7 days in Malaysia- 6/16- 6/21/2024

Day  6 -Burmese Buddhist temple-6/20/2024

Just across the street from Wat Chayamangkalaram stands the Dhammikarama Burmese Buddhist Temple, and visiting it feels like stepping into a different chapter of Penang’s multicultural story. The temple was founded in 1803, making it the oldest Burmese Buddhist temple outside Myanmar. It was established by the early Burmese community in Penang, many of whom had settled here during the British colonial period. At that time, Penang was a key port city attracting traders, laborers, and monks from across Southeast Asia, and the temple became a spiritual anchor for Burmese Buddhists far from home.

Historically, the proximity of the Burmese temple and the Thai temple across the street is especially meaningful. It reflects how Penang became a rare place where different Buddhist traditions, and Burmese coexisted peacefully side by side, each maintaining its own identity while sharing common spiritual roots.

As we approached the Burmese Buddhist Temple (Dhammikarama), the entrance gate immediately sets a gentle, devotional tone. The gate is modest yet elegant, marked by Burmese design elements, soft curves, gilded details, and symbolic motifs that feel more restrained and meditative compared to the bold drama of the Thai temple across the street. Passing through it feels like crossing into a quieter, more contemplative space.

Beyond the gate, a long corridor stretches ahead, guiding you forward in a very intentional way. The corridor feels almost processional, encouraging slow movement and reflection. Along the sides, there are statues, offerings, inscriptions, and devotional objects, each inviting a brief pause. The repetition of columns and the length of the passage create a calming rhythm, drawing your attention inward and preparing you spiritually before you reach the main hall.

As we walked further, the space gradually opens up into a large prayer room.

The transition is striking, the narrow, guiding corridor gives way to a broad, open interior filled with light and stillness.

Inside, the atmosphere feels solemn and peaceful, centered around Burmese-style Buddha images and altars arranged for worship and meditation. The room is designed for quiet devotion rather than spectacle, emphasizing simplicity, focus, and serenity.

Stepping outdoors, the space opens into a peaceful garden, and the mood immediately softens. Among the greenery, there are statues of deer, gentle and symbolic.

In Buddhist tradition, deer often represent peace, harmony, and the Buddha’s first sermon, which was given in a deer park. Their quiet presence adds a sense of calm and reflection to the garden.

Inside the pagoda, the atmosphere becomes more intimate and reverent. An altar filled with many Buddha statues greets you, each in a different pose, representing various moments, teachings, and qualities of the Buddha, meditation, teaching, protection, and enlightenment. The repetition creates a powerful sense of devotion and continuity.

In front of the altar sit nine metal bowls, each engraved with inscriptions such as success, good luck, harmony, and other blessings. These bowls invite quiet intention, offerings, wishes, or moments of reflection, allowing visitors to connect personally with the space. The number nine itself often symbolizes completeness and spiritual fulfillment.

Beyond the garden rises a large pagoda, striking with its tiered roof painted in red and gold. The structure feels both celebratory and sacred, its vertical layers drawing the eye upward. The exterior walls are richly painted with narrative scenes, likely illustrating episodes from the Buddha’s life, Buddhist teachings, or moral stories meant to guide reflection and understanding.

In front of the pagoda are mythical guardian creatures, often interpreted in Southeast Asian Buddhist art as hybrid celestial beings rather than real animals.

 Placed in front of the pagoda and holding a globe, their role is symbolic: they are guardians of the world and the Dharma, protecting sacred knowledge and maintaining cosmic balance. Their position at the threshold reinforces the idea that the pagoda is a protected, spiritually charged space.

Nearby, two statues of men carrying a belt suspended from a long pole feel almost ceremonial, figures of support and balance, as if bearing responsibility or maintaining cosmic order. Together, these elements give the pagoda a strong sense of symbolism and storytelling, not just decoration.

As we continued deeper into the garden, its scale and color become even more striking. The space feels expansive, carefully arranged with bright statues, gold details, and greenery, creating a setting that is both joyful and contemplative rather than solemn.

We then come upon a headstone-like marker bearing the words “Tapak Sesarah.” In Malay, tapak means footprint or site, and in temple contexts this usually refers to a sacred footprint or a revered spot connected symbolically to the Buddha or an important spiritual presence. Flanking the marker are two white statues, serene and symmetrical, standing quietly as guardians of the space. Their calm expressions and pale color give this area a peaceful, almost memorial-like feeling, inviting visitors to pause and reflect.

Moving further on, our attention is drawn to a golden tower rising from within an enclosed pool of water, with two smaller towers standing beside it.

The entire structure is built inside a contained basin, and the surrounding water adds a sense of purity and separation from the rest of the garden. In Buddhist symbolism, water often represents cleansing, clarity, and spiritual renewal, while towers or stupas symbolize

The Epic Renunciation is one of the most important moments in the life of the Buddha, and seeing it represented in both sculpture and painting gives the story real emotional weight.

