Villain Hitting: A ritual in Hong Kong, where you can pay to get your enemies whacked with a slipper

Frustration has a price tag in Hong Kong. For $6, customers can give the full name of a cheating ex-lover, a cruel boss or just ‘bad luck’ and watch as someone beats those frustrations away with a shoe in a ceremony known as ‘villain-hitting’, or ‘da siu yan’. Villain-hitting is an unusual and traditional form of folk medicine still practiced in Hong Kong today.

Slippers, smoke and symbolic revenge: All you need to know about Villain Hitting

Elderly ladies set up shops on the street under the Canal Road Flyover in Causeway Bay every day. Locals refer to them as ‘villain hitters’. They use items such as incense, paper charms and old slippers to offer curses to those who want to be rid of a curse or bad luck. Some of the customers carry photographs or birthdates of that person, while others simply want their luck (or health issues, or money problems, etc.) to be removed.

A travel vlogger Aakansha Monga shared her experience on Instagram, saying “it’s one of the most unique things i’ve ever experienced. Here’s what happens: You tell them who or what’s been causing problems in your life…..could be a person, could be bad luck, health issues, money stress, whatever 🌝” She then continued saying, “I personally wrote “bad luck” because sometimes you just need to release the energy that’s been weighing you down, you know?”

A practitioner performs Villain Hitting by first writing an individual's name on paper. They then light some incense, chant some prayers, and then arrives the moment everyone is waiting for. They raise their slipper to strike the name on the paper multiple times while reciting spells. Queues during peak hours can be over 50 people deep. There are usually 15-20 stalls located underneath the overpass. The incense smoke fills the area and people are chanting softly. Yes, people line up even for curses.

This practice was originally rooted in southern Chinese folk beliefs. It incorporates aspects from Taoism, as well as local ideals or thoughts about protection through certain physical actions. Common comparisons are often made in popular literature with voodoo but the actual rituals associated to this practice are entirely local and Cantonese.

In a fast, modern city, an old ritual still thrives, one slipper slap at a time.

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