Hong Kong Government Lunar New Year kau chim tradition

The Hong Kong Government Lunar New Year kau chim tradition is an annual divination ritual associated with the Lunar New Year celebrations in Hong Kong. The tradition takes place on the second day of the Lunar New Year at Che Kung Temple in Sha Tin, where a representative draws a fortune stick on behalf of Hong Kong. The verse on the fortune stick is traditionally interpreted as an indication of the city's prospects for the coming year. Usually one stick is drawn for the fortune of the city by a main representative person. Other sticks may be drawn for smaller community divinations. There are five categories of stick fortunes, from good (上), to mid (中), to bad (下). Each level also has internal degrees. For example, stick #27 is unlucky. It relates to the story of Qin Shi Huang, first emperor of the Qin dynasty, who built the Great Wall of China and sparked widespread opposition among his people.^[1]

Che Kung Temple has a longstanding association with Lunar New Year worship in Hong Kong. The exact date of the temple's construction is unknown, but its earliest recorded renovation dates to 1890. According to the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, the temple is associated with Che Kung, a Southern Song general who was believed to have the ability to drive away plagues. The temple attracts large numbers of worshippers seeking blessings, particularly during the second and third days of the first lunar month.^[2]

The practice of drawing a fortune stick on behalf of Hong Kong dates back to at least the 1980s, when government officials or public officers participated in the Lunar New Year ritual at Che Kung Temple. The practice was initially conducted by officials from the colonial government and later continued after the 1997 handover. In 2003, then Secretary for Home Affairs Ho Chi-ping drew fortune stick No. 83, which was classified as an inauspicious fortune. The result attracted considerable public attention because it coincided with the outbreak of SARS and a period of political and social controversy in Hong Kong. From 2004 onward, the Hong Kong Government stopped appointing a government official to perform the ritual, and the chairman of the Heung Yee Kuk instead became the person who traditionally draws the fortune stick on behalf of Hong Kong. The ritual subsequently became a prominent Lunar New Year public event, with the interpretation of the fortune stick receiving coverage in Hong Kong media. The Chinese Temples Committee also identifies the second day of the Lunar New Year as the occasion when the Sha Tin Rural Committee conducts its annual kau chim ceremony at Che Kung Temple. ^[3]

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