The scene depicts Prince Siddhartha at the moment he chooses to leave behind his royal life, his palace, wealth, power, and even his family in search of truth and enlightenment. In many depictions, he is shown calmly stepping away, often accompanied by his horse Kanthaka and his loyal attendant Channa, usually under the cover of night. The prince’s expression is peaceful rather than dramatic, emphasizing that this was not an act of despair, but one of deep clarity and resolve.

In the sculpture, the physical act of departure feels especially powerful. The posture, movement, and details, flowing garments, the poised horse, the quiet determination—capture the tension between comfort and sacrifice. It’s a frozen moment of decision, symbolizing the courage to let go of attachment. The painting adds narrative depth, through color, background, and surrounding figures, showing the palace he is leaving behind, the sleeping world he steps away from, or celestial beings silently witnessing the moment. Together, these elements reinforce the idea that this was a turning point not just for Siddhartha, but for the spiritual path that would follow.

Placed within the temple grounds, this depiction feels especially meaningful. It reminds visitors that enlightenment begins with renunciation, the willingness to step away from excess, ego, and attachment in order to seek compassion, understanding, and inner peace. After walking through gardens, shrines, and symbols of devotion, encountering this story ties everything together, grounding the beauty of the temple in the core teachings of Buddhism.

Dhammesika Betong Vihara meaning a Buddhist shrine or prayer hall, and the word Dhammesika refers to devotion to the Dhamma (Buddha’s teachings). Betong points to strong connections with the Burmese Buddhist community, particularly donors and craftsmen from Myanmar.

A few steps further, just before entering the Golden Pagoda area, the presence of the two massive statues feels dramatic and protective. The green figure resembling a bird is most likely Garuda, a well-known mythical creature in Buddhist and Hindu traditions. Garuda represents strength, vigilance, and protection against evil, and is commonly placed near important religious structures as a guardian figure.

The tower rises with a golden sheen, catching the light and standing out against the surrounding greenery and sky. Its pagoda-style form, with layered tiers stacked upward, reflects classic Southeast Asian Buddhist architecture. Each tier feels deliberate, symbolizing the ascent from the earthly realm toward higher spiritual understanding. The gold color itself represents purity, wisdom, and enlightenment, reinforcing the sacred purpose of the structure.

Inside is a huge standing Buddha statue.

The statue shows the Buddha standing on a lotus flower, which symbolizes purity and spiritual awakening, the idea of rising above the muddy waters of worldly suffering.

One hand raised (often with the palm facing outward) represents protection, reassurance, and fearlessness (Abhaya Mudra). It’s a gesture of peace, calming the mind and offering safety.

The other hand lowered symbolizes compassion, generosity, and blessing, grounding spiritual wisdom into the world. Together, these gestures convey a powerful message:
wisdom above, compassion below, enlightenment that is not distant, but actively reaching out to help others.

In the background you can also see a bunch of small Buddha statues adorning the wall in the back.

This statue is really tall.

The International Buddha Image Gallery, which is located in the Sima Shrine Hall (the hall toward the back with the tall standing marble Buddha).

There are 16 standing Buddhas lined along this section. They are different representations of the Buddha as he is depicted in various countries around the world. Each statue follows the specific artistic traditions of a different nation. For example, you will see the Buddha in the style of Thailand, Sri Lanka, China, Vietnam, and even an ancient style from Afghanistan.

We are now leaving the Golden Pagoda.

Making our way out of the temple grounds, we passed by first a small shrine with a red brick roof.

The entrance marked by Chinese characters. The structure feels modest compared to the larger pagodas and towers, but its presence is warm and intimate. Inside sits a white Buddha in a seated position, serene and simple. The white color emphasizes purity, calm, and clarity, and the seated posture reflects meditation and inner stillness. The mix of Chinese architectural elements with a Buddhist image reflects Penang’s multicultural Buddhist practice, where traditions blend naturally rather than compete.

Further along in the garden, we came across an octagonal raised cement platform. Each corner holds a Buddha figure encased within a frame, creating a sense of balance and completeness. The octagonal shape is significant, it often symbolizes harmony, cosmic order, and the unfolding path of Buddhist teachings. Walking around it, the repeated images of the Buddha from different angles feel meditative, encouraging slow movement and reflection.

We are outside the gate, we paused and look across the street, and there it is, the gate of the Thai temple we visited earlier. From this vantage point, the scene feels especially meaningful. Just a short distance apart, the Burmese temple behind us and the Thai temple across the road quietly face one another, each with its own identity, style, and traditions.

Standing there, between the two gates, you can really sense what makes Penang unique. In just a few steps, you’ve moved between countries, histories, and artistic traditions, without ever leaving the city. The moment feels like a gentle pause, looking back at where you’ve been, and realizing how naturally these worlds coexist side by side.

NEXT... Day 6- Yeoh/Lim Jetties