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Chinese villagers ‘beat the Buddha’ for good harvest
Villagers take part in the ‘beat the Buddha’ celebrations in Yuxi village. It is a time for colourful ceremonies in the coastal province, where the Hakka people have maintained folk traditions. (AFP Photo)
Updated on: Feb 12, 2017 5:29 PM IST
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Villagers take part in the ‘beat the Buddha’ celebrations in Yuxi village. It is a time for colourful ceremonies in the coastal province, where the Hakka people have maintained folk traditions. (AFP Photo)
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A firecracker is set off as part of the ‘beat the Buddha’ celebration in Yuxi village. Villagers in China’s eastern Fujian province have a unique way of worshipping Buddha: They beat a rock statue of the diety to wish for a good new year and an abundant harvest. The religious ceremony in Yuxi village was one of many in the run-up to the traditional Lantern Festival, which fell on February 11 this year. (AFP Photo)
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Legends about the statue vary, but all agree that the stone represents a local God capable of defending the village against both drought and flood. (AFP Photo)
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In preparation for the event, villagers wrap the centuries-old Buddha (a rock) in red cloth and rinse it with water, before tightly tying it to a wooden palanquin. (AFP Photo)
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Children enjoy a candy floss during the ‘beat the Buddha’ celebrations in Yuxi village. (AFP Photo)
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Four men, who had been on a strict vegetarian diet for three days, carry the palanquin across a nearby river, while another team of more than a dozen try to stop them by blocking them with freshly hewn bamboo sticks. (AFP Photo)
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According to one of the most popular legends, the village suffered flooding for many years during the Ming Dynasty, which ruled China from 1368 to 1644, and harvests were frequently ruined. (AFP Photo)
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At the time during the Ming Dynasty, one of the villagers had a dream that a rock hidden in the fields could stop the flooding. They just needed to find it and build a temple to house it near the river. (AFP Photo)
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The rock-turned-Buddha likes to run away, the legend says, and people believe beating it can make it stay. (AFP Photo)
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A man covers the ears of his son as firecrackers go off during the ‘beat the Buddha’ celebration in Yuxi village. (AFP Photo)
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A rock, regarded by villagers as the centuries-old Buddha, is tied to a wooden palanquin. (AFP Photo)
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Villagers pray, burn incense during the celebrations in Yuxi village. (AFP Photo)
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