Tin Hau Temple, Causeway Bay
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The Tin Hau Temple in
Causeway Bay Causeway Bay is list of buildings, sites and areas in Hong Kong, an area and Victoria Park, Hong Kong, a bay on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong, straddling the border of the Eastern District, Hong Kong, Eastern and the Wan Chai District, Wan Chai ...
is one of the
Tin Hau temples in Hong Kong Tin Hau temples in Hong Kong are dedicated to the Chinese goddess Tin Hau (), better known as Mazu (goddess), Mazu (). Over 100 temples are dedicated (at least partially) to Tin Hau in Hong Kong. A list of these temples can be found below. Famo ...
. It is located at 10 Tin Hau Temple Road, Causeway Bay, east of Victoria Park, in Eastern District, on
Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island () is an island in the southern part of Hong Kong. The island, known originally and on road signs simply as "Hong Kong", had a population of 1,289,500 and a population density of , . It is the second largest island in Hong Kon ...
. The temple has given its name to the MTR station serving it ( Island line), and consequently the neighbouring area of Tin Hau.


History

The original temple dates back to 1747 (the date of the temple bell) and was built by members of the Tai family, a family of
Hakkas The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka-speaking Chinese, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas, are a southern Han Chinese subgroup whose principal settlements and ancestral homes are dispersed widely across the provinces of southern China ...
from
Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...
, who first settled in
Kowloon Kowloon () is one of the areas of Hong Kong, three areas of Hong Kong, along with Hong Kong Island and the New Territories. It is an urban area comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It has a population of 2,019,533 and a populat ...
. Legend has it, the family used to travel by boat to Causeway Bay to gather grass and discovered an incense burner found floating miraculously on the sea. This incident gave rise to one of the pre-colonial names for Hong Kong Island, ''Hung Heung Lo'' (Red Incense-burner island). The present building dates back to 1868 and despite renovations, is still largely in its original form. It is now located inland as a consequence of
land reclamation Land reclamation, often known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new Terrestrial ecoregion, land from oceans, list of seas, seas, Stream bed, riverbeds or lake ...
, originally being on the waterfront.


Architecture and layout

The temple is famous for the fine Shek Wan figurines on its roof and eaves, and the quality of its stone carvings around the entrance. Inside the temple, the main altar and several side altars are dedicated to Tin Hau, Goddess of the Sea and patron deity of seafarers. Additional side altars dedicated to Tsoi San, the God of Wealth, and Kwun Yum, the Goddess of childbirth. Finally there are side altars to the black-faced Pau Kung, the Lenient Judge of the Underworld. He is worshipped in the hope that he will be merciful to the souls in his care.


Conservation

The Tin Hau Temple in Causeway Bay became a declared monument
Antiquities and Monuments Office The Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) is a Hong Kong government organization established in 1976 under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance to protect and preserve historic monuments. Housed in the Former Kowloon British School, the AMO ...

Tin Hau Temple, Causeway Bay
/ref> in 1982.


References


Further reading

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External links

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Antiquities and Monuments Office The Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) is a Hong Kong government organization established in 1976 under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance to protect and preserve historic monuments. Housed in the Former Kowloon British School, the AMO ...

"Renovation Project for Tin Hau Temple in Causeway Bay"
September 2003 *The Temple Trai
Tin Hau Temple Causeway Bay
2015 {{coord, 22.282187, N, 114.19276, E, type:landmark_region:HK, name=Tin Hau Temple, Causeway Bay, display=title Tin Hau temples in Hong Kong Tin Hau, Hong Kong Declared monuments of Hong Kong 18th-century religious buildings and structures in Hong Kong Religious buildings and structures completed in 1747 Religious buildings and structures completed in 1868