The largest Buddhist Temple in SE Asia – Kek Lok Si Temple.
I tell you what, I’m knackered and so is Shane. Today was another of those beautiful days in Penang that you long for. So after breakfast (11am – we don’t do ‘early’ here!) we set off for somewhere we’ve been looking at from our bedroom window since we got here. Kek Lok Si Temple is a huge temple complex on the lower slopes of the hills to our west. The first pictures here are reverse cam shots. One is from our window towards Kek Lok Si. The other is from Kek Lok Si towards our condo.
The Kek Lok Si Temple (Chinese: for “Temple of Supreme Bliss” or “Temple of Sukhavati” or “Jile Si”) is a Buddhist temple situated in Air Itam in Penang facing the sea and commanding an impressive view, and is one of the best known temples on the island. It is said to be the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia. It is also an important pilgrimage centre for Buddhists from Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore and other countries in Southeast Asia. This entire complex of temples was built over a period from 1890 to 1930, an inspirational initiative of Beow Lean, the Abbot. The main draw in the complex is the striking seven-storey Pagoda of Rama VI (Pagoda of Ten Thousand Buddhas) with 10,000 alabaster and bronze statues of Buddha, and the 30.2 metres (99 ft) tall bronze statue of Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy.
Mahayana Buddhism, Theravada Buddhism and traditional Chinese rituals blend into a harmonious whole, both in the temple architecture and artwork as well as in the daily activities of worshippers. The temple is heavily commercialised with shops at every level and inside the main temple complexes selling all religious paraphernalia.
KLST is huge let me tell you! We were told it’s 30 acres but I reckon that’s conservative and they’re still adding more to it.
Shane & I caught the 204 bus to Air Itam and walked towards KLST. There is a small village shopping hub here and as you get closer to the Temple the majority become ‘tourist items’ style of markets. As we got closer to the temple we were asked if we’d want a taxi to the top. Nah, we’re tough. Almost wish we’d said yeah. Because of this guy (I’m not going to admit we were lost) we had walked past a very narrow, market lined alley which we later found was the correct way to go. After making out we knew we were going we doubled back and found the right track nonchalantly passing that smirking cabbie.
Once on the right track we navigated up a winding pathway consisting of a step up every 5 -10 metres. Each level was crowded with more tourist stalls selling almost everything. Shirts, sandals, hats, umbrellas, key rings, walking sticks (I could have used one of these), souvenirs, bags and more. Of course there was more than one drink stand with exorbitantly high priced drinks because in the enclosure of the canvas covered stairway it was painfully hot and humid and you’d pay almost anything for a drink if you hadn’t bought your own supply. Sweat was dripping off us and I was starting to worry about Shane’s stamina in the heat. Surprisingly my knees held out well to the end as did Shane.
Once at the top it became a photographer’s heaven. Every way you turned was another incredible photo to be taken. We struggled through the lower sections of the Temple working our way up the hill. Fortunately three quarters of the way up they have an “inclined lift” a bit like the Penang funicular train only much smaller. Taking the lift to the very top we walked out onto the upper yard and were instantly hit by the awesome 30-meter-high bronze statue of Kuan Yin.
We can clearly see this statue from our condo about 8kms away but to be right underneath this imposing edifice is overpowering. I have never been so impressed by the size of a statue before like this marvellous goddess and the pagoda under which she stood defying the world.
After an hour and a half of gawking at the wonders of KLST we made our way down the hill the way we’d come through the stalls. A slow walk up the road back to the village saw us wait just a short time for our bus back to Times Square and our condo. It was at this point we knew we’d done the right thing waiting till my knees were able to visit here. Any pain I may have been feeling was gone and the temples, fountains, statues and gardens were worthwhile. If you ever come to Penang you MUST visit Kek Lok Si Temple.
