Temples
Temples are the places of worship for a variety of religions m Singapore Hindu, Buddhist, Shentoist and Taoist. Many have survived intact for well over 100 years, and most celebrate colourful festivals at different times of the year.

Thian Hock Keng Temple

This Taoist temple, built in 1821 by seamen grateful for a safe passage, stands where Singapore's waterfront used to be before reclamation. The materials used to construct the temple are truly international, with ironwork from Scotland, tiles from England and Delft, and towering granite pillars entwined with dragons. Many ancestral tablets stand in the courtyard, and massive lions mount guards at the doors.

Thian Hock Keng is a fantasy in stone, tiles and wood, with its curved roof, stylized dragons,carved screens and imposing columns. It was built a century ago by Hokkien seamen using special materials imported from China. The entire structure was assembled without nails!
Ma Cho Po, goddess of the sea and protector of sailors, presides as the principal deity.
Most of the early Chinese immigrants in Singapore came from provinces in China. Once they were settled here, they built temples as places of worship which also served to foster a sense of belonging among members of their own dialect groups.

One of the first duties of a newly-arrived immigrant was to go to a "joss house" to give thanks from a perilous journey across the China Sea. In 1821,the Hokkiens had established such a "joss house" on the side of the present temple. The grateful immigrants who later became successful businessmen enabled the Hokkien leaders to plan a more ambitious building made of materials imported from China,which combined the functions of both a temple and community centre.
Thian Hock Keng is the oldest and most important Hokkien temple in Singapore. Known as the temple of the goddess of the sea and protector of all seamen, the temple contains relics brought from China which are said to be many hundred of years old. The building is supported only on wood poles. Of the two pagodas at either sides of the temple, one is used to contain ancestral tablets.
By 1841, the present building had been completed and housed the first Chinese school,Chong Wen Ke. It also housed a prominent clan association, the Hokkien Huay Kuan from 1840 to 1955. The granite plaque on the entrance records, in letters of red and gold, the names of the contributors to the cost of the temple. Tan Tock Seng was a major donor. His son, Tan Kim Cheng, later became head of the Hokkien Huay Kuan Association. One of his duties was to register Hokkien marriages at his office within temple precincts.
Thian Hock Keng temple was gazetted a national monument on 6th July 1973.

Location: 158 Telok Ayer Street Singapore 048613
Tel: (65) 6423 4616 Fax: (65) 6423 4626

Getting There: A short walk from Raffles Place (EW14/NS26) or Tanjong Pagar (EW15) MRT Station.