Jade Emperor's birthday celebration.

Jade Emperor or better known as 'Thee Kong 天公' governs the heaven. He looks after the peacefulness and guards the heaven. On the 8th night of Lunar New Year, the Hokkein community will gather around from late evening until midnight to worship the Jade Emperor.

Folklore has it said that during the times when the Hokkein forefathers were escaping from Sung dynasty soldiers, they ran to hide in between the sugar cane plantation. The soldiers couldn't catch them and the forefathers survived. The day when they survived in the high lushy sugar cane plantation also happens to be the birthday of the Jade Emperor.

From there onward, every 9th day of Lunar New Year marks the Jade Emperor's birthday and also for Hokkein community will offer many things for good blessings, health and luck.

Often we see the Hokkein people will prepare a massive feast of offerings on the altar - sides tied with few sticks of sugar cane, roasted pig, pink steamed rice cake (huat kuih), ang koo (red glutinous cake stuffed with mung beans), jelly, pineapples, fruits, mi-koo (pink colored buns), sweet glutinous cake (tee koay) and pink pagoda shaped candies.

Sugar cane plays a vital role in celebrating the Jade Emperor's birthday as a thank you gift for protecting their forefathers from being captured by the Sung dynasty soldiers. When pronounced in Hokkien- sugar cane is called 'kam chia'- literally sounds like thank you 'kam sia' in our mother tongue language.

I remembered during my young days, my neighbors would prepare a big altar table and spread out the gourmet and finally finishing off the prayers with lighting of firecrackers. My poor dog would run under the table, upstairs and everywhere to hide from the thundering sound, as imagine every house would light up a bunch of firecrackers. And I often get annoyed that I cursed them for lighting up those extreme loud (forbidden/illegal)- 'tua pow' firecrackers. Even though my mother's side belong to the Hokkein clan, but we don't really follow the tradition. Grandma would just tell us to pray to Jade Emperor with our hands and no burning of big blocks of paper/gold on the roadside..etc.

In Penang, the famous Jade Emperor's Temple (Thee Kong Tua) lies at the foothill of Penang Hill, Ayer Itam. Presently the temple is over 100+ years old. Based on feng shui, the temple sits on a very strategic location Phoenix Mountain. It has recently been restored and renovated with donations from devotees and public. Till today the Jade Emperor's Temple is a must for tourists to visit and also for Hokkein people to worship him whenever they seek divine power and during 9th day of Lunar New Year.

And for those looking to pray to Jade Emperor, he is found in almost every temple. This shows he is a very important deity in Taoism and he is the first where everyone prays to when looking up to the sky.