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Published: April 30th 2008
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April 28th, 2008 Wong Tai Sin Temple Hong Kong really has some fascinating temples / monasteries. In the past, when I came to Hong Kong, it was all about doing the silly popular things; going to the Peak to see the city skyline, going shopping, singing karaoke. Up til now I had never bothered looking into the historical / religious side of Hong Kong. There are several temples / monasteries that are also advertised as tourist attractions. And some of them are really breathtaking. the 2 that I had visited today, were called Wong Tai Sin temple, and the Chi Lin Nunnery. Both tucked away in Kowloon, and both had lovely Chinese gardens attached to them.
The Wong Tai Sin temple was convenient to get to, it was just outside the subway station. The one thing that was sad about the location was that you have this
temple that's almost 100 yrs old, and it's located right next to.. A MALL. modern commercialism can be quite sad, i think.
Inside was a series of small temples, each dedicated to a different purpose. People coming to pray at the temple were buying incense in bunch-loads,
big ones, little ones, it didnt matter. and the whole point was to light ALL of your incense, going to each temple, pray, kneel, and insert some incense sticks into the big pot before the temple as your offering. There were too many of them and the smell is choking. Also it's a bit scary to be walking around all these people w. like a dozen lit incense sticks and not have them accidentally bump into you and burn you.
What I didn't realize is that the Wong Tai Sin temple is a daoist temple, not a buddhist one. I was wondering why i saw no buddha figures there. Its famous among hong kong citizens to pray for good health / fortune.
What was fascinating was that the temple had its own garden in the back, called the "good wish garden". One of the reasons why I didn't make an effort to come until now, b/c it's a bit far from where Im staying and also it's been raining on and off in HK. Now I'm kicking myself for not coming sooner!! It was absolutely gorgeous!! Several pavilions were built into the garden, as
well as ponds, lakes, bridges, and a waterfall. In 1 large lake, they had a large group of goldfish / koi, while another had turtles.
A fountain at the wong tai sin temple
incense pot holder for offerings in front of a shrine
Pavilions and lakes inside the good wish garden
The Chi Lin Nunnery and the Nan Lian Garden This was also a beautiful place to see. Constructed only 10 yrs ago, it's a massive monastery with large courtyards and temples inside. Constructed in the Tang dynasty style, it was made without using a single nail!! What is unique about the Tang dynasty style is that uses a special wood-interlocking system that doesn't require nails. It goes to show you that even though China at the moment isn't a very modern country, but has been capable of marvelous things in the past.
When you walked inside the front gate, you see a beautiful courtyard with a temple in the center. in the courtyards they had lovely ponds with water lilies and dragon head fountains, as well as bonzai trees. behind the temple is another courtyard, also with 4 shrines on each side of the courtyard. Each shrine is dedicated to a different buddha.
Adjacent to the Nunnery was a large garden / park called the Nan Lian Garden. It was really beautiful; in the center was a pagoda in the center of a man made pond, with bridges connecting it. inside the park you could walk around and see small exhibitions, 1 of them being rock sculpture. There was also a large dim sum restaurant, set before a large lake filled with koi (goldfish). I remember see a waterfall, that had a restaurant inside. If i lived nearby, i would come see these gardens all the time. i only wish that there were places like this in NY, just to come to, relax, and unwind. It was a bit strange to see that you could find beautiful peaceful places like this in an urban place like Hong Kong.
April 29th, 2008 Po lin monastery & tian tan buddha
Today i would trek to the giant buddha. I had already been there once before, but i didn't have time to climb up the mountain which the buddha sits on, and also i didnt go to the nearby po lin monastery. you have to climb 260 some odd steps to reach the buddha!!! There are some buddhistic statues making offerings to the buddha at the base.
I also went to the po lin monastery which is interesting. Inside was a large shrine dedicated to 3 buddhas, and there were sculptures of dragons all over the outside to ward off evil spirits. If you remember to wander around the back of the the monastery, you can see stone engravings of buddhas on the outside back wall.
My journey through temples & monasteries in Hong Kong has been an interesting one. It brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "place for tourists", for it has a profound meaning compared to
other 'tourist trap' places I've been to around the world.
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