With all that is happening in the news right now, it was wonderful to see the diverse groups of people converge on the Taoist temple in Chinatown for Lunar New Year’s Eve. Here is a gallery from this year’s lunar new year’s eve celebrations at the Tien Hau Temple, a Taoist temple in Los Angeles’ Chinatown. The temple was built and is maintained by the Camau Association of America, a group created originally by Vietnamese refugees from the Camau Region of Vietnam. The temple is dedicated to Mazu the goddess ofthe sea and patron saint of fishermen, sailors, and those associated with the sea. There are also three other deities associated with this temple: Fu De Gong, God of the Soil and the Ground, God of Blessing and Virtue; Guan Yu, God of War, Loyalty, and Righteousness; and Dizang, a bodhisattva in the Buddhist tradition. Every year the Thien Hau Temple is especially festive during the weeks surrounding the lunar new year, and especially on lunar new year’s eve.
A few of the tribute lanterns that festoon the ceilings inside of the Thien Hau Temple. Peering through the branches, flowers and hanging prayers into the main room of the temple with all of the dazzling colors and people making offerings to the gods of the temple. A view through a gilded dragon motif screen towards the shrine to the bodhisattva Dizang. Another view through a gilded dragon motif screen towards the shrine to the bodhisattva Dizang, as well as a section of the offering altar in front of the shrine. There were so many people placing incense offerings in the central courtyard incensor that there was constant motion, here I slowed down the shutter speed to capture the blur of motion. These two people made such a juxtaposed couple one deeply contemplative, the other full of joy. A group of friends meeting up at the temple. There was a very eclectic crowd at the Taoist temple, such a diverse group celebrating the Lunar New Year together. The musicians accompanying their dragon dancers prepare for their performance. A dragon dancer prepares to ascend the stairs and enter the temple. Dancers in the street in front of the temple. Happy faces in the crowd as they make their way into the temple with their offerings of incense. There’s more than one way to record the action. Dancers performing while the thousands of firecracker explosions scare away the bad spirits and demons so we can start the new year with a clean slate. Two of the firecracker strings reaching their end, which will have a resounding eruption bigger than the string, with the glowing blue eye of a dragon peering through the smoke. The ebb and flow of people in the front entrance to the temple. Many stems of unopened red flowers and decorated with red lanterns for the new year as the people watch the dragon dancers perform in front of the temple. Volunteers clearing a path for a dragon dancers preparing to enter the temple. Offerings of money being given to the dragons. A close up of one dragon costume as the other proceeds into the temple in the background. Amazing acrobatics with the head dancer on the tail dancers shoulders while spinning and dancing inside the temple. A dragon dancing his way to the exit of the temple. Performing a turn around maneuver in a large crowd so the dragon can exit the temple backwards so it can face the altars as it exits. A last look at Thien Hau Temple with a crowd watching a group of dragon dancers standing on the spent casings of the thousands of firecrackers that were exploded to scare away evil spirits so the new year can be started with a clean slate.
Timothy Dahlum 