Celebrate the Birthday of Tin Hau
13 April 2012
Tin Hau, the Goddess of the Sea, is believed to have been able to forecast the weather and save people from shipwrecks. Therefore fishermen visit temples making offerings and hold a variety of celebrations asking for safety and fine weather. And the 23rd day of the third Lunar month is designated as the birthday of Tin Hau.
Nowadays, there are more than 70 temples around Hong Kong dedicated to this goddess and various celebrations will be held during her birthday. There are festivities in Sai Kung where a brightly decorated procession of boats descends upon Joss House Bay
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Apart from visiting the main hall of the temple which houses the Tin Hau statue, don’t forget to go to the side hall where there are ‘Dragon Beds’ of Tin Hau. Many worshippers believe that touching the beds will bring babies to a family or good fortune in the coming year!
to the Tin Hau temple there which was built in 1266. It is said that every year, nearly 50,000 worshippers come to burn joss sticks in this temple overlooking the picturesque Joss House Bay.
Birthday of Lord Buddha
28 April 2012
The Birthday of Lord Buddha is one of the most spiritual and unique festivals celebrated in Hong Kong. On that day, at Buddhist temples all over the territory, devotees gather to pay their respects to this revered deity with a Bathing the Buddha ceremony. One of the biggest and grandest ceremonies is held at the Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island, home of the Giant Buddha.
In addition, before and after the Birthday of Lord Buddha, celebrants eat a bitter green cookie in the belief that once you have eaten something bitter, better things will follow. Aside from the Bathing the Buddha ceremony, celebrations also include striking kung fu performances by Shaolin monks and incredible face-changing performances.
Birthday of Tam Kung
28 April 2012
Apart from Tin Hau, Tam Kung is considered sea gods with supernatural powers. Born in the Huizhou prefecture in Guangdong province during the Yuan dynasty (1206-1368), Tam Kung was capable of forecasting the weather and curing patients when he was only 12 years of age. He is believed to have achieved wisdom at a young age and learned the secret of remaining forever young.
The most impressive and oldest temple dedicated to Tam Kung is in Shau Kei Wan on Hong Kong Island where every year devotees mark his birthday with an array of ceremonies such as performing traditional and colourful dragon dances, lion dances and a street parade. This Tam Kung temple was built in 1905 and was reconstructed in 2002 when the original design was carefully preserved. Inside you’ll find an iron bell and a stone tablet that date back to the construction of the temple. There are also models of a wooden junk and a dragon boat. It is believed that the boulder in front of the temple bears the seal of Tam Kung.
Cheung Chau Bun Festival
25-29 April 2012
This festival gets its name from the huge towers of buns erected outside the Pak Tai Temple on Cheung Chau Island where the main celebrations are held. Highlights include the Bun Scrambling Competition, huge towers stacked with buns and an incredible Piu Sik (Floating Colours) parade. It was said that Bun Festival dates back more than 100 years when Cheung Chau was devastated by a plague during the Qing dynasty. Local residents set up a sacrificial altar in front of the Pak Tai Temple to pray to the god to drive off evil spirits and paraded the deity’s statues through the village lanes. The plague ended after a performance of the ritual. Since then, residents on Cheung Chau have organised the Bun Festival every year to express thanks to the god for blessing and protecting them.
The festival was inscribed onto the ‘Third National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage’ in 2011. It was also listed by the U.S. online magazine, Time.com, as one of the ‘Top 10 Quirky Local Festivals’.
Come see a side of Asia's world city that lives deep inside its modern exterior. Join us to celebrate four traditional Chinese festivals in Hong Kong which are sure to invigorate your senses and prove the finest existence of timeless tradition despite the fact of being Asia’s economic, investment and well-developed infrastructure city. Hong Kong insists to be the most sensational destination for April holidays. Take a look into further information of Hong Kong Cultural Celebrations to get your travel plan started athttp://www.discoverhongkong.com/culturalcelebrations/eng/index.html
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