Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
132
gods are present to be worshipped as w ell. On either side of the gopuram are statues of
Shiva and Vishnu, while inside are two smaller shrines toVinayagar and Sri Ararvan. Also
note the sacred cows that lounge along the top of the temple walls.
The temple originated as a small wood-and-thatch shrine founded b y Naraina Pillai,
an Indian merchant who came to Singapore with Raffles's first expedition and found his
fortune in trade. I n the main hall of the temple is the small god that P
illai originally
placed here.
244 South Bridge Rd., at the c orner of South Bridge Rd. and Pagoda St. & 65/6223-4064. Free admis-
sion. 10-min. walk from Chinatown MRT.
Thian Hock K eng Temple Thian H ock K eng, the “ Temple of H eavenly
Bliss,” is one of the oldest Chinese temples in S ingapore. Before land reclamation, when
the shoreline came right up to Telok Ayer Road, the first Chinese sailors landed here and
immediately built a shrine, a small wood-and-thatch structure, to pray to the goddess Ma
Cho Po for allowing their voyage to be safely completed. F or each subsequent boatload
of Chinese sailors, the shrine was always the first stop upon landing. M a Cho P o, the
Mother of the Heavenly Sages, was the patron goddess of sailors, and every Chinese junk
of the day had an altar dedicated to her .
The temple that stands today was built in 1841 o ver the shrine with funds fr om the
Hokkien community, led b y the effor ts of two M elaka-born philanthropists, Tan Tock
Seng and Tan Kim Seng. All of the building materials were imported from China, except
for the gates, which came from Glasgow, Scotland, and the tiles on the facade, which are
from Holland. The door way is flanked b y two lions, a male with a ball to symboliz e
strength and a female with a lion cub to symboliz e fertility. On the door are door gods,
mythical beasts made from the combined body parts of many animals. Note the wooden
bar that sits at the foot of the temple entrance (as do similar bars in so many Chinese
temples). This ser ves a couple of purposes: F irst, it keeps out wandering ghosts, who
cannot cross over the barrier. Second, it forces anyone entering the temple to look down
as they cross, bowing their head in humility. Just inside the door ar e granite tablets that
record the temple's history.
Ahead at the main altar is M a Cho Po, and on either side ar e statues of the Protector
of Life and the G od of War. To the side of the main hall is a G ambler Brother statue,
prayed to for luck and riches. From here you can see the temple's construction of brack-
ets and beams, fitting snugly together and car ved with war her oes, saints, flo wers, and
animals, all in red and black lacquer and gilded in gold. B ehind the main hall is an altar
to Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy. Beside her are the sun and moon gods.
To the left of the cour tyard are the ancestral tablets. I n keeping with Confucian filial
piety, each represents a soul. The tablets with red paper are for souls still alive. Also in the
temple complex are a pagoda and a number of outer buildings that at one time housed
a school and community associations. The right wing of the temple is shar ed with The
Faculty, a center for cr eative arts, holding classes for dance, acting, and v ocals. Even if
you don't have a burning desir e to learn to tango, the elaborate pagoda is an incr edible
spot for a cool drink, tucked away behind the ornate temple gate.
158 Telok Ayer St., 1 / 2 block beyond Nagore Durgha Shrine. & 65/6423-4616. Free admission. 15-min.
walk from Tanjong Pagar MRT.
7
Wak Hai Cheng Bio Temple One of the oldest Taoist temples in S ingapore,
this is also known as Yueh Hai Ching Temple. Like most of Singapore's Chinese temples,
Wak Hai Cheng Bio had its start as a simple wood-and-thatch shrine where sailors, when
they got off their ships, would go to expr
ess their gratitude for sailing safely to their
 
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