We reached our final station with fervour like never before. I couldn’t explain how we felt when we reached the steps of Tiong Ghee Temple. It was actually quite fortunate that we selected this temple to be our last station. It was really calm and peaceful. Truth be told, we were quite intimidated by the quietness and the lack of light. The whole place was casted in red light reflected from the lanterns. Yet it was comforting in some way. We took a moment to deliver our prayers before we took our picture.
History of this temple
Surprisingly Tiong Ghee temple has a very rich and interesting history! The temple origin is in Bo Beh Kang village, which gave way to Queenstown's development in the 1960s. It is dedicated to the Taoist deity, Guan Gong and is a gathering place for villagers to update themselves with daily news and consulted mediums on life issues such as health and husbandry matters.
In 1931, the attap hut temple is moved into a warehouse, which is converted into a temple. With the increase in space, more Deity was able to be added to the temple. It was eventually renamed as "Ghee Tiong Temple", meaning "righteousness" and "loyalty" in Hokkien.
After the Second World War, the temple is again upgraded into a bigger temple on Hong Ying Hill, a new piece of land brought by the villagers. It was also renamed to its current name “Tiong Ghee Temple”.
Role of the temple it played in the lives of the villagers in the area
The fast pace development in Queenstown in the 1960s brought about the demolition of the temple (1968). Determined to keep the temple going, villagers registered the temple as a religious organization and they begin to raise fund to build a new temple. In 1973, they finally raised enough fund and build the temple at its current location in Sterling road.
When you visit the temple, you can still see the original statues, medium chair, spirit whip and sword dating from the kampong days. Till today, like many other village temples, Tiong Ghee temple remains as a gathering point for former Boh Beh Kang villagers.
With the satisfaction of completing the trail, all of us went back home to hit the sack as we were truly tired. The trail took a total of seven hours to complete. But nonetheless, it was worth every bit. :)
2:39 AM By PUNITHA