Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum - Wordless Wednesday

A group of my Taiwanese friends flew to Singapore on the second week of Chinese New Year, specially to offer their prayers at Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, located in the heart of Chinatown. The S$59-million, 5-storey temple houses a 'Sacred Buddha Tooth Relic' in a magnificent Relic Stupa, made of 420kg of gold donated by devotees. The building also comprises a museum with rare Buddhist artefacts.


The designs of the temple building incorporated the best of Tang Dynasty and the Buddhist Mandala. The temple’s interior decorations and operations incorporate Tang Dynasty motifs and designs where appropriate. Even the staff are all dressed in specially designed Tang uniforms. It is a living cultural monument.

The Tang Dynasty was the era when Buddhism flourished and named the golden age of Buddhist art.

The temple attracted some controversy over the authenticity of its Buddha tooth relic. Imagine raising tens of millions to build an opulent temple to house an animal's tooth.


Exchange S$10 for 100 coins and start dropping them one by one into 100 golden bowls placed along 2 sides of the temple.


At the rooftop garden, you can turn a massive Tibetan Buddhist prayer wheel.

Devotees can go to a Dining Hall in the basement where free vegetarian meals are distributed daily.

I'm not a Buddhist, I'm a Christian. Unlike some of my Christian brothers and sisters who cannot tolerate the sight of other religion, I enjoy visiting places of worship be they Chinese temples or Indian temples or mosques. I want to learn more about the culture and history of other races.

288 South Bridge Road (Chinatown)
Opening hours : Mon - Sun 7:00am to 7.00pm

Please kindly abide the following rules when entering the Temple:

1 Wear appropriate attire to show respect, no bare backs, off-shoulders, shorts, mini-skirts etc

2 Strictly no non-vegetarian food and pets inside the Temple

Wordless Wednesday