Tin Hau Festival
Hong Kong has many temples scattered around the territory that are dedicated to di erent deities, such as Tin Hau (Empress of Heaven), Kwan Tai (King of Righteousness), Hung Shing (God of the South Sea), Pak Tai (Emperor of the North), Kwun Yum (Goddess of Mercy), Wong Tai Sin and so on. Hong Kong residents regularly go to these temples to worship, pray and bring o erings to the deities. On the deities’ birthdays, locals organize a variety of celebrations, bringing di erent ceremonial o erings to the temples in a gesture to repay the deities for the patronage and protection they have provided over the past year.
There are many Tin Hau temples in Hong Kong. The 23rd day of the third lunar month marks the birth of the deity, and this has become the biggest of the annual celebrations dedicated to folk deities. Shap Pat Heung, a sub-district of Yuen Long, o ers an example of how a Tin Hau temple serves as the headquarters of a village alliance in the surrounding countryside. On each anniversary celebrating the birth of the Empress of Heaven, teams from each member village take part in a ritual where lots are drawn to obtain “ ower-cannons.” Each ower-cannon carries a small image of the Empress of Heaven, whom would protect the winner. The village teams keep the deity images for a year and bring them back, in new ower-cannons, the next year. At the Tin Hau Festival the following year, each team then takes part in the ritual, drawing lots and exchanging their ower-cannons to allow everyone an even chance of receiving the favours of the deity. The exchange of the ower-cannons at each annual festival serves to cement the bonds among the member villages and to strengthen the village alliance system.
