The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple

In complete contrast to the 1842 temple featured in my last post is the Buddha Tooth Relic (BTR) temple, built in 2007. In 2002 when Singapore was gifted the sacred Buddha Tooth relic they put it on display in Suntec city and the queues of people snaked all the way down the building and out into the car park. This set in motion the idea of a large Singapore Buddhist temple that could accommodate the popularity of this extremely important relic. The chief monk did a lot of research into the new temple design. Everything contained within needed to be authentic and he focused his design around the peak of Buddhism in China, the Tang dynasty (7th-9th century).

If you enter the BTR, stand on the inside of the central gate and look inwards you will see that the golden Buddha inside fits perfectly in the space that you can see. This is by traditional design, so when the Emperor entered the temple through the central gate he would see the Buddha. Due to the limitation of the land available this temple has been built upwards rather than as nested levels as would have been traditionally used.

On the ground floor you can take in the beautiful surrounds of the Hundred Dragons Hall with the fifteen foot gold Buddha as the central attraction. Here you can watch quietly as the monks carry out their ritual chanting and prayers, these are known as mantras. At both sides of the hall the walls are filled with statues of one hundred Buddhas. Each Buddha holds their hands in a unique gesture, known as a mudra and holds a different Buddhist symbol. They represent virtue and power. Each of the larger Buddhas was made at a cost of $100,000. The Buddhas and visitors are protected from above by one hundred dancing Dragons, hence the name of the hall.

A beautiful gold tapestry hangs behind the central Buddha, this shows 5 dragons, 5 bats and 5 golden carp. This represents a classic Chinese fable where the carp have to overcome danger and leap through the dragon gate in order to be transformed into a dragon. This is symbolic of the need to overcome hurdles to achieve success. It is made from gold and silver silk threads and took a team of 38 talented women to complete, the youngest of which was 65 years old!

After leaving the Hundred Dragon Hall you will enter the Universal Wisdom hall. Here you can have some fun finding your Chinese zodiac protector, as defined by your year of birth. In the centre is a Buddhist diety of compassion. She has many arms so that she can help everyone and she holds symbols of Buddhism in each hand. One very popular symbol you will see is that of the lotus flower. This represents mental and spiritual purity, a beautiful flower born from muddy waters. She is another representation of Guan Yin that we saw at the Thian Hock Keng Temple.

On the second floor is a reference library, BTR history gallery, culture shop and a worship chamber for those devotees seeking wisdom. On the third floor you can look round the museum to see some Buddhist symbols and art.

The fourth floor is where you will find the sacred tooth. You will be expected to remove your shoes, refrain from taking photographs and you should remain quiet out of respect for the worshippers. The outer chamber is lit by many gilt lanterns and worshipers may be using the surrounding meditation platforms. The inner chamber houses the sacred Buddha tooth relic. The floor of the inner chamber is lined with gold tiles and twenty guardians line the walls watching over the relic.  A large gold stupa is the centre of attention, housing the sacred relic. A stupa in an ancient Indian burial mount which typically contains Buddhist relics, these are places of worship and meditation.

Finally up on the temple roof is the Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda. In the centre is the prayer wheel, each full turn of the wheel will ring a bell. Turning the wheel would be done whilst repeating a mantra and all other thoughts should be cleared from the mind. It is believed that doing so will earn the worshipper merit, considered a good deed.

If you stand just outside the prayer wheel door and look to the temple roof spires you will see a little glass ball surrounded by spikes. Within this ball is an image of Singapore’s Central Business District turned upside down. This is an example of the incredible level of detail that has gone into building this temple.

Lining the walls of the roof terrace are 12,300 small Buddhas representing the Buddha of Infinite Life. You can actually choose to sponsor one of these Buddhas on an annual basis and your name will be added to the small plaque below. Again this is an act of merit and on the first day of each lunar month the monks will hold a ceremony to offer prosperity and longevity to the people who sponsor the Buddhas. 

This amazing temple was built at the cost of 75 million Singapore dollars and all of this was from donations. 

