Singapore: Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum(新加坡佛牙寺龍華院)

Being a Singaporean Chinese, chances where you will step inside a temple and pray are pretty high. Although I'm not the super religious guy but all the Chinese myth and legend have played a pretty role in my life. And at the same time, through those stories, you can really learn quite a lot too. For example, retribution. :P

Located in the outskirts of 'Chinatown' Singapore, would be the 'Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum'.

As I step into the main hall the X number of times, it's like 'Whaoooo'. The view in here is majestic. All the shinning looking Buddha statues that was situated around the main hall was simply breath taking. And seriously, with the number of statues placed inside this hall, I wonder how much time and effort was needed in maintaining/polishing all of them. By the way the name of this main hall is also known as 'Hundred Dragons Hall'(百龙宝殿). I wonder why did they named it 'Hundred Dragons Hall', when there is actually more than a hundred Buddha statues than dragons.

As you walk pass the main hall, you will come across the 'Universal Wisdom Hall'(圆通殿). There's an interesting point about this hall. Pretty much to the western countries, the Chinese have their own set of Zodiacs too. However rather than mapping the zodiac against the month that you are born in, the Chinese Zodiac is map against the year you are born in. As for myself, I was born in the year of the Rat. So what's so special about that? It is believed that behind every Chinese Zodiac, there will be a Buddha watching over you. The Buddha that is watching over those that are born in the year of the Rat would be 'Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva'(千手千眼观世音菩萨). It was believed that this Buddha has a thousand hands and there's an eye on each palm. Pretty Cool huh. Therefore, if you are interested, you can make a trip down here to find out which Chinese Zodiac belongs to you and which Buddha will be watching over you. :)

By the way, as I was making my way towards the rear entrance of the temple, I saw this cool looking stone statue of 2 dragons. This is one of the moments that I seriously hope that I was much more taller so that I can have a better view of the dragons. (By the way, I think that the Chinese dragons look much more better and cooler than the Western dragons. :P)

As for the other levels in the temple, there's a few storeys that is used for displaying the impressive collection of Buddhist artefacts. There's also a small library and a culture shop. I thought that the main hall was already grand enough. However the 4th level of the structure has proven me wrong. The display on this level were far more spectacular than the main hall. All the striking gold stuff were simply too magnificent. Although you can only take photos on the 1st level and the rooftop, but I think that it's a must for you to visit the 4th level even if you are running out of time.

As for the rooftop, the most interesting over here would be the 'Vairocana Buddha Prayer Wheel'(毗卢遮那大光明经咒转经轮藏). The contents of a scripture will be imprint on the gigantic wheel and you just need to spin the wheel slowly in order to read through the contents of the scripture. An innovative and smart move from our great ancestors. (However, rather than reading the contents of the prayer wheel, it ended up being a humongous toy for the kids. :P)

Notes:

• Opening Hours:
  7am - 7pm Daily

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  (新加坡佛牙寺龍華院).
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