Ringing the blessing bell is a traditional cultural custom of the Chinese people to ring the old year out and the New Year in as well as to pray for blessings for the New Year. At the turn of the New Year, it is a convention that people go to the temple to pay respect to Buddha and ring the blessing bell as a way to celebrate the coming of the New Year. Ringing the bell implies to clear away trouble and to bring Bodhi wisdom and conveys people’s best wishes for family reunion, good harvests, peace and prosperity. 

The 2015 bell ringing activity was held in Jingci Temple. Before midnight, huge crowds of people stood in lines hundreds of meters long snaking around the bell tower of the temple. A ticket office staff said that there were about 7000 people coming to the temple to pray for blessings for the New Year. At midnight, Vice-chairman of the Buddhist Association of Zhejiang, Chairman of the Buddhist Association of Hangzhou and Abbot of Lingyin Temple Venerable Master Guangquan and Mayor of Hangzhou Zhang Hongming rang the first blessing bell of the New Year together to pray for auspiciousness, peace and prosperity. 

Among those in attendance were Vice Mayor of Hangzhou Zhang Jianting, Hangzhou Municipal Party Committee Member and Chief of Hangzhou Public Security Bureau Ye Hanbing, Secretary of Party Committee of Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Ethnic and Religious Affairs Yang Zhigang, Director and Vice Director of Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Ethnic and Religious Affairs Guo Qingye and Feng Yi.