The Three Teachings of China

To write about Chinese religion is not exactly straightforward. In fact many believe the word ‘religion’ is not strictly accurate. Instead we should think about a way of life, a philosophy, a set of moral standards and obligations. Approximately 75% of Singaporeans are of Chinese descent and many of their customs and beliefs are still reflected in their everyday lives here in Singapore.

Confucianism, Daoism (also known as Taoism) and Chinese Buddhism were, once upon a time, three very distinct philosophies. Confucius was a real man who taught of moral obligation and the concept of filial piety. These teaching were not popular during his lifetime, it was only many years after his death that his moral teachings were picked up and elaborated by others. Filial piety is the concept of paying respect to ones elders and the elderly respecting the young. This respect and support should continue into the afterlife. Upon death one should continue to revere and present offerings to their ancestors. Filial piety is alive and well in Singapore, just watch the locals jump from their MRT seat when an elderly person boards the train. Or consider that you receive priority for an HDB apartment if your parents already live in the building.

Daoism is, by contrast, full of mythical figures. Feng Shui, the power of the forces of nature (wind & water) and the concept of Yin and Yang (opposite forces) both come from Daoism. Popular in Daoism is the concept of immortality and the 8 immortals are often seen in Daoist art. These 8 immortals collectively represent 8 different conditions in life: poverty, wealth, aristocracy, age, youth, the common person, masculinity and femininity. They are believed to have magical powers which allow them to heal the sick, predict the future and transform themselves and objects around them.

Buddhism travelled from India to China along the ancient trade route known as the silk road. In Buddhism there is a belief in a never ending cycle of birth, death and rebirth and in fact the ultimate goal is to escape this cycle and reach a place free from suffering.  Buddhism also believes very strongly in the concept of Karma. Karma is the belief that all actions, mental and physical, have a consequence. If you are a bad person in this life you might find yourself in one of the 10 courts of hell in the next life. These 10 courts and other figures from Chinese culture can be seen in detail at Singapore’s Haw Par Villa. 

Over time these three philosophies were adapted and modified to suit the cultural needs of China and, despite their very different roots, they are now often referred to collectively as The Three Teachings of China. One of the best places to see this in Singapore is at the oldest Chinese temple, built in 1842. Thian Hock Keng temple translates to ‘the temple of heavenly happiness’. 

This temple sits on Telok Ayer Street which used to be a coastal road and this is why this temple is dedicated to the sea goddess Mazu. The large statue of Mazu sits in the centre of the temple and if you look up to the roof space above you will see the 8 immortals I mentioned earlier, four on each side.

After visiting Mazu if you work your way clockwise round the temple, as is practiced by the Chinese, you will first meet the black and white gods of impertinence. You can consider these gods the constables of hell, they carry out law and order in hell and they also capture wondering spirits on earth. The Chinese also pray to these gods for success in gambling and you will often see offerings left for them in the form of coffee and cigarettes. 

Next is the sacred governor, he was popular when the temple was first built as people wold pray to him when they had come to Singapore to make their fortune. Following on we have Dizang, he is a Buddhist figure who you can ask for help if you, or a loved one, is trapped in one of the 10 courts of hell. Be sure to look at the cabinets behind him as you will see many ancestral tablets. These are placed here by people struggling to keep up with the offerings they are expected to make to their ancestors at home.  Instead they can have a tablet made and pay the temple to look after it. The temple will make offerings on their behalf and this allows them to still be filial. This is part of the Confucian values of filial piety and respecting and revering their dead ancestors. This is popular with the elderly (and perhaps the young and busy) who feel the constant burning of joss (incense) sticks in the house it getting too much for them. The tablets covered in red are for people still alive who have reserved a space.

