The Tang Clan of Hang Mei Tsuen in Ping Shan

Wai Sun Tong of the Tang Clan of Hang Mei Tsuen in Ping Shan one of the clans that still observe the Hek Shan Tou custom today. On the fifth day prior to the Qing Ming Festival and the fifth day prior to the Chung Yeung Festival (i.e. the 9th day of the 9th lunar month), they visited Lung Kwu Tan in Tuen Mun to honor Tang Yuek Hau, the 18th ancestor of the Tang Clan born in 1708. Yuek Hau Study Hall is a property of the clan.

Sacrificing Live Pigs at the Ceremony    

Before the memorial ceremony took place, Wai Sun Tong selected some people to prepare food for the ceremony by bidding. The bid winners together with female workers, a total of four persons, set off from Ping Shan early in the morning, carrying stoves, cookware, three live pigs (weighing 125 kilograms) and other food with them. When they arrived at Lung Kwu Tan, one of the three live pigs was placed in front of the grave of ancestor Tang Yeuk Hau and a person on behalf of Wai Sun Tong carried out a simple memorial ceremony and burnt the joss paper.

Cooking in the Fields    

At the same time, other people built two stoves with small rocks at a lychee garden nearby. They made the fire in a traditional way by burning firewood. Then, the live pig that had been presented in the previous ritual would be killed, cut into pieces and cooked in a big pot. Bean curd stick, shrimps, squids and rice were cooked as well. As the food needed to be cooked separately given its large amount, it took as long as two and a half hours to finish the entire process.    

The 28th day of 9th month of the Lunar Calendar

People worship different opera patriarchs in different places in China and Wah Kong is the one worshipped for Cantonese opera in Hong Kong. Prior to each performance, the performing crew set up an altar at backstage to honor this patriarch, hoping for a smooth run both onstage and backstage. The importance of Wah Kong to them was also reflected by the annual celebration of Wah Kong’s birthday.

Birthday Celebration Ceremony

The 28th day of the 9th lunar month of Chinese calendar was the birthday of Patriarch Wah Kong. At eleven o’clock the night before, the Chinese Artists Association of Hong Kong organized by Cantonese opera performers in Hong Kong carried out a celebration ceremony at its Yau Ma Tei branch. A number of performers performed three auspicious plays in front of the statue of Patriarch Wah Kong, namely Eight Divinities’ Celebration o f Birthday, The Ka Kwun Dance and The Fairy’s Baby. After which the Chairman of the Association and the people would offer incense and burn the joss paper.

After the ceremony, members of the Association, carrying with them the statue of Wah Kong and memorial tablets of deities and saints (Patriarch Wah Kong, Tin Hau Yuen Kwan, Saint Tam Kung, the two patriarchs Tin, Tau and Patriarch Cheung Hin), took a ride to where they were going to perform in that year and settled the deities there and allowed Patriarch Wah Kong to enjoy their performance on birthday. Both performers and participants visited the alter set up earlier to worship Wah Kong as usual and prayed for good luck and happiness before the show began.

The 24th day of the 9th month of the Lunar Calendar

There are a few Ksitigarbha(梵語)/ Tei Chong Wong temples organized by the Hok Lou people in Hong Kong. From the end of the 7th month to the mid-August, these temples hold individual celebrations of Ksitigarbha’s birthday. Among all, the Ksitigarbha Temple located on Tsui Ping Road in Kwun Tong holds a special event on 24th of the 9th Lunar month to pay their tribute to Ksitigarbha. The event consisted of parades, deity-inviting rituals, performances of auspicious animals and Kung Fu as well as Chinese opera performances that last for days. It wa a rich presentation of the Hok Lou culture and became one of the biggest celebrating events in Kowloon District.

Events Held to Reciprocate Deities

Since 1964, the organizing committee of Kowloon Kwun Tong Wai Hoi Luk Hing Benevolent Society has been holding an annual event on 14th of the 9th Lunar Month to pay homage to Ksitigarbha Buddha, the City God and other deities. On the very same day in the early 60s, Ksitigarbha was moved to the cave. Folk opera troupes from Hoi Luk Fung were invited to give live Chinese operas and dramas performance for ghosts. There were usually two performances each day and the performance generally lasts for ten to twelve days depending on sponsorship, which is the longest among all the festive events in Hong Kong.

The Deity-inviting Parade

Prior to the event to reciprocate deities, the committee first “invited” all of them to the event from the Temple on 22nd day of the 9th lunar month and housed them at the temporary altar opposite to the performing stage. On the morning of next day, deities in the neighboring Tai Wong Ye Temple and Sam Shan Kwok Wong Temple were also invited and settled in turn. The performing groups always carried out a few performances in the Ksitigarbha Temple before the huge crowd consisting committee members and other martial art groups heads towards other temples to invite more deities. With all performers dressed in traditional costumes, the grand parade team comprising about two-hundred members attracted wide attention and passers-by always stopped and watched the parade.

The whole process took around two hours. Various deities returned to the Ksitigarbha Temple and were well settled for the reciprocating event. Martial art groups performed the lion dances and the Hok Lou people’s Kung Fu. It wa an entertainment to both human

On the 24th of the 9th lunar month, worshipers bringing sacrifices came to worship in the Temple all day long. At about four in the afternoon, meals were served to worshippers and the staff. In the evening, an opening ceremony wa held with officers of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR, council members, representatives of government departments and people of local communities invited. Such an event wa more than just a religious occasion. It has evolved into a celebration event bringing together people in the area of Kowloon East and is now a platform for exchange and liaison for many parties.

Lau Hoi Distributing Money

Then appeared the ''Money Divine' Lau Hoi, who distributed copper coins to the audience. Onstage performers, staff at the stage entrance and audiences offstage all fought for the coins for good luck. The atmosphere reached a climax and the people on and off the stage mingled and celebrated together. A huge peach was then pushed to the front stage and a “heart of the peach” walked out and continued disseminating copper coins taken from the “Bag of Offspring”, which was no less welcome by the people.

The Fairy’s Baby

The birthday celebration play was followed by the auspicious play The Fairy’s Baby. When this play was performed in the live Chinese operas and dramas performance for ghosts, Tung Wing was taken by young male role and the Seventh Fairy Maiden by the minor female role, but in Wah Kong’s birthday celebration, these two roles were respectively played by civil and martial role and chief female role, offering a fresh impression to the audience.