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Showing posts from December, 2007

Si Won Yea, Paku - Facelift 2010

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Si Won Yea (Stone God) at Paku, Bau, about 30km from Kuching, by the old Kuching/ Bau Highway Facelift 2010

Eng Ann Teng, Sibu

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Eng Ann Teng Tua Pek Kong Temple, Sibu was found more than a century ago, around the year 1870. In the 1871 Sarawak Gazette, the temple was recorded as a small wooden Chinese temple. The temple was then rebuilt into a typical Taoist Chinese Architecture in 1897. Most of the critical building materials were imported from China, including the statue of the host deity, Lord Tua Pek Kong. The details of the contributors & expenditure of the 1897 rebuilding was curved in two pieces of stones, which are still in the temple. Like many of the histories of Tua Pek Kong temples in Sarawak, the Eng Ang Teng Tua Pek Kong temple had gone through major fire disaster, and was unharmed; the March 8, 1928 fire was a tragedy, as most of Sibu business shoplots were destroyed after the incident. Towards the end of the Japanese occupation, the temple was severely destroyed due to Allied Forces’ air strikes on Sibu town; the statue of Tua Pek Kong, again, was unharmed. In 1957, the temple wa

Tua Pek Kong, Marudi

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Marudi Tua Pek Kong is located within the business center of Marudi Town, in Miri division of Sarawak. Marudi used to be a stepping stone to the well known tourist destination, the Mulu Cave. Pioneer tourists would travel from Miri to Marudi first, and then from the river, tourist would have to use long boats cutting through few adventurous rapids upstream before reaching Mulu. With the completion of a small airport at Mulu, most tourists prefer to take the twin otters direct from Miri airport. Marudi is currently comparatively quite since the last century timber boom. The Tua Pek Kong temple here is the only temple of Taoist or Chinese culture origin. The temple has gone through 3 major fire disasters in the history of Marudi, and it has survived unharmed, surprisingly to many devotees. The temple was found around the time when permanent settlement was started in Marudi, more than a century history. Like many of the Tua Pek Kong in Sarawak, it had gone through few restor

Leang Shen Temple, Spaoh

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Leang Shen Temple, literally in Chinese is ‘Two Sages Old Temple’. There is no record on where the ‘two sages’ were from as there are a total 7 main host deities in the temple; when the temple was first initiated, there was only Ma Zhu, the Taoist Goddess of the Sea worshipped in the temple. Spaoh is a small town of Betong division, about half an hour off the Trans Borneo Highway; it is about 3 to 3 ½ hour drive from Kuching City. The temple is situated next to the Paku River, and nearby a friendly Malay fishing village. The origin of the temple was said to be from a businessman who used to travel along Paku River & nearby tributaries to do businesses. He brought along the deity Ma Zhu & censer in his boat for spiritual support & protection. As the population of Spaoh grew, he settled down in Spaoh in about 1920 (& became the first Kapitan or village head), and naturally also built a simple temple for Ma Zhu in this small town. As time went by, additio