12th Lunar Month

Thanking the deities at the end of a year

The 15th day of the 12th month of the Lunar Calendar

Traditionally, rural families worshipped the deities at home or in the community after the Winter Solstice to thank the deities for their blessings over the past year. Among the many community deities the most common was the Earth God, who was seen as a protection for the villagers. The occasion of worshipping the Earth God was known in the local tongue as “zuo she” ( literally “conducting a worship”). Even today, some villages still pooled funds from villagers in form of monthly installments for purchasing offerings and cooking a meal for the villagers.

Worshipping the Land

The Chinese character she (社), made up by the radicals representing god and earth, is symbolic of the activity of worshipping the Earth God. Among the villagers of the New Territories, she was also known as the “Great King” , a variant of the Earth God like the “Bo Gung” (literally, “great uncle”). There were 11 Hakka villages at Plover Cove, including A Shan Village, Tseng Tau Village, Tung Tsz Village, Wai Ha Village, San Tau Kok Village, Chim Uk Village, Lee Uk Village, Chan Uk Village, Wong Yue Tan Village, Ha Tei Ha Village and Sha Lan Village. Since the ancient times these villages had been co-organize the “Thank the Deities” ceremony on or around 15th of the 12th Lunar Month; on the 15th of the 1st Lunar Month they would organize the “Pray to the Deities” ceremony.

The Seven Jia Arrangement

The eleven villages took reference from the traditional Baojia system (a system of cooperatives comprised by family units) and formed seven jia (one jia was 10 families) to co-organized the zuo she event around New Year’s Eve and during the New Year. Every year, each jia would appoint two villagers as the heads, who would pool funds to purchase offerings to be used in the worship of the Earth God at the altar. They would also use the traditional-style stove by the altar to prepare braised pork to servce all the villagers. In the past every family were required to contribute one dollar to the pool, and only two members of the family were allowed to come to share the pork. Since the establishment of the Shuen Wan Joint Village Commons, the expenses were taken up by the Village Commons, and there were no more limits to the number of participants.

Braised Pork in Hakka Style

In the old days villagers slaughter the pigs by the altar of the Earth God, and then clean it in the nearby stream before cook it. Now, out of convenience, the pork is bought from markets. In the past experience, around 200 villagers would show up every time, and the head of the cooperative would prepare some 120 kg of pork to be cooked in four batches in a large pot. Meanwhile, the pig’s entrails would be used to make congee, the so called she congee, to serve the early comers.

Having the Meal while Seated in the Open Area

At 11 in the morning, the villagers came in groups to worship the Earth God, after which they gathered together and waited at the open ground in front of the altar. They seated on stools in circles of ten with no table at the centre. At noon, the four pots of pork would be prepared and 21 large bowls were placed on the ground; the Arrowhead and pork would be evenly distributed and taken to each circle.

Traditionally, villagers seated on the ground at a height no higher than the altar to show their respect to the Earth God and that's why the bowls were placed on the ground. Eating in this way was far from comfortable, but villagers were willing to maintain the tradition, which indicated equality among all villagers. The two zuo she ceremonies had become a symbol of unity among villagers and an opportunity for everyone to come together and exchange family gossip.

The Functions of the Alliance

In order to defend themselves against the larger clans, Hakka villagers in the old days would join forces with nearby Hakka villages to form an alliance of indigenous origin, and together they would worship the Earth Gods of all villages. The alliance was also capable of calling upon villagers to participate in work of mutual interest, for example the eleven villages in Plover Cove pooled some HK$8 million to rebuild the Sam Kung Temple in 2009. The temple was initially built in early Qing Dynasty at Ha Tei Ha, where the thank-the-gods ceremony used to be held. In 1936, the temple was left to ruin after suffering extensive damages in a typhoon, and the ceremony was moved to be conducted at the altar of the Earth God nearby. Now the temple has been rebuilt, but the ceremony of zuo she is still conducted at its current location.

{{0+1}}
{{1+1}}
{{2+1}}
{{3+1}}
{{4+1}}
{{5+1}}
{{6+1}}
{{7+1}}
{{8+1}}