Eye Dotting Ceremony

This event has passed. Sorry you missed it!
When
Saturday, Apr. 1, 2023
11 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
Free
Where
1510 S Harbor Way
Portland, OR 97201

The following description was submitted by the event organizer.

The eye dotting ceremony, awakening the dragon, and blessing the boats marks the beginning of the 12-week-long Portland Rose Festival Dragon Boat Race season.

Outside the King Tide Fish & Shell, The Portland-Kaohsiung Sister City Association (PKSCA) proudly presents the Eye Dotting Ceremony, signaling the start of the 12-week-long Portland Rose Festival Dragon Boat Race season. A Buddhist Master from Portland Miao Fa Temple will conduct a formal Buddhist ceremony blessing the dragon boats. The event includes the formal dotting of the eyes of the Traditional-style dragon boats by dignitaries and a parade of dragon boats with a Portland Fire Boat display. The ceremony is free and open to the public. The event begins outside the King Tide Fish & Shell restaurant and finishes on the Riverplace Marina docks. 

According to ancient Chinese culture, the dragon is not a powerful animal but a legendary creature, a totem, or a symbol of a god or an emperor. Dotting the eyes transforms a dragon painting into a real dragon, which would then fly away. This is to say that life or spirit is imbued into a piece of artwork and turning it into a real-life thing, virtually awakening the dragon. The dotting of the eyes involves painting open the eyes of the dragon head carved on the boats, done by dignitaries, including the Portland Rose Festival Foundation and the Rosarians, as well as the Taiwan Consulate General. A blessing of the dragon boats occurs, where a Buddhist Master will conduct a formal Buddhist ceremony. 

Local dragon boat teams will participate in a parade on the Willamette River while the Portland Fire Boat puts on a display. Visitors can experience the event beginning outside the King Tide Fish & Shell restaurant at the Kimpton RiverPlace Hotel and proceeding to the Riverplace Marina docks.

The Portland-Kaohsiung Sister City Association (PKSCA), founded in 1987, has presented the Portland Rose Festival Dragon Boat Race annually since 1989. The mission of the Portland Kaohsiung Sister City Association is to promote people-to-people exchanges of educational, artistic and cultural activities in accordance with the spirit of the Sister City International and to promote Portland and Kaohsiung, Taiwan, to the world. The race is a celebrated part of the Portland Rose Festival, consisting of over fifty teams from around Portland and beyond. The race features Traditional-style dragon boats and 3 team categories (High School, Mixed, Women’s) spread over three divisions. Each individual race involves four boats, with each team composed of a caller, paddlers, a tiller, and a flag catcher. The race is held in early June on the Willamette River at South Hawthorne Waterfront Park in downtown Portland.