At the back of the temple you will find Guan Yin, a Buddhist deity of compassion and then, continuing round, the Buddha. Next is Confucius, he is very popular at exam time as many parents working locally will come to pray that their children get good exam results. If they do well, they will return and hang banners to thank him. Finally we have another Buddhist deity this time with a Daoist twist, he is there as protector of the temple. If you look closely you will see each deity gets certain types of offerings and some are more popular with worshipers than others. The joss sticks are generally presented in sets of three representing heaven, earth and man. Be sure to remember to look up at the temple roof to see the dragons chasing the pearl, representing wisdom. Also on the ceiling at the back, above Guan Yin, you see a token to the Indian community that helped build the temple as their small carved images hold up the roof.

Kushana Buddha (India)

This seated Buddha is considered one of the Asian Civilisation Museums star pieces. To explain why let me first tell you that Buddhism has been around for about 2,500 years. For the first 500 years representing the Buddha in the human form was discouraged,so instead they used symbols to represent the Buddha and his teachings. From the inscription along the base we know that this Buddha is about 2000 years old.

This makes this sculpture one of the earliest representations of Buddha in the human form. He is quite different from any other we have in the museum. Firstly he is a little but curvy, he really looks strong and larger than life. He wears a very sheer robe over one shoulder. The sculpture is made from red sandstone, the smooth form of the hair is quite unique to the kushana period and he has this content smile on his face.

He is sitting in the lotus posture and if you look closely you can see the wheel of the Buddhist laws depicted on his feet. This is actually one of those symbols that was used for the first 500 years. So you can see when they started creating the human form Buddha they just incorporated those symbols into the human sculptures. Another of those symbols can been seen around the back of the sculpture. It was under the Bodhi tree that the Buddha reached the point of enlightenment. This means he was able to escape the cycle of birth, death and rebirth and reach a place free from suffering. The Bodhi tree is an important symbol of this transformation.

There are only about 5 other Kushana Buddha statues like this in the world, making it very special.

The Dragon Kiln

At one time Singapore had 30 dragon kilns, today only 2 remain. These are long, wood fired kilns which were used widely across China in the 1900s to fire ceramics. At one end there is the dragon head, where the fire is started. The body of the dragon then flows up a gentle hill so that the heat will rise through the kiln. Wood is fed in through the stoke holes (the dragon eyes) along the side. At the end is a chimney representing the dragon tail which is also the highest point.

The semi circular roof ensures that the heat circulates.  Apparently an experienced potter could work out the temperature just by looking at the colour of the flames through the stoke holes. 

To give some idea of size, you can see you could easily stand up inside and the length is 36 meters. Apparently in China they would build kilns of up to 100m in length. The kiln is fired for 30 hours and then left for a week or more to cool.

The spots are reflections from the flash catching shinny spots on the kiln walls.

 We even got to make our own pots, my first ever attempt, I don't think I should give up the day job! We will get these back later once they have been fired.

The Singapore kilns are now only fired once a year and a whole celebration is carried out when and after it is lit. This is very much about harnessing the power of the fire and respecting it and in Singapore many school and community projects are involved in making items to fill the kiln.

 Really enjoyed seeing this unusually piece of Singapore history and getting my hands dirty on the clay.

Tiong Bahru

Nowadays Tiong Bahru is known for its Café culture and quirky shops but this is a part of Singapore with a very interesting past. Tiong Bahru estate, as well as the grounds of the Singapore General Hospital was once part of a sprawling Chinese cemetery. So next time you are in the area sipping your fairtade coffee or enjoying a refreshing craft beer keep your eyes peeled for those National Heritage Board markers and think about how life here has changed over the years.

·        Public Housing – The Art Deco buildings we see today were built when Tiong Bahru was being developed as one of the first public housing programmes and where meant to house residents from the overcrowded parts of Chinatown. The horse shoe shaped streets and five storey residential properties create a very different feel from the usual high rise HDBs around Singapore.  Block 78 on Moh Guan Terrace, built in 1939, still has a 1,500 square meter bomb shelter which could hold 1600 people, the only public housing to have been so equipped.

