Tsing Shan Monastery, Tuen Mun
Tsing Shan Monastery is one of the oldest and most revered monasteries in Hong Kong (there are many here). Thought to have been established over 1500 years ago (it’s so old I don’t understand why the HK Govt hasn’t knocked it down to make way for some nice luxury apartments!!). It sits about halfway up Castle Peak – a mountain that sits at the Western edge of Hong Kong’s New Territories.
Upon entering the Monastery, visitors will see the engraved characters “香海名山” (in Cantonese this read as ‘Heung Hoi Ming Saan’ which basically translates as “Fragrant Sea, Prestigious Hill”), a poetic inscription by the (then) Governor – Sir Cecil Clementi.
The founding of the monastery stems from a legend surrounding an Indian Buddhist monk who supposedly traveled around in a wooden tea cup (he must have been pretty small then – or liked his tea in large quantities). He came upon Castle Peak and was attracted by the peace and serenity – a fact still noticeable today, 1500 years later – and decided to stay, building a small cottage for himself so he could continue his devout religious practice without getting wet in Hong Kong’s torrential monsoon downpours.
The monks name was Pui To, which I have been told in the literature, means ‘to travel by cup’ (‘pui’, or more accurately ‘bui’, is Cantonese for ‘cup’) and as he became renowned his followers built him a shrine in a nearby cave – Pui To Cave – one of the sacred areas in the monastery compound. There is some disagreement about when this cave shrine was created but regardless of exact age it’s pretty old which is good going for anything in Hong Kong.
Another lesser known fact about Tsing Shan Monastery is that it was used as a location for my favoruite film: Enter the Dragon. “Lao’s Time” (a.k.a the “Kick me” scene) was shot here, as was Bruce’s chat with Roy Chiao’s monk character and of course the tea with Braithewaite. The location, situated up the hill behind the main monastery complex, has changed surprisingly little. With the exception of some trees that have failed to stand the test of time the place looks as it did back in 1973.
November 28, 2010 at 11:20 am
Hi Phil
I have been looking into this and have realized where the confusion lay. The front of the temple that is seen in the beginning of the fight scene is Tsing (Chin) Chung Koon Taoist Temple in Tuen Mum and not Tsin Shan Monastery. The photo below of the temple matches the temple perfectly to the opening scene of the movie. see link;
http://maps.google.com.hk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
I went to the Tsin Shan Monestry (yesterday) and this definitely is not the location used in the movie. The opening scene of the movie (Enter the Dragon) scrolls left from the front of the temple but fades cleverly to another location which you have clearly identified by your photo’s in another part of this blog.
I am going to visit the correct temple next weekend. Thanks for your post about the fight scene otherwise I would have been severely scratching my head.
Many thanks
James
November 28, 2010 at 5:41 pm
Hi James – yes, you are correct, the initial temple shot in the film was Ching Chun Koon in Tuen Mun, but this was the only shot it was used for.
The scenes filmed at Tsing Shan include only the two I mentioned earlier: the monk dialog scene (which was only put back in the film for the 25th anniversary edition – with Bruce’s voice being looped by John Little) and the “Lao’s lesson” scene. Both these scenes were filmed in the terraces behind Tsing Shan monastery, in fact one location is directly above the other on the hillside. If you can get to the right place you will find that the locations are virtually the same as on the film!! (this is rare for HK).
If you would like to see a few more locations for EtD you can check out my earlier entry on Bruce Lee’s Hong Kong.
Cheers, Phil
February 26, 2011 at 8:43 pm
James – just for you. Here is a recent post I did for the Tsing Shan monastery locations. Hope you enjoy it.
http://orientalsweetlips.wordpress.com/2011/02/10/laos-time-and-finger-pointing-tsing-shan-monastery-redux/
Cheers, Phil
November 27, 2010 at 7:15 pm
I’m living in Hong Kong until the new year and I decided to go find Tsing Shan Temple. It was a bit of a mission and I went in the wrong direction a few times but it was a very rewarding experience. Its up a pretty steep hill mind you so go prepared for a hike. I am a huge Bruce Lee fan and like yourself I think Enter the Dragon still is one of the finest movies ever made and I don’t think there has been a single marital arts movie that tops it.
That being said I didn’t recognize a single location at the temple from the movie which was a little sad. I wonder, is the fight scene at the very beginning shot somewhere else? Having been there today 27th Nov 2010 I couldn’t make it out. I did check out the park in the centre on Tuen Mun and that had some beautiful gardens that could have been the site. I must remember that it was over 37 years ago since they made the file.
Thoughts on this would be welcome.
November 27, 2010 at 7:27 pm
Hi James, thanks for the post. Actually the initial fight scene against Sammo was filmed in Ho Sheung Heung nr Sheung Shui. You can read all about my trials trying to find it here: http://orientalsweetlips.wordpress.com/2009/10/02/in-search-of-bruce-lees-last-filming-location/
The Enter the Dragon scenes filmed at Tsing Shan include the famous “finger pointing” speech scene when Bruce gives a lesson to Lao – played by Stephen Tung Wei. To get to this location you need to head up behind the first temple via a small archway (that leads into a sort of covered mezzanine area) and some steps. The other location is from the re-introduced scene with Roy Chiao’s monk talking philosophy with Bruce. This was also filmed behind but further up (or down – I can’t remember) the hillside. Hope this helps.
Cheers, Phil