Thean Hou Temple
— — a sea goddess on a hill above the city.
Not only on a wall.
“A six-tier temple to the sea goddess Mazu, completed in 1987 on Robson Hill above central Kuala Lumpur. The Hainanese community raised it over more than a decade, in a style that brings together Chinese Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian elements in a single building. The lanterns are red, and they triple in number for the Lunar New Year. From the upper terrace the view runs north to the Petronas Towers and the Klang Valley haze.
Thean Hou Temple, on ceramic.
Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.
Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.
The place, in three passes.
The Thean Hou Temple sits on Robson Hill in Seputeh, about 3 km south of central Kuala Lumpur. Construction ran from 1981 with completion in 1987, and the official opening followed on 3 September 1989, led by the Hainanese Association of Selangor, a community resident in the Klang Valley since the late nineteenth century. The site rises roughly 60 metres above the city; from the upper terrace the Petronas Twin Towers, KL Tower, and the southern suburbs are all visible on a clear morning. The temple is dedicated to Mazu, the Chinese sea goddess also called Tian Hou, the Heavenly Empress.
The building stands six tiers tall, with a central octagonal pagoda and curved upturned eaves typical of southern Chinese temple architecture. The main hall holds three altars: Mazu in the centre, Guanyin, the Bodhisattva of compassion, on the left, and Shui Wei Sheng Niang, the goddess of the waterfront, on the right. The roof is finished in green and red ceramic tile, the columns in carved teak. Dragon-and-phoenix panels frame the entrance gate at the base of the climb, and a marriage registration office on the lower floor performs Buddhist and Taoist weddings most weekends.
The temple's busiest day is the Lunar New Year, when the courtyard fills with several thousand red lanterns and the gates stay open into the small hours. The birthday of Mazu, on the 23rd day of the third lunar month (March or April in the Gregorian calendar), brings a procession with offerings of mandarins, joss sticks, and red eggs. The Mid-Autumn Festival in September is marked with lantern displays through the terraces. Admission is free, and the grounds open daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.