Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery

Groundbreaking and construction of the temple began in 1949 under Yuet Kai and his followers, and the structure was finished eight years later. It closed for three years at the end of the 20th century after one of its caretakers was killed in a mudslide caused by poorly maintained slopes nearby. The main journey up to the monastery is an attraction itself, as the path is lined on both sides with golden Buddhas, each unique and in different poses. Despite the common translation of its name, the monastery actually contains nearly 13,000 Buddha statues.

History

Beginnings (1949–1965)

The Monastery was founded in 1949 by the Venerable Yuet Kai (月溪法師), who moved to Hong Kong from mainland China almost two decades before in 1938 to proselytize the teachings of Buddhism. The site previously housed a temple to Kwun Yam where a nun was killed during World War II. After the land was purchased by the owner of a local tobacco company, he consequently donated it to Yuet Kai for the purpose of establishing a Buddhist college. This, however, did not come to fruition and the Monastery was built in its stead. Its foundation took place two years after the Communist victory on the Mainland. Yuet Kai and his followers carried out the building "by hand" and personally transported supplies from the base of the hill. This endeavour was funded through donations from the lay public; the construction of the Monastery was eventually completed in 1957, although the installation of Buddhist statues throughout the monastery complex continued into the new millennium.

Yuet Kai died in 1965, eight years after the Monastery first opened. An apocryphal story written by his followers claims that his body was found to be incorruptible eight months after his death, a result of the seated lotus position he was buried in. However, newspapers maintain that he was in fact embalmed; his intact body is exhibited in the main hall of the monastery.

After the founder's death (1965 onwards)

Unlike an actual monastery, the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery does not have any monks living on site; the complex is instead maintained by laypeople. After Yuet Kai's death, his nephews assumed the role of overseeing the maintenance of the building. It was at this time that the Monastery began to decline in popularity. This was partly owing to the disruption caused by the construction of the Sha Tin New Town during the 1970s. Renovations to the Monastery buildings were subsequently carried out in 1982, 1997 and 2005; the latest renovation was described by the Antiquities Advisory Board as having compromised the building's historic "authenticity".

Mudslide and temporary closure (1997–2000)

On 2 July 1997, a day after the handover of Hong Kong to China, a mudslide measuring more than 400 cubic metres (14,000 cu ft) struck around the site of the Monastery. It was caused by four days of heavy rainfall that was equivalent to almost half the city's average annual rainfall of 2.25 metres (7.4 ft). The slide buried the house of Ma Shuk-fong, the 73-year-old caretaker of the temple who had assumed the position exactly a year before. She was reported missing that same day, and though the Fire Services Department requested the Government Flying Service to dispatch a helicopter as part of the rescue bid, the plan was subsequently abandoned due to darkness. A helicopter carrying a small digger was deployed to the site the following day, but the area's challenging terrain – namely the unstable mud and the narrow path encompassing the Monastery – severely hindered rescue efforts. Ma's body was finally retrieved four days later. A coroner later ruled that her death by suffocation under the mud was accidental, but expressed unease over the condition of slopes and pushed for stricter laws to be implemented.

The Civil Engineering Department published two independent reports in March 1998 revealing that the upkeep of the hillside overlooking the monastery was inadequate. This was partially attributed to the government's method of cutting slopes. The incident resulted in the closure of the Monastery for three years to carry out repair work on the surrounding slopes in three stages. Each phase cost more than HK$1.5 million – this outlay was covered by donations from the public, since the Monastery does not charge an admission fee for visitors. The lay custodians eventually requested HK$6 million. By March 2000, two small slopes had been overhauled, but work on the larger, more dangerous slopes had yet to begin. The Monastery blamed excessive red tape on the part of the Buildings Department for putting off approval of the reconstruction works. Although the temple was partially opened again a few months after the mudslide, the entire complex was not reopened until 31 July 2000. It can now choose to close in the event of heavy rain.