A view of the Tongbai Palace in Tiantai county, Taizhou. [Photo/WeChat account: tzfb001]

Two places from Taizhou, East China's Zhejiang province were recently designated national intangible cultural heritage protection units by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The two places are the Tongbai Palace in Tiantai county and the Sending off the Great Heat Boat Protection Center in Jiaojiang district.

Tiantai Mountain Yi Jin Jing

Yi Jin Jing, which literally means "muscle-and-tendon-transforming sutra", is a traditional qigong exercise. It is widely practiced as a way to build up one's stamina and inner strength, as well as improve one's physical and mental conditions.

Zong Heng, a Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) Taoist priest from Tiantai, is widely believed to have invented the Taoist version of the Yi Jin Jing qigong exercise. The Tongbai Palace is known as a renowned ancestral temple of Chinese Southern Taoists.

Sending off of the Great Heat boat

The Sending Off of the Great Heat Boat is a traditional practice in Taizhou's Jiaojiang district, especially in Jiazhi sub-district.

Great Heat, a traditional Chinese solar term which falls on July 23rd or 24th, marks the start of the hottest period of the year.

Each year, fishermen from Jiazhi offer sacrifices to five gods to pray for a safe voyage during the Great Heat before going fishing. The Great Heat boat is a vessel used to house sacrificial offerings.