Kwan Kung Chinese Temple | Hidden Gems of Mumbai

China Town in Mumbai !

Hey you must be mistaken, China Town  Woh toh  Kolkatta mai hai ,

Well that was my  immediate reaction when one of my friend spoke about this place to me.The Weekend Wanderer soul in me got stirred up and I was all set to check out this place, I was wondering, how could I miss out on something so unique in my home city.

PC: Nikhil Chandarana

Talking about Mumbai city, what I love about my city is its varied cultures, whereby I was able to explore some exquisite churches, beautiful mosques, amazing temples and gurudwaras and now here I was getting an opportunity to visit a Chinese Temple!

Can you believe this !

A little help from Google and friends, I was all set to go. You will be surprised to know that what today is a sidelined suburb i,e, Mazgoan, at one time was home to See Yup Koon community who were actually from Canton in Southern China. Due to work opportunities with East India Company these people moved to India to work and eventually settled here.

Dekha aapne chinese connection kitna purana hai, Tab bhi chinese apne yahan kaam karte the, aur aaj bhi, Even World Tallest statue of Sardar Patel ke liye humko chinese workers and technology lagi. Lagata hai china se humara rista Saas bahu wala hai -- Pyar mahobat aur zarorat lagi hi rahti hai 

(Hardliners Chill and don't see red in this statement of mine. 😜😜😜)

The Chinese who had settled in India were traders,merchants,workers and sailors.However when in 1962  the war broke out between India and china, as expected many of these people migrated back to their homeland China, however few of them stayed back here in their existing homes, which we now know as China Town. It seems because they were of See Yup Koon community ,the house near the temple had See yep koon written on them. (I wish someone was around to explain this to me)

Chinese Legacy..Houses bearing the name SEE YUP KOON

Phew! I was so overwhelmed with this historical fact, imagine a small temple or a place can have a legacy, a history.

Harbor Train From Andheri To Dockyard Station

I took Harbor train to CST local from Andheri and got down at Dockyard station. ( This been the nearest station to Mazgoan). 

Dockyard Railway Station

We came out from the front end of the station, if you are coming from Andheri, which is connected with the foot over bridge which takes you on the other side of the road.

Getting down from this bridge you need to walk straight

Keep walking straight, till you reach the wall of mazgoan dock, take a left and again first left and on your right side you will see this Chinese temple.

The google map was showing that this place is around 1 kms away from the station. So I started to walk. Now here a very interesting thing happened as we were searching for the way to go to this temple I saw an old Chinese walking towards our direction. For a second I felt that he looks like the owner of the temple but then again doubt got created in my mind Socha sare Chinese ek jaise hi dikte hai, so don't get excited. I went up to this person and asked him whether he is Albert, No reply came from him, Then I asked  where is this Chinese temple, he simply looked at me and said its closed. I was very dissapointed to hear this. Per mai umeed chodne walo me se nahi hu, socha yahan tak aaya hu to Mandir dekh kar hi jaunga. 

The iron stairs that we took

A small walk over the footover bridge and we saw a iron staircase going down on the left side, we took that stairs and came across a small postbox and took right turn, which brought us to a desolate lane, we kept walking till we came across an old 2 storied building. 

Temple you can easily pass by, thinking to be a residence

I could have easily missed this place for any other residence apartment.What caught my attention was the wooden door painted in red, the picture of which I had seen in one of the FB  post of my friend. I realised that this is it , that I have come to see. "The 100 year old Chinese temple, The Kwan Kung Temple.

Red Painted entrance door

We entered the Temple through this gate. There was a red door in front of us which was locked, I had read this was a room for one of the lady goddess. we moved on the right and started to climb the green coloured stairs when I came across a mural painted on the wall. This mural was of three gods FUK LUK SAU

Fuk:

The Chinese character Fuk means blessings of good luck, health, and happiness. This is the wise man that is often depicted holding either a scroll or a child. There is a popular belief that Fuk is the personification of planet Jupiter, with all its associated energy of good luck and auspiciousness. The child is there to symbolize the transmission of this good luck to future generations, and the scroll can be perceived as the importance of knowledge/learning.

