Places of Worship & Devotion

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

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...

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, 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...

“ Over a hundred years ago, a small Catholic Chapel was built among the Bidayuh on the slope of Mt. Singai, Bau, Sarawak in 1885. Today this majestic ancestral home of the Bidayuh of Singai is no longer inhabited following the migration of the people to the surrounding lowlands. The site of the first chapel at Mt. Singai however has been turned into a Memorial and Pilgrimage Centre with the building, completion and blessing of the Centre in November 1999. The Centre has attracted a lot of Catholics and other Christian Pilgrims and has become very popular with the local Catholics and other Christian denominations and those from other places, so much so that the existing living quarters, especially the washrooms and toilet facilities could no longer cope with the increase in the number of visitors there.” Above extracts was from a memo (dated 30 July 2007) posted at the CMPC at Mt. Singai, Bau, Sarawak. Mt. Singai, situated between Bau & Batu Kawa, about 550m hi...

The history of Tua Pek Kong Temple, Miri is almost a century. It is one of the well known tourist attraction in Northern Sarawak besides being a place of worship & devotion for local devotees. It was said that the temple was constructed due partly to an epidemic in 1913 in Miri town. In 1913, the Chinese population of Miri is about just two thousands, mostly settled down around the current wet market areas, with just 4 rows of wooden shoplots. Miri in 1920s (Wikipedia) The Miri oil boom, coupled with population explosion, and unmatched infrastructure such as proper drainage & sewage system had partly caused an outbreak of mysterious disease to the locals, especially Chinese who were residing in the inner-town. As in the old days, many believed that it was caused by harmful spirits or the like. A Buddhist monk was then invited from Kuching, and the Tua Pek Kong Temple was thus recommended; the rest was history. Many locals, especially the Chinese, believed that t...

Shen Ong Kong or Kong Teck Choon Ong (in Hokkien dialect) or Guang Ze Zun Wan (广泽尊王) is the host deity of Hong San Si Kuching & many other similar temples in Sarawak. Unlike many other host deities, Shen Ong Kong has a childlike face with teenage energetic appearance, after all, he was only 16 years old when he (or his human transformation) died, or departed. Accordingly, he was born in 923 AD on 22nd day of 2nd Lunar Month in Ann Che District in Southern Fujian Province of China, in a farming family. Like many other legendary heavenly beings born into this physical world, the sky was adorned with colorful holy light, and fragrance permeated the whole room during his birth. Kuo Chung Fook was his name. As a child, he was intelligent & very filial to his parents. He had a very special squared facial feature with big round eyes. However, his parents passed away earlier in his childhood, and he had to work as a shepherd for a landlord called Yang, away from his home...

The sacred places of worship & devotion here concentrate on religious places mostly of the Taoist & Buddhist origin; particularly of the local Chinese traditions. Some other interesting & holy places of worship of other faiths may also be included. More than two hundreds years ago, there was an influx of Chinese immigrants, seeking a better living environment, headed out to various parts of the world, including the South East Asia region, where many of them were from Southern China. They brought with them from their home land the culture, traditions and skills to the new settlement; and one of the first things they did when they settled down on the new land was to build a place of worship to thank for the long safe journey, and subsequently to continue the kind of devotion from home, and to provide spiritual supports and protection in the new challenging environment. The history of Chinese in Sarawak & in many parts of the world can be observed from the his...

Tua Pek Kong Temple is one of the oldest (or the earliest known) Chinese temple in Sarawak; it is also one of the most famous and mentioned tourist destination in Sarawak. The temple was believed to be built around the year 1800, more than two centuries; the earliest known official land title issued by Charles Brooke was 29 August 1871. Like many of the earlier Chinese temple in Sarawak, it was a small & simple hut; the first known renovation was done in the year 1856, and subsequently it was upgraded with ceramic roofing & partial brick walls in 1863. By the year 1880 when cement was introduced into Sarawak, major parts of the temple were then concreted as to existing look. The earlier management of the temple before the Japanese occupation was elected informally by yearly cast lots of getting one representative with two ‘taukey’ to assist the required periodic ceremonial & religious occasions. After the war, the temple was managed by five Chinese ...

The Kuching Tua Pek Kong Temple was once seated on the best Feng Shui location in Kuching; as according to the Feng Shui principle, a hill at the back, a small and smooth flowing river in front (the lost Sg Kuching), and the best front view of the highest peak in the area, Gunung Serapi. The temple was built more than two centuries ago, long before James Brooke, the first White Rajah of Sarawak, arrived in Kuching. Like most Chinese temples, the temple prosperity affected and associated highly to the businesses, emotion and activities of the local Chinese community in the early days where majority were followers of Taoist related faith. It was also one of the few buildings that survived the 1884 the Great Fire of Kuching, where most Chinese believed was due to good Feng Shui. It was said that after the 1857 Chinese Insurrection in Bau, a gold mine township nearby, the Brooke Administration was worried about the Tua Pek Kong dominance and its influence to the local Kuching...

Like many of the Tian Hou Gong in Sarawak or Ma Zhu temples around Southern China; Ma Zhu, the Taoist Goddess of the Sea, is worshipped in the temple; here with two Heavenly Guardians at the sides. Ma Zhu is widely worshipped among the Chinese communities traditionally engaged in the fishing line of work or whose ancestors lived around the Southern China coastlines. She is widely worshipped & popular among the Taiwanese, Fujians, Cantonese, and the Chinese in the South East Asia. According to legend, Ma Zhu or Lin Mo Niang was born in 960 on Meizhou Island, Fujian. She had the gift of heavenly power, and her warm heartedness & eagerness had earned her respects & love from the villagers. She died at the young age of 28; according to one legend, when she climbed a mountain alone and flew to heaven and became a goddess. The Tian Hou Gong in Bintawa; it was said that in the 1960s or earlier, the local pioneer Heng Hua community live around the Ang Cheng Ho area ...

The Chinese started settlement in Limbang area more than a century ago. Around the year 1887, the pioneer Chinese migrated from Kuching (now the Capital of Sarawak); it was said that one of the senior immigrants started the construction of a small hut, said to be on a nearby small hill, for the Hock Teck Tsyr, or Tua Pek Kong Temple. The Temple had provided them a means of spiritual support as well as encouragement especially during the earlier years of challenging & harsh environment. This early simple temple was maintained by a small group of devotees until around 1890. The 1st relocation of a better premise was initiated by a businessman, said to be from Singapore who came to Limbang around that year. The present premise is of the 2nd relocation as the earlier land was gazetted for Government purposes in 1964. The completion of the current Hock Teck Tsyr was August 1978. Like most places of worship in Sarawak, the temple here, or Hock Teck Tsyr and its affiliated ...