many people are reluctant to just throw them away,
but in Hong Kong there is an answer, take them to 85-year-old Wong Wing-pong, a retired butcher, who looks after
thousands of unwanted statues of deities, including Buddhas, Taoist deities,
local gods and Christian icons, he recently told news reporters that he found the first discarded statues, a few dozen of
them, 17 years ago,
“No one should demean god. If they are out here, we should
treat them well,” the founder of this unique sanctuary for discarded deities
says, “If they are broken, I will glue them back together … I don’t dare throw
them away, it goes against the conscience.” and the people who have dropped off old statues at Wah Fu
sanctuary appreciate his efforts, “The place is very well kept, I am thankful
to him,” says Ms. Wan, who regularly comes to see the statues of local deities
she had to get rid of after her family converted to Christianity, at first, he would
collect old and broken statues of deities from the side of the road, fix them
up and add them to his small collection, but as word about his curating hobby
spread through Hong Kong, people started dropping off unwanted statues to him
directly, today, he receives new additions every month, from various sources,
like restaurants undergoing renovations and private homes where they are no
longer wanted, I have to say it but this is just one of the many places we missed when we last visited Hong Kong, but it will be on our list for the next time!
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