Confucius Birthday Celebration

Thian Hock Keng Temple

The oldest temple in Singapore. For more pixs, click here.

.
It was Confucius Birthday celebration last Sunday, 7th October 2007 at the Thian Hock Keng Temple, along Telok Ayer Street in Singapore. The event was well attended, with tourists mingling amongst local ethnic Chinese people who brought their children to pray to Confucius so that they will do brilliantly in school... or so that is the belief.

Confucius (551 BCE – 479 BCE) a great sage from 2,500 years ago. [From Wikipedia:] His philosophy emphasised personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice and sincerity. He was a philosopher and thinker, but now, his teachings have become a religion to some.
.

Many crowded the temple to pray to him, especially mothers who want their children to do well in school.
.

Offerings like these are pre-packed by the temple and sold to devotees to offer to Confucius. How would Confucius need all these food? Are these offered to him or to the devotees themselves?

.

Let's see...

.

The spring onion (zhung) sounds like 'intelligent' in Mandarin, and are offered to him so that children will be blessed to be intelligent; and bean curd (kwa) sounds like 'government officer' in Hokkien - so that the children will be blessed to become a scholarly officer.
.

I think Confucius will be very sad if he knows that his persona has become reason for people to be superstitious - a state of mind which he is strongly against.

.

Prayers for 'more' is an acknowledgement of one's 'lack' which pre-occupies the mind with thoughts of 'lack'. Thoughts are energy and will work to attract more 'lack'.

.

Prayers of gratitude is an acknowledgement that one is happy and has everything one needs, which will go on to attract everything one needs.

.

Of course, prayers have to be sincere and the prayer has to believe absolutely what he prays for. In this case, the belief that he is happy with all he has and grateful for all that has been given to him.

.

Naturally, we all love to give more to people who are grateful. Conversely, we won't like to give to people who always ask for more.

In the end, all the fairies left...

...except one

...and the tourists left