Temples of Chinatown

Being a place of different cultures, Singapore has many temples representing beliefs of different religions. Some of those temples are in Chinatown and I got the chance to visit two of those temples along South Bridge Road during one of my evening walks.

Sri Mariamman Temple
Location: 244 South Bridge Road, Outram, Singapore, 58793, Singapore

Few minutes from my hotel along Mosque Street, I first came across Sri Mariamman Temple. When I first passed by this temple I did not notice that it is a temple until I crossed the road and saw it from afar. There were many people in front and I can see more inside so I kept in mind to go back and see what it has.

In front on both sides of the entrance are two stands with reminders of do's and dont's. To the right side is this one which reminds visitors that wearibg footwears inside the temple is prohibited. Socks are okay. I did not know this and I was wearing strap sandals when I went there. That means I have no socks and that also means that I have to get inside on bare feet. If I can give anyone a piece of advice when going to this temple, have your socks with you.

Farther to the right side of the stand is a shoe rack where visitors can leave their footwears.

Revealing clothes are not allowed in the temple as well as smoking, eating and drinking inside.

On the other side of the entrance is another stand with reminders too. Most are duplicates of what are on the right stand like dressing up appropriately, no smoking and footwears are not allowed. The only difference is the right stand prohibits food and drinks in general while this one prohibits pork and alcohol only.

The temple is said to be the first Hindu temple in Singapore and was built by Indian migrants in the 19th century. The entrance is a six-tier tower decorated with many figures from Hindu mythology.

When I finally got inside the temple, my jaw dropped in awe.

Colorful paintings are everywhere, from the walls to the ceiling. The ceiling is more amusing. It was like the floor that is fully carpeted and turned upside down. It is very colorful.

I do not know any of the gods and goddesses of Hindu but the paintings are just amazing.

I thought I would break my neck looking up and taking photos. I even thought of lying on the floor so I can get clear view of the ceiling. I couldn't do it afterall because there were other tourists walking to and fro.

I wish I can read the writings below each photo. I am sure those would give me more stories behind the photos. However, I have to be content with the views for now.

I took more photos here and photos there before moving on.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple
Location: 288 South Bridge Road, Outram, Singapore, 58840, Singapore

The closest next temple from Sri Mariamman Temple is the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. It is also along South Bridge Road and is walking distance from the first tower.

The temple was built in 2007 so it is not that old. Its name was taken from what the Buddhists thought as the left canine tooth of Buddha. Buddha has canine tooth? That's a trivia to me...

The temple was already closed when I arrived. I later learned that the temple operates only from seven in the morning until seven in the evening. It was almost nine in the evening. I got myself contented with taking photographs of two statues by the entrance which seem devilish. Ooopppsss... devilish?

Yes, that is the term. And they do not look affiliated with Buddhism. They look like something about Greek mythology and I can't find any article thay tells more about them. If anyone has any idea about these last two photos, please let me know.

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