“Kung Um Temple” it is sometimes called. Nestled in the New Territories, Kung Um Temple or \u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa offers a serene escape. This Buddhist temple is located in the Yuen Long District. It is positioned on the northern slopes of Kung Um Mountain in the Eighteen Villages.
Imagine a place untouched by roads. \u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa sits peacefully on the mountainside. To reach it you must journey on foot. Start from Kung Um Road. Follow the path from Pak Sha Tsuen Section 3, and walk over a couple of bridges.
\u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa’s history is quite interesting. Legend says a man named Cheung from Tong Tau Po Village became immortal in a cave on Kung Um Mountain. His body did not decay. Villagers from Shan Ha Village discovered this and built a small temple in front of the cave.
That is how \u516c\u83f4\u79aa\u5e2b\u5bfa, another name for the temple, came to be. “Kung Um” means a public ancestral hall.
In 1922 a Taoist priest named Cheung Kau Yeung became the caretaker. He raised money to rebuild the temple gate, mountain paths, and stone bridges making it easier for worshippers to visit \u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa. Around the time of the Japanese occupation the temple fell into disrepair. No one was there to care for it.
Later in the 1950s a nun named Chi Wai Fat See restored the temple. In the late 1990s another nun named Sik Chi Sin took over management. She is the same person as Sik Chi Wai, the leader of Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Peak.
\u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa faced a crisis in 2012. A developer wanted to take over the temple. They planned to develop the hillside into a columbarium. The nun in charge refused. She had an agreement allowing her to stay there for life as long as she did not operate a columbarium.
Local villagers celebrate the birthday of the Immortal Monk every year. It falls on the first day of the seventh lunar month. People from Shan Ha Village and nearby villages come to \u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa for ceremonies.
The village of Shan Ha holds a Taiping Qingjiao festival every ten years. During this festival they collect holy water from Kung Um Mountain.
During the Lantern Festival, villagers light lamps at \u516c\u83f4\u79aa\u5e2b\u5bfa to celebrate new births in the village.
The temple complex includes a two-story building and several village houses. Inside the main hall of \u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa a couplet reads “The Buddha’s light shines upon the mountains and waters. The monk’s virtues benefit the villages.”
Two bridges connect \u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa to Pak Sha Village. Tat To Bridge was built over 100 years ago. Villagers rebuilt it in 1936 after a flood.
The other bridge is called Hui Sin Bridge. It was built in 1926. \u516c\u5eb5\u5bfa stands as a testament to the power of faith. It shows the dedication of the local community.