On the night of 13 April 2025, the Dajia Mazu pilgrimage in Taichung returned to Jenn Lann Temple more than two hours late. Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported that many worshippers queued along the route to pass beneath Mazu’s palanquin, a ritual known as zuan jiao di. The nine-day, eight-night procession had covered more than 340 kilometres and was expected back at 11 p.m.; the palanquin entered the temple forecourt at 1:10 a.m. on 14 April. The queue was not merely an audience waiting beside the pilgrimage. By admitting worshippers beneath the palanquin one by one, it directly governed the procession’s speed. Repeated moments of sacred proximity accumulated until they changed the deity’s scheduled homecoming.