Puyuma Ancestral Spirit Belief (Palakuwan)

The Puyuma have two origin narratives: the "Born from Stone" and "Born from Bamboo" traditions. The Nanwang community tells of an ancestor who emerged from a stone, while the Jhihben community traces its origins to an ancestor born from bamboo. These founding ancestors established the communities and created the gathering hall system — upon reaching a certain age, all youths were required to leave their family homes and live in the "Youth Hall" (Takuban), where they received rigorous training under the guidance of elders. This training encompassed hunting skills, tribal history, ceremonial knowledge, physical conditioning, and ethical principles. Only those who passed these trials were recognized as full tribal warriors, gaining entry into the "Palakuwan" (young men's gathering hall). This system ensured the faithful transmission of culture from one generation to the next, while also forging the resilience and courage for which the Puyuma are known. Puyuma shamans (Temararamaw), predominantly women, possess the ability to communicate with ancestral spirits and serve the community as both healers and spiritual counselors.

Puyuma ceremonies are jointly presided over by tribal elders and shamans. The principal offerings are millet wine, betel nut, and pork. Before a ceremony, participants must observe strict taboos — abstaining from certain foods and avoiding contact with outsiders. The shaman communicates with the ancestral spirits by chanting in the ancient tongue, conveying the prayers and wishes of the community. The Ancestral Spirit House (Karumaan) is the sacred place where ancestral spirit tablets are kept, and community members make regular visits to pay their respects and sustain the bond between the living and their forebears.

The grandest Puyuma ceremony is the Grand Hunting Ritual (Mangayaw), held at the end of December each year and lasting approximately one week. All men of the community — from adolescents to elders — enter the mountains by age group to hunt, testing their skills and presenting the year's accomplishments to the ancestral spirits. The Youth Monkey Ritual (Mangamangayangayam) takes place just before the Grand Hunting Ritual: young men must use bamboo bows and arrows to shoot at monkey-shaped targets (real monkeys are no longer used), and only those who pass this test are eligible to participate in the Grand Hunting Ritual, marking their pivotal transition from boyhood to manhood. Together, these two ceremonies are known as the Year-End Rites and have been designated a National Important Folk Custom of Taiwan.