{"version":"1.0","provider_name":"CURE","provider_url":"https:\/\/cure.uni-saarland.de\/en\/","author_name":"Eva Hitschfel","author_url":"https:\/\/cure.uni-saarland.de\/en\/author\/eva-hitschfelkhk-uni-saarland-de\/","title":"Beating the Villain with a Slipper: Rituals of Reparation in Urban Hong Kong - CURE","type":"rich","width":600,"height":338,"html":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"pxYXKP6OZm\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cure.uni-saarland.de\/en\/media-library\/blog\/beating-the-villain-with-a-slipper\/\">Beating the Villain with a Slipper: Rituals of Reparation in Urban Hong Kong<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/cure.uni-saarland.de\/en\/media-library\/blog\/beating-the-villain-with-a-slipper\/embed\/#?secret=pxYXKP6OZm\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" title=\"&#8220;Beating the Villain with a Slipper: Rituals of Reparation in Urban Hong Kong&#8221; &#8212; CURE\" data-secret=\"pxYXKP6OZm\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/cure.uni-saarland.de\/wp\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/cure.uni-saarland.de\/app\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9544207258_34e506ec6d_k.jpg","thumbnail_width":2048,"thumbnail_height":1536,"description":"In the space beneath Hong Kong\u2019s Canal Road flyover, a form of reparative practice endures that speaks to distinct conceptions of harm, healing, and communal well-being. Known in Cantonese as da siu yan \u6253\u5c0f\u4eba, a term fusing the verb da \u6253 (to hit or beat) with siu yan \u5c0f\u4eba (literally \u201csmall person\/people\u201d)\u2014the practice is often translated as \u201cvillain hitting.\u201d The phrase siu yan carries a specific social meaning: petty, spiteful, or obstructive individuals who undermine others through gossip, scheming, or small acts of malice. The practice of da siu yan, commonly performed by elderly women, involves the beating of paper effigies with old slippers while reciting incantations, ostensibly aimed at cursing or neutralising these \u201cpetty people\u201d believed to block fortune or progress. This is a cultural practice of cathartic reparation, where grievance is given form and direction through bodily and communal ritual, allowing resentment to be expressed, contained, and symbolically dealt with."}