Be water: The beliefs and blurred cultural boundaries of the boat people of Kau Lau Wan, Hong Kong

This paper examines the On Lung Ching Chiu (安龍清醮, Ritual of Settling Down the Dragon for Purification) in Kau Lau Wan village, Hong Kong, analyzing how the boat people have manipulated religious rituals to blur the identity of the original Hakka residents and strengthen their own cultural identity. The research finds that although the On Lung festival originated from Hakka tradition, over the past decades, this ritual has been replaced and reconstructed by the boat people of Kau Lau Wan, becoming an important medium for expressing their self-identity and community space. Through adjustments to the ritual content, spatial arrangements, and participant composition, the boat people have gradually ‘fisherized’ the originally Hakka ritual. Meanwhile, they have utilized cross-border fishing community networks to invite deities from different regions to participate in the festival, further establishing Kau Lau Wan’s status as a boat people community. This study’s timing during the COVID-19 pandemic (2021-2023) provided unique insights into the ritual’s significance for the diaspora community. Despite travel restrictions and logistical challenges, overseas villagers’ determination to return for the festival highlighted the On Lung Ching Chiu’s crucial role in maintaining community bonds and cultural identity across geographical boundaries. The pandemic context revealed how the ritual serves as an anchor for transnational community networks while adapting to contemporary circumstances. This study reveals how this subaltern group has reconstructed their cultural boundaries and discursive power through the manipulation of traditional religious practices. Copyright © 2025 Beewolf Press.