■ Local beliefs
Shi Ye
Shiye Temple worships 7 stones of varying sizes. April 8th in the lunar calendar is Shiye's birthday, and it is also the Shiye Festival, which the residents regard as a grand event. After the baby reaches one year of age, in the hope that children grow up safely, the local parents will take their children to the Shiye Temple to worship Shiye as the "godfather". During the worship ceremony, there is a process of hanging a "juan", or amulet. The Shiye juan is replaced once a year, and the replaced juan will be placed on Shiye. Traditionally, when a child reaches the age of sixteen, a "getting off juan" ceremony is held, which is commonly known as rites of passage. Nowadays, most of the Shiye juan are taken off when a boy is about to serve in the military and a girl is about to marry.
Sanshan God
The main god enshrined in Nanchang Palace in Nanpu Township is the Sanshan God, or King of Three Mountains. The King of Three Mountains refer to the three mountain gods of Jinshan, Mingshan, and Dushan in Chaozhou Prefecture, Guangdong Province. They are beliefs originated in Guangdong, China. When the Hakka moved to Taiwan, most of them chose the King of the Three Mountains, Goddess of Mercy, and Mazupo as their guardians. When they first came to Taiwan, they worshipped the guardians at home. After the economic situation improved, they built temples. The King of Three Mountains in Nanchang Palace was originally enshrined in the home of Peng Xiangbo, who opened a Chinese medicine shop in Nanpu. When Nanpu was reclaimed, some aborigines practiced beheading as a form of battle. One day, Wan Ye came to Peng Xiangbo in a dream, telling him when beheading would be practiced in Nanpu. Knowing it, everyone hid somewhere until aborigines left, and all of them survived. Because of this incident, the number of believers increased and they moved to Jinguangfu Nanpu Mansion to worship, which became the Nanchang Palace as we know today.
Earth God
"Bo Gong" in the Hakka dialect means the Earth God. Shuitou Bo Gong got its name because it was located at the source of Nanpu Canal, and Hedi Bo Gong was named because of its proximity to "Shanghedi". Hedi Bo Gong has been worshipped since approximately 160 years ago. It was originally located at the river course about 600 to 700 meters under the Dalin Bridge. It was moved to the current location during the August 7th flood, and it was placed side by side with Shuitou Bo Gong on the original site, responsible for protecting the irrigation water source. It has become one of the important gods in Nanpu Village.