Whether you are in Miami, Sydney, Foshan, Guangzhou or Hong Kong, the Wong Tai Sin Temple makes an appearance on tourist attractions lists frequently. Dedicate to Wong Tai Sin, a Chinese deity, these temples pepper the Asian and American continents while the oldest Temple is found in Jinhua City in the People’s Republic of China. The deity, Wong Tai Sin, is well known in China and Hong Kong and is associated with the power of healing. The deity is also known by names such as Red Pine Immortal and the Great Immortal Wong by believers. While Temples dedicated to the deity are in abundance across the globe, the Wong Tai Sin Temple in Hong Kong is unique for its practices and facilities.
The Wong Tai Sin Temple in Hong Kong is a major tourist attraction in Kowloon close to the Lion Rock. The Temple prides itself on answering the prayers of its patrons and is well known for its practice known as the kau cim which attracts large throngs of people, tourists and locals alike, to its doors. For guests staying in a Wan Chai Hotel Hong Kong , the commute to the Temple is between thirty and forty minutes depending on whether one opts for a car or public transport. However, for guests residing in Cosmopolitan Hotel Hong Kong, the hotel staff will be more than happy to arrange a taxi for the journey.
The Temple itself was built by Leung Renyan and is home to three different religions, namely, Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. Since many visit the Temple to have their prayers answered, many engage in the ritual known as Kau Cim where patrons make their wishes while kneeling before an altar lighting incense and shaking a cylinder made of bamboo. Open daily from 7am to 5.30pm, nothing is stop you from indulging in the promise of the Temple ‘What you request is what you get.’.
Uditha Dharmawardhane is a travel writer who writes under the pen name Roland Lefevre. He specializes in creating features on leisure as well as business travel destinations across the globe.