Three Wise Man FUK, LUK, SAU

Luk

The meaning of Luk character in imperial China was an official's salary. It goes without saying that the energy of it is stability, fame, and success, as well as financial abundance. Luk is often depicted holding either a ru yi (symbol of power and authority) or a golden ingot, a popular wealth symbol.

Sau

Sau means longevity. This is the wise old man that is usually depicted with a very high forehead and a warm smile on his face. He is holding a staff, as he is old (thus the symbol of longevity). He is also holding a peach (considered a symbol of immortality).

we reached first floor where the owners of this place stay. The son of the owner handed me the keys to the temple which was one floor above this. We went upstairs and opened the door and entered the Chinese temple. The moment I opened the door I could feel the strong aroma of incense sticks. 

Burnt Incense sticks ashes aroma could be felt in the temple

The whole room indeed transports you to china with splash of red everywhere, the room is decorated with all the requisite paraphernalia of a typical Chinese temple, including fortune scrolls, paper money and incense sticks.

Paraphernalia of a typical Chinese temple (PC Nikhil Chandarana)

The temple pays homage to the Chinese God of protection, justice and courage Guan Gong. The colourful decoration and the photograph nestled in that, declared that the God worshipped here is Confucius. The wise man of the Chinese history, who has been a great teacher, politician and a philosopher, is worshipped here as Kuan Kung.

Kwan Kung 

Who Was Confucius?
Confucius (551 B.C. to 479 B.C.), also known as Kong Qui or K’ung Fu-tzu, was a Chinese philosopher, teacher and politicalfigure. His teachings, preserved in the Analects, focused on creating ethical models of family and public interaction and setting
educational standards. After his death, Confucius became the official imperial philosophy of China, which was extremely influential during the Han, Tang and Song dynasties.

 It was once asked to Albert Tham, The person who founded and owns this place as to why he selected Kwan Kung as his god of worship. His reply was“I like this God as I have chosen him to be the one.I don’t believe in him just because I am forced to do so. I have learned a lot about  him. I respect his morals values and teachings that do not emphasis much on any rituals but helps you lead a life of balanced personal and social ethics. He is more like a friend and a guide to me. I frequently spend time with him and discuss the things that bother me.”

Pooja and myself with Mr Albert Tham

There was this one wall which has slips hanging, I couldn't make of it much because everything written on them was in Chinese. They were fluttering under the fan breeze beckoning me to solve the mystery.

As there was no one in the temple to explain to us their unanswered. Few of them were half burnt and then there was ashes in the drum below these paper slips all added to my inquisitiveness but Alas ! no answers for me , if you get to know about these rituals please do comment and let me know.

Paper slips Hanging ,Are they predicting the futures ?

PS: As regards to the paper sheets let me add here. Those sheets are actually a way of  reading fortunes.

The Chinese believe that the Gods will guide you for any important decision of your life through the oracles written in Mandarin on the bamboo sheets. They light up the candles and then pick up the wooden sticks kept on the table as a part of offerings to the lord. Then they refer to the sheet containing the suggested number on the stick. The bamboo sheets contain the fortune written in the Chinese Script and are referred by the followers of the faith once in a year.” 

Fortune sticks

We spent some time here and then moved on to the ground floor to visit the temple of  Kuan Yin, an Empress that embraced spirituality and led a life to relieve the humans of their sufferings she is also known as goddess of Mercy.

 Kuan Yin

We returned the keys to Mr Albert Tham.(So the old man I met on the road was actually this gentleman ).

Mumbai meri Jaan !!!

Tu sach me meri jaan hai...

roz kuch naya dikhati hai ....

Thanks for reading my blog, Your comments ,your suggestions are most welcomed , therefore do comment in the comment section below this blog. Please do join my site so that you get regular updates for a new story so posted by me. 

Given below is the Link to the video of our entire journey. 

