Chengdu Wenshu Monastery dishes out free Laba porridge

( chinadaily.com.cn )

Updated: 2016-01-18

Wenshu Monastery, the largest monastery in Chengdu, celebrated this year’s Laba Festival by dishing out 12,000 bowls of Laba porridge to visitors and residents on Jan 17.

This traditional Chinese festival is the prelude to the coming Spring Festival as is celebrated on the eighth day of the 12th month of the Chinese lunar calendar. It also marks the day on which Sakyauni, the founder of Buddhism, reached enlightenment and became immortal.

Laba porridge is made from rice, beans, dried fruit, carrot, white radish, lotus seeds and nuts, and is the traditional dish of the festival. People eat the porridge to give thanks for a good harvest and to wish for good luck and health in the coming year. Many temples across China provide free porridge to the public on the Laba Festival.

People line up for Laba porridge at the Wenshu Monastery in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Jan 17. [Photo/Xinhua]

A child feeds her mother Laba porridge at the Wenshu Monastery in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Jan 17. [Photo/Xinhua]

People at the monastery pray for good luck. [Photo/Xinhua]

By Shi Zihan and edited by Owen Fishwick