Lin Fa Temple or Lin Fa Kung is a temple located at the end of Lin Fa Kung Street, which is named after the temple, in the

Tai Hang Tai Hang () is an area southeast of Causeway Bay located in the mid-north of Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is home to many luxurious private apartments. Residents are predominantly more affluent Hong Kong locals and expatriate profession ...

area in the southeastern part of

Causeway Bay Causeway Bay is an area and a bay on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong, straddling the border of the Eastern and the Wan Chai districts. It is a major shopping, leisure and cultural centre in Hong Kong, with a number of major shopping centres. Th ...

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km2, . The island had a population of a ...

. It was originally built in 1863, during the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

, and was reconstructed in 1986 and 1999. The original use of the temple was a worship place for

Guanyin Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She ...

(also known as "Kwun Yam" in Cantonese), the goddess of mercy.Travel in Causeway Bay
on thaiworldview.com Nowadays, it is a tourist attraction as well as a place for local people to celebrate traditional festivals including the

Mid-autumn Festival The Mid-Autumn Festival ( Chinese: / ), also known as the Moon Festival or Mooncake Festival, is a traditional festival celebrated in Chinese culture. Similar holidays are celebrated in Japan (), Korea (), Vietnam (), and other countries in E ...

, when the traditional Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance is held. Previously listed as a Grade I historic building, the Lin Fa Temple has been declared a monument.

History

Lin Fa Temple was originally built in 1863, during the

. It is said that

Kwun Yam Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She w ...

, the goddess of mercy, once appeared on the Lotus Rock to help people avert disasters and bring them good luck. Since then, the local people built a temple which looks like a lotus flower on the Lotus Rock to house Kwun Yam, hoping that she could bring them peace and serenity. Every year on the 19th day of February, June, September and November in

lunar calendar A lunar calendar is a calendar based on the monthly cycles of the Moon's phases ( synodic months, lunations), in contrast to solar calendars, whose annual cycles are based only directly on the solar year. The most commonly used calendar, t ...

, worshippers will go to Lin Fa Temple to pay

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of land which the state conq ...

to Kwun Yam and celebrate the important days such as her birthday, the day when she became a nun and the Goddess of Mercy. On

Mid-Autumn festival The Mid-Autumn Festival ( Chinese: / ), also known as the Moon Festival or Mooncake Festival, is a traditional festival celebrated in Chinese culture. Similar holidays are celebrated in Japan (), Korea (), Vietnam (), and other countries in E ...

, the traditional Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance is held. Other events are celebrated on different special festivals. Apart from Kwun Yam, the temple also houses other deities including

Tai Sui Tai Sui is a Chinese term for the stars directly opposite the planet Jupiter ( ''Mùxīng'') during its roughly 12-year orbital cycle. Personified as deities, they are important features of Chinese astrology, Feng Shui, Taoism, and Chinese Bud ...

– Sixty Gods of Time (), Skanda ( Chinese: ; Cantonese pronunciation: ''Wai Tor'') and the

god of wealth Caishen () is the mythological figure worshipped in the Chinese folk religion and Taoism. He has been identified with many historical figures, viewed as his embodied forms, among whom Zhao Gongming (, Wade–Giles: ''Chao Kung-ming''; also known a ...

( Chinese: ; Cantonese pronunciation: ''Choi Sun''). The

Chinese Temples Committee The Chinese Temples Committee () is a statutory body in Hong Kong established in 1928 under the Chinese Temples Ordinance () (Cap. 153). It is mainly responsible for the operation and management of twenty-four temples directly under its management ...

has taken over the temple since 1975. The temple was renovated by the committee in 1986.

Architecture and features

Although it is not big in size, Lin Fa Temple is specially structured. The front section of the terrace is supported by 10–12 feet high pillars, while the back section is situated on a boulder, which is also called the Lotus Rock. Nowadays, part of the boulder is hidden by the exterior wall, and the rest of it is exposed and still can be seen.

Lin Fa Kung, Tai Hang
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Roof

The roof of the temple is another special feature. On the roof and the upper part of the internal wall, there are murals of flying

dragons A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

, phoenixes and arrangement of lotus flowers. The murals of flying dragons are said to be set up because of the annual performance of fire dragon dance, an important event which takes place in

district during the

Mid-autumn festival The Mid-Autumn Festival ( Chinese: / ), also known as the Moon Festival or Mooncake Festival, is a traditional festival celebrated in Chinese culture. Similar holidays are celebrated in Japan (), Korea (), Vietnam (), and other countries in E ...