Our Team 

Vipassana Golden Pagoda : Mumbai Darshan Series

Our Journey:

We often visit temple on 1st Jan being the start of the new year to seek blessings of the almighty. This year however I thought I'll make a slight change and visit the Pagoda instead of a temple at Gorai near Borivali.

I gave a shout out to few friends, if they would like to join and the result was that my friend Pooja and Femina joined us.

My ever ready  friends

We had decided to start early in the morning hence we had fixed our meeting time at 7 am at Malad Station. However when I checked about the ferry timings I came to know that the first ferry to Pagoda from Marve Beach leaves at 9:40 so the whole program had to be rescheduled and we decided to meet at 8:30 am. 

At Marve Beach

We all met at 8:30 am at Malad West side of the Station and from there a little walk of 100 metres and you come down to the Bus stop of Bus no 126 fortunately for us the bus was at the stand so we all quickly jumped in. Marve Jetty or beach is the last stop so we took tickets for the last stop. a ride of 25 minutes and we were at the Marve Beach. Here again the ferry boat to Pagoda/Esselworld was almost leaving we were the the last passenger to get in.

The happy passengers

The ferry ride through the stinking water of the creek is not what you would like to see but then to seek better views one has to cross such hurdles.

Got to cross the stinking waters,
 to reach the beautiful Pagoda

Here again the ride lasted some 25 minutes odd. We were busy shooting the pictures of each other in the boat, Femina met some old office colleague so she was busy chatting with them.My wife was feeling the morning chill stinking water not withstanding , Pooja and myself we were clicking pictures of the approaching Pagoda.  

Upon reaching the other end of the creek we see along jetty This long jetty takes you to the land mass and for a second you are confused that by mistake the ferry guy has dropped you at the entrance of Esselworld amusement Park instead of Pagoda. Well don't worry the entrance is common to both however one needs to take left to go to the Pagoda.

Esselworld or Pagoda...Who cares

We started to walk on the road leading to the Pagoda. Our Ferry tickets were checked at the entrance of Pagoda road.A little walk of 5-7 minutes we were at the entrance gate of Pagoda.

 There were lots of cars parked outside the Pagoda gate, I was confused how come these cars are here, Well I was informed that there is also a road route which comes from Mira-Bhayander Road. I will give you information of the same at the end, So chill and come and explore this Pagoda.

You will ask me what's so special of this Pagoda...well here I go

Pagoda-Gorai  (Pic Source Internet)

The reason why you must see Pagoda :

World's Largest stone dome in Mumbai!

The center of the Global Vipassana Pagoda contains the world's largest stone dome built without any supporting pillars. The height of the dome is approximately 29 metres, while the height of the building is 96.12 meters, which is twice the size of the previously largest hollow stone monument in the world, the Gol Gumbaz (Click on the link if you want to read about our journey here) Dome in Bijapur, India. The external diameter of the largest section of the dome is 97.46m and the shorter sections, is 94.82m. The internal diameter of the dome is 85.15m. The inside of the pagoda is hollow and serves as a very large meditation hall with an area covering more than 6000 sq m (65,000 sq ft). The massive inner dome seats over 8000 people, enabling them to practice the non-sectarian Vipassana meditation as taught by Mr S N Goenka, and now being practiced in over 160 centres in more than 60 countries.

Bird eye view of The Pagoda ( Pic source internet)

Trivia regarding the Pogoda:

1.The shape of the pagoda is a copy of the Shwedagon Pagoda (Golden Pagoda) in Yangon, Myanmar.

2. 8000 people can meditate in the main hall.

3.The spire is covered in real gold

4.The main doors to the pagoda are wooden and hand-carved in       Myanmar (Burma).

5.The Buddha bone relics were offered by the government of Sri Lanka and the Maha Bodhi Society in India in 1997,

Now back to our journey :

One look at the Pagoda I felt like I was in china , That huge entrance door which I had seen for the first time in the movie 36 chamber of Shaolin. I was in college in those days and today here I was face to face with something I have never seen before. Visiting this Pagoda is an experience you must not miss.

