The Kek Lok Si temple in Ayer Itam, Penang, is located on a hillside offering fine views overlooking George Town.
Established by an abbot from Foochow in Fujian province, China, construction began in 1890 and has been ongoing for over a century. Most recently, refurbishment work had to be made following a fire at the temple.
This is what P A Anthony, general manager of the Federated Malay States Railways, had to say about this beautiful temple in his 1914 information pamphlet for visitors.
“The Chinese temple at Ayer Itam is 6km away. It can be reached by electric tram half-an-hour from Swettenham Pier, and this route is more picturesque than the carriage road.
The temple is approached through an unprepossessing collection of squalid huts, and the granite stairway alone leads the traveller to suppose that to follow its massive steps must reveal something worth seeing.
Surmounting them one reaches a wall, and, passing through its gates, realises at once that here is not a temple, but a series of many temples, built in terraces up the hill.
On the lowest tier is the pool where lie inactive until you buy for them a bunch of green kangkong herb dozens of amiable tortoises, type of that sturdy creature who bears the world on his back.
On the tier above is the goldfish pond surrounded by marigold, rose, gaillardia and chrysanthemum in pots. Looking up the hill one sees, stretching up and up continually, the ramping roofs, the raking gables of Chinese temple architecture.
On the walls are lettered tablets in royal blue. The boulders of the hill are incised with Chinese characters in red. On every hand are shrines. Brass blazes in sunlight, or warms the shadows, in urns and jars and gongs and vessels of all shapes. Temple surpasses temple.
In one a solemn figure broods and compels reverence. In another laughs a jolly god, and you in turn smile at his jovial countenance.
Side by side sit hideous and gigantic demons, crushing the wicked under foot. Everywhere is Buddha: Buddha brass, Buddha alabaster, Buddha gold leaf, but always Buddha mysteriously at peace.
From the very top of tops you look down again across the flamboyant roofs and see Penang laid beneath you, a sea of waving palm tops.
At length, having wandered where you will, you are invited to drink a cup of complimentary tea, and the visitors’ book is laid before you, full of famous names.
On the walls of the tea-room hang the signatures of the Duke of Connaught, Admiral Togo and King Chulalonkorn of Siam. It is explained to you how each race of Buddhists has here its own temple, Siamese, Japanese, Chinese, Burmese or Sinhalese.
After contributing to the fund – for this temple is sadly in need, with its extravagant passion for building – you descend again through the tiers of temples, and so back to Penang. Choose a different route for the return, for all Penang’s roads are beautiful.”
It is interesting to note that even back then, the temple was “sadly in need” of funds to finance its expansion.
Since the pamphlet was written, the temple has added the renowned Pagoda of 10,000 Buddhas, which was completed in 1930. And in 2002, the beautiful giant Guan Yin statue was erected in the temple grounds, greatly adding to the tourism value of this attraction.
Click here for more tales from 1914.
This article first appeared on Great Malaysian Railway Journeys.