History of Chegong Temple in Sha Tin

According to legend, Che Gong was a brave general in the late Southern Song Dynasty. He was born in Five Blessingg, Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, and was awarded the title of Grand Marshal for his meritorious service in investigating the rebellion in Pingjiang South. Later, when Mongolian troops invaded the territory, Song Jun was powerless to resist and lost its position. Song Emperor went south and fled to Hong Kong. Che Gong was also escorted at that time, but he died unfortunately on the way. Because he was loyal and brave before his death, the villagers regarded him as a god after his death.

There are two different legends about the establishment of the Chegong Temple in Dawei, one is related to the suppression of the plague, and the other is related to the geomantic omen in Tianxin Village. During the Chongzhen period in the late Ming Dynasty, epidemic diseases suddenly became popular in all parts of the New Territories. Local villagers studied history books and county annals and found that Marshal Che was not particularly successful in cracking down on thieves. Everywhere, the epidemic stopped immediately. So a temple was built to pray for the epidemic to stop. Sure enough, on the day when the temple was completed, the epidemic disease no longer appeared.

Another legend is that when Tianxin Village was founded, a geomancer was hired to survey the village and found three rivers in front of it. At the same time, there is a mountain ridge behind it, which is most suitable for building a temple. It can not only be used as a water outlet, but also make the village prosperous in the future. Therefore, the villagers raised funds to build this temple there to worship Marshal Che.

The Chegong Temple in Tai Wai has a long history. It ranks as one of the four major temples in Hong Kong along with Wuwen Temple in Sheung Wan, Wong Tai Sin Temple in Zhuyuan and Fotangmen Temple. Because of its unique geographical environment, Zhentou Mountain is a round lunar Venus, built at the left foot of the mountain, which is the construction method of the "Taiyin B Angle" of geomantic omen. There is even the town of Toad Stone (Ying Xing Stone) on the top of the mountain; Lion Mountain and Wang Mi Mountain are guarded in the left front, and Needle Mountain is guarded in the right front by nobles. The tributary of the Chengmen River winds from the front of the temple to the right, which is conducive to seeking partial wealth.