For me it looked like I am in China

We enter through a huge gate and start to climb broad stairs but this been modern times , so you can't simply jump into the temple. One has to undergo security check.

Huge entry gate with the stairs leading to Pagoda

I was very disappointed when I was told that I had to deposit my camera as it is not allowed inside. My world came crashing down, I had visualised that I'll click from various angle. I argued with the security guard that earlier they were allowing cameras inside. He said from 20, Nov 2018 No Cameras inside the temple,however one can carry mobile. Small mercies ! 

Trying my best to capture pictures with mobile phone camera

The stairs are divided into two parts one to go up and the other section to come down.As soon as the stairs get over you see Two huge elephants in sitting position and right in front of that the huge Pagoda. the Golden Pagoda. 

Two separate section of stairs

The pagoda consists of three sub-domes. The first and largest dome was completed when bone relics of Gautama Buddha were enshrined in the central locking stone of the dome on October 29, 2006, making it the world's largest hollow stone masonry structure containing relics of the Buddha. The relics were originally found in Bhattiprolu, Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh, South India. They have been donated by the Mahabodhi Society of India and the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka to be kept at the Global Vipassana Pagoda. The second and third domes, along with an auxiliary dome adjoining the second dome, sit atop the first dome. Construction of the third dome was structurally completed on November 21, 2008.(Source internet)

One Sub dome next to the Main dome of Pagoda

We spent some time clicking pictures. Then visited the exhibition hall too. As you come down through those stairs you are guided to enter the souvenir shop and from there to the main entrance.

Beautiful Pillars of the Pagoda

There is a restaurant or food plaza also with in the Pagoda complex. 

Lots of Meditation courses are conducted here. 10 days Vipassana Meditation being the most popular one. Some people also go to Igatpuri Vipassana Meditation centre.

We again walked back to the entrance where the Ferry had left us in the morning. We soon boarded the return ferry and reached Marve Beach where we had delicious mumbai special Misal Pau for lunch and then boarded the bus back to Malad Station from where we took train to our respective destination.

Back to Marve beach 

Visit to Global Pagoda can be done in half day, One can club visit to Gorai beach also.

click here to watch our journey in 3 min  video

Information you can use:

Timing:

Monday to Sunday, 9 am - 7 pm.

( Entry timing will be till 6.30 pm only )

Entry inside the dome:

Please note only old Vipassana meditators are allowed to enter the dome and meditate. All other visitors can view the inside dome from visitors' gallery.

Identity Proof for foreigners:

Identity Proof is mandatory for foreign visitors. (Passport/ driving licence/ certificate from respective embassy)

How to reach:

There are 3 ways to reach-

From Borivali:

1.Nearest Railway station Borivali.

2.Take a bus from the Borivali railway station and reach Gorai creek or jetty. (Bus no 247 and 294)

3.Take ferry from Gorai Jetty to Pagoda/Esselworld (Ticket:Rs 50 to and fro).

From Malad:

1.Nearest Railway station Malad.

2.Take a bus no 123 from the Malad railway station and reach Marve Beach or jetty. 

3.Take ferry from Marve Jetty to Pagoda/Esselworld (Ticket:Rs 50 to and fro).

From Bhayander:

1.Nearest Railway station Bhayander

2.Take a bus from the Bhayander railway station West side and reach Global Pagoda directly.(Bus no 4)

3. There are Autos also plying to Pagoda . They charge around Rs 200-250 (2018 price).

4. In case if you are coming by car then the route is little longer. 

a) If coming from Andheri, Borivali side then you drive on the western express highway and take a left from Mira-Bhayandar crossing, turn Left towards Mira-Bhayandar. The crossing has a statue of Shivaji Maharaj positioned at the centre. From here onwards the signboards will guide you.

b) In case if you are coming from Thane/Virar/Gujarat then you need to take right turn from Mira-Bhayandar crossing, turn Left towards Mira-Bhayandar. The crossing has a statue of Shivaji Maharaj positioned at the centre. From here onwards the signboards will guide you.

Thanks for reading the blog hope you find the information useful. Please do join my site if you like the blog.