Religion In Pekan

No matter the size of the town in Malaysia, chances are you're going to find temples for Hindus and Buddhists. A mosque or five. Time to check out what small Pekan has to offer.

Lie Sheng Gong Chinese temple, typical pagoda design.

Tale of two altars. On the left, the one inside Lie Sheng. On the right, a more compact example, wedged into an urban shophouse.

Selection of paper prayer slips. Choose one and throw it into the incinerator.

Hindu time, the town's small Indian temple, all recently painted. One requirement, bright.

Finally, how the dominant (and national) Malaysian religion rolls, the historic Muslim mosque.

Monkeying Around At Phra Prang Sam Yod

An easy pun title for this blog post. Phra Prang Sam Yod is located in Lopuri, Thailand, also know as a town of monkeys. It's a slight exaggeration, the monkeys are concentrated in a small section of town. Where the monkeys are, there are plenty of them. Trust us, you'll know when you are in monkey town.

Phra Prang Sam Yod is definitely in the middle of monkey town. Zip up your pockets, stow your glasses, watch for monkeys jumping on your back.

The temple. It dates from the 13th century, built by the Khmer empire as Buddhist, converted for a time to Hindu and then back to Buddhist. Elements of both religions are present in the design.

Hello monkeys. They hang out in waves, a big clump of busy fur flowing around the temple.

Oh boy.

Portrait of the monkey guard. The stick comes in handy. Inside the temple, only humans allowed. They've installed thick metal screens and a gate over the openings to keep monkeys outside.

Phra Prang Sam Yod in silhouette.

Fresh Paint At Kuil Shri Mariamman In Medan

Hindu temples are a riot of bright colors and fancy figures. Typically, temples can be more than a hundred years old yet they're kept fresh by being repainted every 12 years or so. Upkeep for your God.

Kuil Shri Mariamman in Medan was finishing up a renovation in the spring of 2019 and the place was looking spanking new.

Scaffolding still up around the main gopuram.

Above the main door. Donkey drummer.

Ganesh and friend.

A chunky Frida Kahlo? It's not just the paint work that's impressive, it's the high relief, 3D frieze work.

Holy arf.

Mighty Prambanan in Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Sure, the Buddhist temple Borobudur is the heavy of temples in the Yogyakarta area. Who's going to be foolish enough to challenge a nine-tiered monolith? On the other side of the city sits the Hindu temple complex Prambanan and, while it may not be seven wonders of the ancient world worthy, it could slip into the top 20. Worth a visit.

Behold, mighty Prambanan. The main compound consists of eight temples, the largest one reaching 154 feet tall. A big boy.

The scale is big and the central area had been completely rebuilt. Intricate details.

Oh, right, it's all about you. The reality of today, grand relics are simply a social media backdrop.

Craning and gawking at the design of the main temple, dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. All that stonework and what's inside a temple? Not much.

Prambanan also looking good in silhouette.

The Glamor And The Glitz Of The Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman Glass Temple

South Indian Hindu temples are usually a riot of color and carvings, a religious fantasmagoria of fun. In Johor Bahru, the local devotees decided to go for broke, layering on another design element to bring the awe.

A slight hint at what's in store is on the required entrance tower, the gopuram. Looking abnormally shiny.

Bam! Step inside and it looks like a fun house gone wild. Every surface is covered with glass tile. And a cobra-wearing God has a head coming out of his hair.
Good luck trying to take it all in. It's hard just finding the perspective of the room.

More icons. Gazing at the ceiling. Or is it a wall? Am I still upright?

A needed break, a nice arrangement of flowers on a plain table. Well, not completely plain, a reflective piece of glass. There's no such thing as a matte surface at Sri Rajakaliamman glass temple.

East Mebon Temple At Siem Reap

East Mebon is interesting for its commanding set of towers and a couple of nice animal carvings. And it used to be in a big reservoir, only accessible by boat. Beats trudging.

Presence felt. A classic, symmetrical layout of four towers surrounding a main tower. Nice brick work.

Animal species #1, a couple of fat-ass lions, guarding the entrance. Heading in.

Line up the brick sandstone towers in your shot correctly and infinity starts to happen.

In the distance, animal species #2, a guarding elephant. Once more to the tower.

Getting wide at the corner of a temple tier, staring down one of the elephants.

Chau Say Tevoda At Siem Reap

Chau Say Tevoda is one of the more delightful temples at Siem Reap, mainly due to its elaborate carving and human scale size. If the big temples at Angkor inspire awe, little Chau Say Tevoda just seems to want a hug.

It's a Hindu temple, dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu.

The temple. Really a collection of smaller temples, interconnecting. More hugs!



The layout looking west and a detail of the nice stone carving work.

Looking back, toward the east.

Corridor and mini-bridge that leads from the main entrance to the next temple.

A perfect layout.

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The Atmospheric Ruins Of Mỹ Sơn Near Hoi An, Vietnam

Mỹ Sơn is a nice collection of Hindu temples, dating to the 4th to 14th century AD, give or take a billion years. No matter the time of construction, the temples in heavy disrepair have a nice ominous jungle quality, while the more intact temples hint at how intricate architecture once was. The temple theme is Shiva worship.

The area has a teenie weenie Angkor feel to it, with an added splash of lush, overgrown jungle. A rainy day helps with the mystical atmosphere

The jungle, taking over.