Lotus show lays seed for cultural wonder

About 400 varieties and 4,000 pots of lotuses and water lilies are featured in the first-ever Lotus Festival being held in the Po Lin Monastery on Lantau.

The 10-day festival, co-organized by Sing Tao News Corp and the Institute of Horticulture (Hong Kong), was launched Friday with the plants aesthetically laid around the Po Lin Monastery, the Big Buddha and the Di Tan of the complex.

The exhibition open to the public for free from 9 am to 5.30 pm will last until next Sunday.

The festival - "The Enchanting Lotus, Felicity for Hong Kong" - is the largest of its kind in Hong Kong and the plants were brought in from Thailand, Nanjing and Wuhan.

Known for their brilliant colors, a quantity of the Thai waterlilies are sponsored by the Thai consulate-general here.

Addressing the opening on Friday, abbot Jing Yin said although the monastery is named after "Po Lin," meaning "precious lotus," it had taken them three years to successfully plant lotuses.

He thanked Sing Tao News Corp chief executive Cai Jin, Institute of Horticulture president Florence Tsui Ho-fun and about 50 overseas experts for their support.

Jing Yin expressed hopes for the monastery and Ngong Ping to become an "immersive cultural experience center" in the next 20 years.

During the festival, painting and photography courses will be organized to strengthen students' understanding of the culture in addition to programs including floral arrangement workshops, calligraphy, tea ceremony performance and an ikebana art exhibition that will be held for the public.

Alice Mak Mei-kuen, the home and youth affairs secretary, said lotus is a Buddhist symbol offering purity and ethereality.

Hoping that the festival will bring cheers and happiness to Hong Kong residents, Cai said it is meaningful to be part of the event for the Lotus Festival is not only the largest of the kind in the city but it also marks the 85th anniversary of the Sing Tao.

Cai said the group will promote the festival and Chinese traditional culture on its various platforms to people in Hong Kong, the mainland and the world.