the more risky.

Then, you'll find that they start dancing around and getting whipped by other crazy believers and bludgeoning themselves in the back with spiked balls. After which the 'problem solving' process would begin. "Need a number? See me now! Need healing? See me now!"
Need a helping hand? Errr,my family doctor's fine thanks..

In my opinion, it honestly is a freaky practice. Now here's the thing I wanna put to question.

Religion is the belief in a god or an entity of higher power and authority isn't it? I wouldn't deem wandering spirits as entities of higher power if I were you. So why then, are people within the taoist faith being led to believe that putting their trust in some seemingly demon-possessed cockhead make their livelihoods better?

If you believe in a god, or claim to do so, then do it. And not allow some stranger who's got too much crack up in his brain to do so. I know some people might think that I'm just another person who's against the Eastern religions and that Singapore's a place where religion should be practiced freely and harmoniously. But honestly, a couple of things from my side. Is watching a bloodied man beating himself cockshit senseless a religion?

I am a firm believer in the Christian faith. I am not not being prejudiced, but I however, believe that I have a right to make a stand and question something which is not rational. Would you agree?