Tua Pek Kong Temple () (also called Sibu Eng Ann Teng Tua Pek Kong) in Sibu,

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the M ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

is the oldest Chinese temple in the town with a 7-storey pagoda with the temple history dates back to 1850s.

History

The temple history dates back to early 1850s, and later being mentioned in the Kingdom of Sarawak Government's Report of "''Sarawak Gazette''" in 1871. In 1897, the temple was rebuilt into a typical Chinese

Taoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...

temple architecture designed with tiled roof, stone block floor and all the decorative purlin and fixtures which were imported from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

; the statue of

Tua Pek Kong Tua may refer to: * Tua River, a river in Portugal * Tua (Papua New Guinea), a river in Papua New Guinea * Tuʻa, also known as Alo, a chiefdom in Wallis and Futuna in Oceania * Tua line, a railway line in Portugal * Tua railway station, in Portug ...

deity was specially sculptured and imported from

Xiamen Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong'an, ...

. After the building was completed, the list of donors and details of expenditure were recorded in two pieces of stone tablet which are still well preserved in the temple. On 8 March 1928, Sibu town was destroyed by a big fire with the temple survived and remain unscathed. The temple however destroyed through the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

despite its

deity A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...

remained unharmed. After the end of the war, the wooden structure temple was rebuilt. In 1957, the temple was reconstructed into a concrete structure and was declared open by the then Governor of Sarawak, Sir Anthony Abell. It was a grand occasion for the Sibu Town as the British Royal dignitaries including the

Resident Resident may refer to: People and functions * Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country * Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training * Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceutic ...

attended the ceremony. Another renovation on both wings of the temple was being carried out in 1979 and the roof of temple was changed from "belian" ('' Eusideroxylon zwageri'') wood into concrete with glazed roofing tiles; the ridge or roof and column were decorated with traditional

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

and phoenix statues. In 1982, the temple management committee planning to re-build the rear part and construct a 7-storey pagoda for the worship of the

Goddess of Mercy Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She ...

where the plan is being realised in 1987 through the aid from Sarawak state government and the temple worshippers. The new pagoda followed closely the traditional Chinese pagoda architecture and subsequently became one of the landmark for Sibu. The renovated building was declared open in 1989.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Pagodas in Malaysia Chinese-Malaysian culture Taoist temples in Malaysia Religious buildings and structures completed in 1850 Sibu Buildings and structures in Sarawak Tourist attractions in Sarawak 19th-century Taoist temples