·        Grave of Tan Tock Seng – Perhaps it’s not surprising as this area used to be a cemetery that the grave of one of Singapore’s early pioneers can be found here, on a hill facing Outram road. Amongst other philanthropist works Tan Tock Seng donated $7000 towards the construction of a Chinese Paupers hospital in 1844. This hospital is still in operation today, known as Tan Tock Seng Hospital, near Novena.

·        Dancing Girl – Created by the same sculptor who created the Merlion, this Dancing Girl was unveiled on 1^st August 1970. It was erected by the national day celebration committee of Tiong Bahru in the Seng Poh Garden.

·        Community Centre – In 1948 plans were announced to build a community centre which included an open air cinema. In 1951 a stand-alone air raid shelter was converted into Singapores very fist Community centre and it is still there today. It was very active with films, dancing and entertainment and even successfully got permission to run a $10,000 lottery for its members.

·        Bird Corner – The funny metal structure on the corner of Tiong Bahru Rd and Seng Poh Road has a very interesting past. There was a pet bird shop near here in the 1980s and the noise of the singing birds used to draw the attention of passers-by. An astute businessman, Wah Heng, who owned the coffee shop opposite, saw how the bird song drew people’s attention. He erected this metal structure so that bird owners could show off their feathered friends and listen to them singing whilst sipping coffee at his café, hence why this became known as Bird Corner.

·        Tiong Bahru Market – Many of the stalls and vendors here have been in business for over 30 years. The original market called Seng Poh Road Market used to draw in people from all round Singapore for its variety and quality of goods and quite possibly still does. This is also probably one of the first food centres of its kind that was paid for by the Hawkers themselves. 

Tiong means ‘to die’ in the Hokkien dialect and Bahru means ‘new’. So the name translates to ‘new cemetery’.

Guan Yin

One of my favorite museum artefacts from October.......with links to modern day China 

 Guanyin is a Buddhist bodhisattva which is deity who gave up their passage into the afterlife to remain in the world and help others to reach enlightenment. Guanyin is the bodhisattva of compassion. Bodhisattvas have no gender and can be represented as masculine or feminine. In India they are male but in China Guanyin was eventually transformed into a female representation. Although strictly speaking she is an attendant of the Buddha she has actually come to become worshiped in her own right.

     In this gilt bronze Guanyin she takes a very feminine form with a lot of elaborate jewelry. This pose with one leg folded and the other hanging down is called the posture of royal ease and she is often represented this way. The way she holds her hands is a symbol that she is preaching the Buddist law. To really reinforce her femininity Guanyin has also been depicted as a ravishing young woman who enlightens the men she make loves to.

   In China she is the bestower of sons and people pray to her for a male heir. In Chinese culture the family continuity and prosperity is achieved through the son and this has led to the situation today where there are many more sons being born in China than daughters, leaving a big imbalance and a large number of single men. I think that’s a good example of how the ancient culture and the worshiping of deity's like Guan Yin are still impacting on modern day China.

The Asian Civilisations Museum

Having started my training to become a tour guide (Docent) at the Asian Civilisations Museum almost a month ago it feels like a good time to mention what I have been up to. Each week generally consists of a number of readings to be done at home, Tuesday morning lectures and Fridays where we spend time in the Museum galleries learning from existing docents and practicing out weekly words. The weekly words are a combination or artefacts (physical items in the museum) or concept words (e.g. Monsoon). Each of the 3 is studied and facts collected before writing a 2 minute summary which we should attempt to commit to memory. Later we will take these 2 minute summaries and combine them into a 1 hour tour.

There is no way to tell you everything I am learning, that will have to wait for a guided tour but I can start at the beginning, with the Asian Civilisations Museum, or ACM as we call it. The museum itself was built in 1864-65 as government offices and a courthouse. The building also stored the countries coinage and the old vault door can still be seen incorporated into the gallery today. After the death of queen Victoria (Empress of India) the building was renamed Empress Place.

The building was first used as a museum in 1989 when it opened as the Empress Place Museum. Unfortunately it didn't survive and closed due to financial difficulties in 1995. At the same time however the Asian Civilisations Museum was being born when the newly appointed minister of Information and Arts decided to divide up the National Museum.