Lotus flower lamps

Lotus flower lamps can be seen everywhere in the temple. There is also a chamber which collects hundreds of lotus flower lamps. The lotus flower lamps are expected to bless the safety and prosperity of the worshippers and their families.

Windows

The design of windows in Lin Fa Temple is unique. There are three windows, all of which are made of wood and delicately carved. Around every window there are one or two pairs of ''Dui Lian'' (), a traditional form of Chinese literature. The contents of ''Dui Lian'' hanging on the walls are mostly the expressions of praising nature and worshipping ''Kwun Yam''.

Legend

Deities

Lin Fa Temple, Statue of the Goddess of Mercy (Hong Kong)

The main deity enshrined in the temple is Kwum Yam (also referred to as

Guan Yin Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She w ...

), the Goddess of Mercy. Besides, other deities can also be found in the temple. Worshippers pay accolade to deities including ''Wai Tor, Yum Choi Sun'' and ''

'' as well. These deities are respectively known as Buddhist Temple Guardian, the Wealth God (of the nether side) and the Sixty Gods of Time among Chinese.

Kwun Yum and Lin Fa Kung

The divinity Kwum Yam has a long history in Chinese culture. The legend has different forms but she is commonly recognized as the goddess of mercy, kindness and clemency. It had been said that Kwun Yam was a male god at first but eventually evolved to be a female holy being. There are also myths saying that Kwun Yam was originally a princess and turned out to be a goddess. However, deliverance of the heaps and spiritual salvation are the typical perceptions that Kwun Yam delivers. Obviously, the foundation of Lin Fa Temple (the Lotus Temple) in Hong Kong is based on the legend of Kwun Yam. Stories and myths have been spreading around, saying that Kwun Yam was once seen presenting herself on the Lotus Rock. Therefore, worshippers and parishioners then built up a temple to praise Kwum Yam near the rock, and this gave rise to the construction of the temple.

Traditions

The long history of Lin Fa Temple is accompanied by a variety of traditions, such as the

Festival, Kwun Yum Open Treasury and Tai Hang Dragon Dance.

Kwun Yam Festival

Lin Fa Temple provides a place for the followers of Kwun Yam to celebrate the four Kwun Yam festivals, including Kwun Yam's birthday, the day when she was ordained, the day of her deification and the day when she became the sea-goddess on the 19th day of the second, sixth, ninth and eleventh

lunar month In lunar calendars, a lunar month is the time between two successive syzygies of the same type: new moons or full moons. The precise definition varies, especially for the beginning of the month. Variations In Shona, Middle Eastern, and Eur ...

respectively.

Kwun Yum Open Treasury

Worshippers of Kwun Yam will go to Lin Fa Temple on the 26th day of the lunar calendar to "borrow" prosperity from Kwun Yam as a kind of blessing.

Tai Hang Dragon Dance

(Chinese: 大坑舞火龍)
During

, the

Dragon Dance Dragon dance () is a form of traditional dance and performance in Chinese culture. Like the lion dance, it is most often seen during festive celebrations. The dance is performed by a team of experienced dancers who manipulate a long flexible ...

team will first go to Lin Fa Temple before going to the

Wanchai Wan Chai is situated at the western part of the Wan Chai District on the northern shore of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. Its other boundaries are Canal Road to the east, Arsenal Street to the west and Bowen Road to the south. The area no ...

Southorn Playground Southorn Playground is a sports and recreational ground in Wan Chai, Hong Kong. It comprises a football pitch, four basketball courts, and a children's playground. Southorn Playground is bounded by Hennessy Road to the north, Luard Road to ...

for the Dragon Dance performance which bears a symbolic purpose to protect the followers from misfortune. :zh:大坑舞火龍

References

* http://www.fso-createhk.gov.hk/accessibility/eng/locations_details.cfm?Photo_Num=01471 * http://www.mychinapage.com/index.php?option=com_mtree&task=viewlink&link_id=3298&Itemid=5 * http://www.metropolasia.com/Causeway_Bay_and_Shau_Kei_Wan * 尹國棟,(2009) 入廟拜神－－遊走香港廟宇

External links

Lin Fa Kung, Tai Hang
*
Legislative Council Brief. Antiquities and Monuments (Declaration of Historical Buildings). Notice 2014

Openlife entry
(archive) {{coord, 22, 16, 46, N, 114, 11, 35, E, region:HK_type:landmark_source:kolossus-zhwiki, display=title Buddhist temples in Hong Kong Tai Hang Declared monuments of Hong Kong