Guanyin Temple

MALAYSIA, Selangor, Kuala Kubu Bharu

Guanyin refers to Avalokitesvara Bodhisttava. Originally named Yueshan Guanyinge (Avalokitesvara Pavilion at Yue Mountain), it is the oldest temple in the town of Kuala Kubu Baru. It was established in 1904 by the monk Shanqing as a branch of Kek Lok Si Temple in Penang. The temple offered shelter and refuge during natural calamities such as floods, as well as during war and civil unrest. The temple fell into disuse when the villagers were forcibly relocated. In 1987 this temple was rediscovered and the local residents organized a committee for its reconstruction. In 1994, a stele by Shanqing was found, documenting that the temple was a branch of Kek Lok Si Temple. It was therefore handed back to Kek Lok Si. Reconstruction work was completed in 1998.
The temple complex consists of a screen wall, temple gate, main hall, Dharma Hall, and Patriarch Pagoda. A horizontal inscribed board at the temple gate reads “The Buddha Land at Yueshan.” The main hall is three bays wide and contains beams, columns, bracket sets, and Buddha niches painted in vermilion and decorated with paintings. On the inner walls of the main hall there are paintings representing the Thirty-Two Manifestations of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva. The exquisite carvings of flower baskets and revolving scenic lanterns under the beams of the main hall, together with the temple’s bronze bell, are considered valuable cultural artifacts. There are Memorial Pagodas located on each side of the main hall, which are dedicated to the first and second abbots of the temple.