Wan Hai Ta Po Kong temple

Today I visited my sister and brother in law at the Wan Hai Ta Po Kong temple. We kind of just sit around, chat, have a cup of coffee. Remind me, we should all try to make time for each other.

My brother in law, FH manages this ancient temple which has a history almost as old as Singapore, 1823 I think it was. He used to work for HDB but opt to retire some few years back, when his department was reorganised as a private enterprise and outsourced. He has a lot of experience, very hands on guy. FH has for many years been actively involved in his Hakka clan and community work.

FH, TPK blesses him, he was bestowed the responsibility to take over and manage this temple. During the last few years under his charge, I can tell you, its a big difference. He is so professional I have suggested he should start an enterprise to manage temples just as there are hotel managers and ship managers :-)

When I first saw the temple, it was in a very sorry, runned down state. Very dirty, termite infested and gloomy. TPK must have been fedup. After less than 6 months of make over, Viola !! a dramatic transformation....!! It has since attracted daily, regular throngs of faithful devotees. Festive celebrations, related temple and social activities are very well attended.

I recommend a visit to WHTPK Temple. Its location is pretty significant and strategic, at the end of Shenton Way - poised at the junction straddling the world largest container port and its shipping business, financial district.

Eastward, the expressway ECP stretch along, terminating at Changi airport, the world best airport. Westward, AYE sway towards Tuas where many a world big and famous shipyards are clustered. WHTPK is like a precious jade amulet for Singapore with AYE and ECP being the necklace of our city port. Indeed, a treasured heirloom restored to its full glory for us to cherish.

What has this WHTPK temple to do with shipping?

The first two chinese character WAN HAI means facing the sea, seafronting... When the Chinese first came to Singapore, Nanyang (the southern seas) as what SE Asia or the Monsoon region were referred to by the Chinese during the 18th and 19th centuries .... they came by sea on wooden junks, they came way back the Ming dynasty, with admiral Cheng Ho - whereever they safely landed ashore, temples are erected, invariably seafronting, to give thanks to the dieties that protect and deliver them from the many maritime perils, pirates, typhoons during these dangerous voyages.

The dieties most honored and prayed to by these adventurous and intrepid Chinese are Ta Po Kong and Matzu. Matzu, she is the protector of all seamen, fisher folks, anyone whose livelihood depends on the seas, they that ventured out to seas. You can research the internet for the background of these dieties.

Admiral Cheng Ho, he is much reverred by the Nanyang Chinese communities. In Malacca and Semarang, you will find big temple dedicated in his honour. The community posthumously promote ACH to diety status, he became popularly known as Sam Po Kong.

I have my own way of honoring ACH. Some time back, I did a feature news on him on the Monsoon website.

Just a little aside, drifting a little off course but take note. I think we Asian should be proud of ACH. His voyages are pretty benign, to spread chinese culture and influence but never taking over any native land or making the natives slaves, never plundering their resources, never enforcing any religion, never making intrigues, or undermining local rulers.

Here is an interesting story .... There is a specie of fish in the Monsoon region, its got a black birthmark resembling a finger print on its back, known as the Sam Po Kong Fish. Legend has it that the original fish jumped or got washed onboard Admiral Cheng Ho flag ship. ACH picked it up gingerly with his fingers (thus leaving on its back the fingerprint spot or patch), blessed it, throw it back to sea. Henceforth, this specie of SPK fish are endowed with ACH finger print as their auspicious birthmark. In honour of ACH, to this day, the Sam Po Kong fish is never to be eaten by the Nanyang Chinese.


Monsoon office is located at the Hokkian Huay Kuan - the Hokkian clan association building in Telok Ayer street, this building is located just in front of the grand Matzu temple (Thian Hock Keng) which is arguebly the oldest, most famous and much visited temple of Singapore. In front of our office building is PIL building ( Pacific International Lines) - they are one of the most successful private shipping company in Singapore. I am proud to say my sea career started with PIL.

