Sri Mariamman Temple 244 South Bridge Road, Singapore 058793
This site is gazetted as a National Monument of Singapore on 6 July 1973.
Your base for exploring this destination is the city of Singapore. For travel information about Singapore, go to Singapore Travel Guide. If planning a trip to Singapore, view the Singapore Budget Accommodation Map to find a suitable place to spend the night.
Sri Mariamman Temple at South Bridge Road is the oldest and biggest Hindu Temple in Singapore. It was founded by Narayana Pillay in 1827, a government clerk who arrived in Singapore from Penang aboard the same ship carried Stamford Raffles. Initially, the Sri Mariamman Temple was only a small attap hut with the small statue of the deity in the main sanctum. Later on, the temple was expanded when an Indian landowner Seshasalam Pillay donated some land to it.
Sri Mariamman Temple, the oldest and biggest Hindu temple in Singapore.
The present temple building was constructed in 1843 by ex-convicts from Madras who happened to be skilled craftsmen. It was dedicated to the goddess Mariamman, who has power to protect against disease and death. The Sri Mariamman Temple was a place for immigrants from South India to find shelter before they could get permanent living quarters. Being a temple built by the South Indians, the Sri Mariamman Temple was built in the South Indian Dravidian style.
The most outstanding feature of the Sri Mariamman Temple is its ornately decorated tower, or gopuram. Incidentally, Pagoda Street, the road just beside the Sri Mariamman Temple, was erroneously named because the authorities mistook the gopuram for a pagoda!
Visitors may enter the Sri Mariamman Temple at any time of the day, but the best visiting hours are between 7am to 12 noon and 6pm to 8.30pm. While entrance is fee, you need to purchase tickets for bringing in still and video cameras. And of course, you should enter barefooted. On the doors are many bells which devotees will ring with the belief that doing so will make their requests be granted. During the Theemidhi festival, which occurs somewhere in October or November every year, you may get to watch the amazing fire-walking ritual.
The Sri Mariamman temple was gazetted a National Monument of Singapore on 6 July 1973.
The imposing gopuram, or entrance tower, of the Sri Mariamman Temple.
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