ENG-1992 — Page 362

308

22

RELIGION AND CUSTOM

IN Hong Kong, every major faith is practised with complete freedom.

Buddhist monasteries and Taoist temples co-exist with Christian churches, mosques, and Hindu and Sikh temples. All major religious bodies have established schools which offer a general education apart from religious instruction. Ancestral worship is also widely practised in Hong Kong since the local people are still greatly influenced by Confucianism which, though not a religion, teaches a moral code based on human relations.

Traditional Festivals

Many customs of the Hong Kong people are observed in their celebration of traditional Chinese festivals, which offer occasions for family union and feasting.

There are five major Chinese festivals, all of which are statutory public holidays. Leading them all is the Lunar New Year which is celebrated in the first few days of the first moon, with visits and gifts being exchanged between friends and relatives and children receiving 'lucky' money. The Ching Ming Festival in the springtime is the traditional occasion for visiting ancestral graves. The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth moon in early summer. This festival, which was originally held in memory of an ancient Chinese poet who had committed suicide by jumping into a river, has developed into a joyous event for dragon boat races and eating cooked rice dumplings wrapped in lotus leaves.

The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the eighth moon and gifts of mooncakes, fruit and wine are exchanged while adults and children alike carry colourful lanterns to the parks and countryside at night to appreciate the full moon. The Chung Yeung Festival, on the ninth day of the ninth moon, is another occasion for visiting ancestral graves. Many people celebrate the festival by climbing hills in remembrance of an ancient Chinese family which fled to the top of a high mountain to escape from plague and death.

Buddhism and Taoism

Buddhism and Taoism, the leading Chinese religions, maintain a strong hold on the population, especially among older folk.

There are about 360 Chinese temples in Hong Kong. Some temples are centuries old, built by fishermen or early settlers. Because of the short supply of land some temples are