So this is our maritime connections. It is a fascinating tapestry of historic events, iconic enterprises and personalities, towkays and coolies, captains and chinchews, boatswains and donkeymen, ship agents and ship chandlers. Our dreams and aspiration, our traditions, heritage, legends, beliefs, customs are infused into our maritime culture and community collectively. It make us what we are today.

So, finally, you see the big picture... Monsoon, we are proudly part of this expansive zigzaw puzzle, but then again ... only just one small piece lah.

Boarding ships

This morning I went onboard the bulkcarrier KS Hope anchored off Changi (AEBA)- the journey by launch from Marina South pier took about 40 minutes (I estimate it to be about 30 km)- we have to climb onboard using the pilot ladder going up maybe 10 metres. This is a good reminder to use the gym and keep fit in order to be agile enough to do such climbing safely especially at night or during wet and rough weather.

I have been to that anchorage quite often now. Each time, I wonder why the authorities does not allow us to use the Tanah Merah Ferry terminal which is just about 10 Km or minutes away from the anchorage. I am sure some one already have tried to get permission. There are probably many good reasons why it cannot be done, still one should try to find out and see if something can be done for the benefits of so many launch users - saving much time and expenses on launch hire and fuel saving etc.

I can imagine a time when a seamen could arrives at Changi airport, using the Tanah Merah ferry terminal, he can be onboard his ship within an hour of arrival Changi. This is what I would call rapid transit.

Whenever I do something, I always enjoy thinking how to make some improvements and not accept the status quo.

Forget password

Readers who checked into my blog may be wondering if I have given up blogging? No posting for over a month.

No, I forgot my password. I struggled for the last few days to retrieve it back - If you did not find more posting after this, probably I have forgotten my password again.

Yesterday, Mr Tan Kin Lian also blog about passwords - he has a bigger problem than me when he forgot his passwords. We should learn from Ali Baba, he is a simple guy with a simple password. OPEN SESAME .... and the world unfolds before you.

This morning I spoke to my sister who lives in wintry Calgary, Alberta, Canada - first thing she said to me was she read my blog. Hurray, at last someone read my blog.

So, being happy to get back into my blogsite, happy someone did read my blog - I hope to get back to regular blogging.

Bloggers success may perhaps be measured by capturing appropriate eyeballs and by the kind of response we get from our readers. So far, I have no one unknown to me come by yet, at least no one leave any comments or give me feedbacks. So for a start, it can be quite lonely, eccentric even. As if you caught me talking to myself along a busy street.

Some bloggers blog for themselves to satisfy a need to express themselves, somewhat like keeping a diary. When I was young, I kept a dairy when I was sailing - I remember when I was about 20, I was working onboard a cargo ship. We went to communist Red China - I was keenly aware of the contrast - going behind the bamboo curtain - I wrote in my dairy which is now probably lost, I wrote as if I landed on the moon - one small step for a man....... after so many years - I could recollect quite vividly the sense of wonder, a feeling of how immense China was in physical, spiritual and mental dimension - I was immediately plug back into my ancestral culture - I could almost see way back three, four thousand years of glorious empire and history, through centuries of war and peace, peace and war. Famines, floods, earthquakes - human strugglings, misery and suffering of a scale unimaginable. The turmoil of the cultural revolution - 1973 - martial music followed by propaganda blaring from hugh grey loudspeakers mounted on high poles, morning mass physical exercise, young pioneers marching along the streets, more propaganda, brave slogans, exhortations, large photographs of Chairman Mao, of heroic idealistic young men and women - chest forward, hands held high, little red books poise towards a red rising sun amidst a background of green fields, bumper harvests and smoke belching factories - towards a brave new world.

Now, 36 years later, I look back in wonder - men and women of my generation from China, what have they gone through in life? Their children, will they remember, will they understand the trial and tribulation of their parents - is it relevant in this brave new world of internet, mobile phones and blogging. What do they blog about?

Blogging is about sharing of life experience, leaving behind some insights and impression - not unlike having a nice chat with a complete stranger sitting next to you on the plane, helping each other pass the idle time away in an interesting way, you do not even need to identify yourself knowing that at the end of the journey, each goes our own way. Come, sit next to me.... listen to me, talking to myself ..... :-) ...