Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch
RASHKB and author
104
Vol 1 (1961)
ISSN 1991-7295
premises rented, they can operate on a low budget and their financial position tends to be sound.
This cannot be said of the regular monasteries and nunneries of Hong Kong, few of which are endowed with income-producing properties as were the monasteries of China proper under the Empire. Their ratio of inmates to supporters is usually high. Their buildings, donated by rich patrons of an earlier day, are usually rambling and expensive to maintain. In general, their income comes from the following sources, listed in order of importance.
(1) Fees for ancestor worship. In many monasteries there is a room called the tso t'ong where ancestor tablets are hung and where after services in the Buddha Hall the monks pray for the welfare of the ancestors represented. For this service, the descendents contribute a lump sum at the time the tablet is erected plus a maintenance fee each year (usually at Ch'ing Ming or the Double Seventh). The fee varies according to the position and size of the tablet. A large tablet hung in a prominent place can be quite expensive. This system provides some monasteries with their only dependable source of income. Ancestor worship is also a feature of dharma meetings, which may be held twice a month, or be very special occasions in which thousands of Buddhists participate. In 1959, for example, the Po Lin Tsz held a most elaborate dharma meeting according to the rites of the Surangamasutra, and reportedly received HK$200,000 in donations, mostly from overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia who wished to have their ancestors remembered.
(2) Rents on land or buildings. Some institutions have paddy; some have houses in neighboring villages; some (like the Po Lin Tsz) have both. But the rental income is usually small.
(3) Donations made by the admirers or lay disciples of one of the monks (usually the abbot of the monastery) for some special purpose (like building repairs); or for the performance of funeral and other services.
(4) Small donations (usually HK$1 to HK$10) made by visitors who come to celebrate the birthdays of the gods worshipped in the particular institution. Fortunately some deities, like Kuan Yin, have several "birthdays".
(5) Donations made by patrons of lodging or restaurant facilities offered by the monastery (which are always free of charge).
5 Actually, only one is her birthday. The other two are celebrations of her enlightenment and nirvana (sic).