A weekend of local traditions
Leon Lee
Many people will have tomorrow off but how many know the reason why they’re getting a nice three day weekend? One check of the calendar and you will see that May 21 is The Buddha’s Birthday which celebrates the birth of Buddha, aka Prince Siddhartha Gautama. His exact birth date is unknown but the holiday is celebrated on the eighth date of the fourth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. It is celebrated in many countries where Buddhism is the main religion such as Nepal, India, Japan but it is only an official holiday in Hong Kong, Macau, and South Korea.
On this day, Buddhist temples all over the city will hold a ceremony where monks pour water over Buddha statues to cleanse the newly-born prince and also wash away any bad thoughts and feelings. Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island and the Temple of the 10,000 Buddhas in Sha Tin will have ceremonies open to visitors with a feast of vegetarian dishes to follow.
Also taking place on the 21st is the end of the traditional Cheung Chau Bun Festival. The end of this 14-day festival marks the finals of the bun snatching contest. Both male and female contestants climb up 15 metre towers covered in plastic lucky buns and collect as many as possible in three minutes time, scoring points for each bun. The height of the towers and the frantic pace of the contestants makes this a definite crowd pleaser.
So take advantage of this weekend and experience two of the oldest local Hong Kong traditions.
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