Sri Maha Mariamman Temple, Kuala Lumpurਸ੍ਰੀ ਮਹਾਮਾਰੀਅਮਨ ਮੰਦਰ, ਕੁਆਲਾ ਲੁੰਪੁਰ

At the edge of Chinatown in Kuala Lumpur, behind a tower crowded with gods, stands the temple that began Hindu Kuala Lumpur. Sri Maha Mariamman Temple, on Jalan Tun H. S. Lee, is the oldest Hindu temple in the Malaysian capital and the oldest functioning Hindu temple in Malaysia. Founded in 1873 by K. Thamboosamy Pillai, the same Tamil community leader behind the temple at Batu Caves, it began as one family's private shrine and grew into a national heritage landmark: a South Indian temple in the middle of a Chinese Malaysian city quarter, from whose doors the great Thaipusam procession sets out every year.

What is Sri Maha Mariamman Temple?

Sri Maha Mariamman Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Mariamman, a form of the goddess Parvati, in central Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Mariamman is popularly worshipped by overseas Indians, especially Tamils, because she is looked upon as their protector during their sojourn in foreign lands, and devotees regard her as a form of Mother Earth who protects them from unholy or demonic events, in the temple's own tradition of belief. The temple is managed by the Board of Management of Sri Maha Mariamman Temple Devasthanam, which also manages the Batu Caves temple and the Kortumalai Pillaiyar Temple, and serves as a Hindu religious consultant to the Government of Malaysia on the Hindu yearly calendar.

How did a family shrine become Malaysia's oldest Hindu temple?

The temple was founded by K. Thamboosamy Pillai in 1873 and was initially used as a private shrine by the Pillai family. It was originally sited somewhere near the Kuala Lumpur railway station, and shifted to its present location along Jalan Tun H. S. Lee, next to the city's Chinatown, in 1885. The first structure there was an attap, thatch roofed, building: demolished in 1887 and replaced in brick. The Pillai family threw the temple doors open to the public in the late 1920s and eventually handed its management to a board of trustees. The brick building in turn was demolished to make way for the current temple, completed in 1968; its great gateway tower followed in 1972, and the new temple was consecrated in 1973, a century after the founding. From its inception the temple gave early Indian immigrants an important place of worship, and it is reputed to be the richest Hindu temple in the country.

The Raja Gopuram: a tower of 228 gods

Built in the South Indian style, the temple's most outstanding feature is its five tiered gopuram, the tallest structure in the temple. The dramatic pyramid shaped gate tower, known as the Raja Gopuram, rises 22.9 metres, 75 feet, and is decorated with depictions of Hindu gods sculpted by artisans from southern India. The chief sculptor was the late S. T. Muniappa from Tamil Nadu, credited with creating the 228 idols on the gopuram. It is a textbook piece of the Dravidian tradition transplanted to Southeast Asia, the style traced in Jugti's guide to Dravida temple architecture, and it turns a city street in Chinatown into a temple gateway as surely as any gopuram in Tamil Nadu itself. Once every 12 years, in keeping with Hindu tradition, the temple is reconsecrated.

Inside the temple: a body lying on its back

The temple's plan carries an idea visitors rarely notice from the street: it resembles the form of a human body lying on its back, head towards the west and feet towards the east. The five tiered gopuram corresponds to the feet, the threshold between the material and spiritual worlds. At the rear stands the garbhagraham, the sanctum sanctorum, corresponding to the head: a freestanding structure with its own roof and walls and a single entrance facing east, where the chief deity Sri Maha Mariamman is enshrined and before which the priest stands to perform puja. Between gateway and sanctum lies the main prayer hall with richly decorated ceilings; the position of its three shrines is marked by an ornately embellished onion dome visible from outside, with four smaller shrines around the main building. Pillaiyar, Ganesha, holds the shrine on the left and also appears at the entrance as the remover of obstacles; his brother Lord Muruga is on the right, and the eight idols adorning the pillars inside are of Ashta Lakshmi.

Why does the Thaipusam chariot start here?

Housed within the temple premises is a silver chariot, and it explains this city temple's bond with the caves to the north. The chariot is a prominent feature of the annual Thaipusam festival, used to transport the statues of Lord Muruga and his consorts, Valli and Teivayanni, through the city streets to Batu Caves. It made its debut in 1983, built at a cost of RM350,000 using 350 kilograms of silver; made in India and shipped here in 12 parts to be assembled, it stands 6.5 metres tall and carries 240 bells and a pair of horses. Before it, a wooden chariot made in 1930 by Indian craftsmen served the festival. On Thaipusam itself, thousands of devotees throng this temple in the early hours to begin the long procession to Batu Caves, carrying milk as an offering to Muruga by hand or in the decorated carriers called kavadi. The temple is also particularly packed on Deepavali, when devotees come to offer prayers on the holy day.

Visiting Sri Maha Mariamman Temple

The temple stands on Jalan Tun H. S. Lee, formerly High Street and Jalan Bandar, at the edge of Chinatown in the centre of Kuala Lumpur, an easy walk from the Pasar Seni station area and the old city core. It is a working temple, so visit as a guest: shoes come off at the entrance, dress modestly, and step aside for worshippers during puja. The quietest moments are ordinary weekday mornings; the most dramatic are Deepavali and the start of Thaipusam, when the silver chariot rolls out towards Batu Caves. Read together, this temple and the caves form Malaysia's essential Hindu pair, gathered on Jugti's Mandirs in Malaysia hub.