The Year of the Rabbit is also a lunar leap year, meaning the second lunar month will be repeated this year. During the year’s second lunar month, many people gather to celebrate the birthday of a special deity.
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A large crowd lines up to pray and pay their respects to Tudigong, the god of the soil. Tuesday marks Tudigong’s birthday, and many people end up eating offerings of instant noodles together after burning spirit money for the god.
This year is special because there is an extra “leap month" added to the lunar calendar. Some traditional experts say offering dragon’s beard candy, similar to Western cotton candy, to Tudigong can help improve your good fortune over the upcoming year.
Fung shui consultant Tsai Teng (蔡滕) says people can honor the holiday even if they aren’t able to go pray at a temple. He says people can fill a container with water at home and then add NT$168 in coins. Then they can put the container in various rooms within the house to attract good fortune.
This specific leap year combination in the lunar calendar won’t occur again until 2042, so people want to take advantage of this special opportunity to pray to Tudigong and earn some extra good luck.