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Burning of the Boat festival of Bagansiapiapi celebrates the arrival by sea of the town’s founding fathers on the sixteenth of the fifth moon, 1826.

The highlight of the festival, which is attended by many tangkis, is the burning of a large replica of a Hokkien-styled junk. Although this is a ritual to exorcise plague gods, the Hokkien-styled junk proclaims that the Bagansiapiapi event celebrates Chinese migration rather than Chinese “earthedness” (Chan, 2015).

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In the past twenty years especially, temples dedicated to Tua Ji Peh as well as the spirit mediums who channel them have increased significantly in Malaysia.  When a medium goes into a trance, he or she is recognized to be in direct contact with the spirit world, as the supra-human being is understood to have possessed the human body that serves as its conduit. This allows the medium to self-inflict bodily injury without pain and to speak with divine wisdom. Most Tua Ji Peh spirit mediums follow the standard medium practices of giving advice, divining numbers, and writing talismans. (Webb, 2012)

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The Sino-Cambodian mediums are possessed by neak ta, indigenous “grandfather spirits.” The familial term is the honorific used to refer to tangki deities (Chan, 2015).

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Tangki practice in Taiwan may have prehistoric roots. Archaeological evidence suggests that the ur-Sinic Yue had come to Taiwan 6,000 years ago. Genetic testing demonstrates the Yue ancestry of Minnan Taiwanese.

A village exorcism in which a tangki led a small group carrying a wok of boiling oil around the community. The pot was brought into every home. Rice wine was spat into the oil, causing a flare-up designed to frighten demons from the vicinity (Chan, 2015).

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Singkawang, Singkawang City, West Kalimantan, Indonesia

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A tatung possessed by the spirit of a Chinese soldier. Walking alongside are other Chinese and Dayak mediums dressed as Malay, Dayak and Chinese spirit-warriors

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In Kalimantan Tangkis are called Tatung. Singkawang is an enclave of descendants of Hakka immigrants who arrived there in the 18th Century.

On the 15th day of the Lunar New Year (known as Imlek in Indonesia), around 300 to 500 spirit mediums will parade on the main streets of Singkawang. The spirit mediums are carried through the streets of the town on wooden palanquins with special chairs. The Singkawang spirit mediums are possessed by earth gods, i.e. the spirits of ancestors who lived and died in the region. Walking alongside the palanquins are other Chinese and Dayak mediums dressed as Chinese, Dayak and Malay spirit-warriors. This parade of Chinese ancestor-spirits marching in brotherhood with Malay and Dayak ancestor-spirits demonstrates that the Chinese have a place among the indigenous spirits of Indonesia.

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In Thailand, the Chinese are mainly descendants of the Fujian migrants. Tangkis are known as masong, which means “sent upon a horse”.
Tangkis sometimes wears riding chaps, symbolizing a high-ranking spirit warrior who has travelled on horseback from heaven to earth. An important occasion for tangki worship is the Nine Emperor Gods Festival. During this period, devotees abstain from meat for nine days, which is why the festival is sometimes referred to as the Vegetarian Festival.

this festival has gained notoriety for the spectacular displays of tangki self-mortification. Thai masong parade through the streets of old Phuket town with all manner of objects pierced through their cheek: a standing fan; a giant parasol; two petrol pump dispensers with one spout in each cheek; a large toy wooden boat; and even an entire bicycle with the shaft driven through the cheeks. The masong are seen as self-sacrificing gods who endure pain in order to transfer good karma to the community.

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Tan Eng Hing started going into trances when he was just 16. Channeling Shan Cai Tong Zi (善才童子), the child god of wealth. (Victor Yue,2012)

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In Singapore, Tangki worship practices thrive as small groups, separate from temples, surrounding the spirit medium. Usually, they are informal groups that celebrate respective deities' feast days. The group hinges on the Tangki which is why they dissolve when these individuals pass. Singapore Tangki scene bustles even more with weekly processions crisscrossing the island and IT-savvy tangki devotees corresponding on social media.

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Tangki spirit-medium worship has its origins in the people of the Minnan (闽南) region of Fujian province, located along China’s southeastern coast. The Minnan diaspora comprises the Hokkien, Hockchew, Henghua, and Hainanese communities (Chan, 2020).

Due to immigration from the Minnan region, the coastal region in Southern Fujian Province, of China into Southeast Asia, tangki practices can also be found where migrant Chinese communities have a significant presence.