He wanted a museum that helped multi-cultural Singapore continue to grow by understanding the culture that had influenced its past and present. Although the Asian Civilization Museum opened in other premises in 1997 it always had its eye on Empress Place. Its strategic location by the river, which drew in multi-cultural trade, was symbolic to the museums existence in the first place.

From 1998 to 2003 the building underwent large scale renovation during which time every single piece of wood was replaced due to infestation. It finally opened its doors as the Asian Civilisation Museum in 2003.

Today the ACM is thriving and in 2014 it won the Trip Adviser Travelers Choice award.

To reach the museum I cross the lovely old Cavenagh Bridge, today it is for pedestrians only but the old sign warns about the use by horses and cattle.

Mt Kinabalu

Gunung Kinabalu, as it is known in Malay is more than the highest thing on the worlds third largest island. It is also Malaysia's first UNESCO world heritage site. The trail to the top is lined with many steps that take you through a changing landscape for 8.7 km. This takes your from the Timpohon gate at 1866m to the summit at 4095.2m and this is no jaunt in the park!

It was a little grey when we started out at 9am but the weather cleared a little and we saw some lovely blue skies later in the day. Its takes around 5 hours to travel the 6km on the first day when you reach 3289m. Here we were barely settled in when we were called for our via ferrata talk. This is Asia's only via ferrata and the worlds highest and we were very excited about giving it a go the following day after reaching the summit of Mt Kinabalu.

We were woken at 2am to the smell of toast and everyone rushed around getting ready for their summit attempt. At 2:30am, as we all planned to leave, a wild storm passed over and the gate to the summit was closed to all. 2 hours later, with the wind and rain still blowing, we were told to return to bed and wake again at 7am, ready to make our descent at 8am. Both our summit attempt and via ferrata dreams were over.

Unable to sleep we played with the camera and drank tea until we realised the rain had stopped and the sun was rising. Warm clothing on again I sat outside and watched the clouds below our feet and the sun peak up over the top, thinking even if this was all I saw then all was not lost, that feeling of being on top of the world you can only truly get at these altitudes.

Then suddenly we were being told the via ferrata was possible after all and we rushed around to ready ourselves. As we reached the via ferrata start point there was some discussion that some would still like to make a summit attempt. I chatted to the guide about our chances and he said the rain may come again and that we had limited time to make the attempt. I felt sure that I was taking a huge risk and may miss out on both the via ferrata and the summit but I couldn't resist the idea of giving it a go.

Only 4 of us decided to make the attempt with the rest off to via ferrata. Feeling good and strong I moved ahead with one of the other guys and soon the remaining two were far behind. I was aware of the time and the changeable weather and I pushed on, always expecting my body to give up at some point. Somehow it coped with my demands on it, despite little sleep or food and when the rain started really heavy I was only 20 minutes from the summit. I picked my way carefully up the rock for a quick photo stop before retreating back down. The guys behind were forced to retreat so my instinct to push forward had been spot on.

I returned to the hut for a quick bite and to collect the few things I had left before we both started the 6km route back down the mountain. By this time it had been raining constantly for 24 hours bar a 3 hour window and the path had turned into a river. It was a slow and tricky descent and 2 days later stairs are still an issue for my exhausted legs. Thankfully I have been there so many times before on a Scottish hill, where you ache all over and just want to be down, you just have to get there. Once you are, you forget those bad times and you look at what you have achieved. There is nothing like a physical and metal challenge to help you feel strong and ready to take on the world.............just as soon as you can walk again.

These little squirrels looked cute but they were a little too used to being fed and had a tenancy to try and steal peoples food as they paused at the rest huts.

A porter carrying some rice up the mountain.

A glimpse of the mountain through the trees.

Beautiful flora and fauna.

Our friendly guide takes a well earned rest.

  

The white ropes lead the way to the summit and offer support on the slippery granite when its raining.

A rainy summit and all a bit of a rush in the end!

Trail from the hut to the summit.