An Instructive Sunday Afternoon in Singapore

This was an unusual Sunday afternoon for me ... a rich Sunday afternoon experience, full of Asian culture. An afternoon of contrasts, going from the serenity of a Buddhist sculpture exhibition in a planned museum visit to the rambunctiousness of a Hindu festival on which I stumbled by chance ...

I - Serenity in Stone

A while ago I noticed a small poster at the American Club with a photograph of a beautiful Buddha sculpture advertising an exhibit at the Peranakan Museum, "Serenity in Stone: the Qingzhou Discovery".

I decided this afternoon to go see this exhibit. It features thirty five pieces from an important archaeological find in 1996 in Qingzhou, in the Shandong Province of Northeastern China. They date from the 6th century AD. They are very well displayed in this small museum on Armenian Street and they are, I think, the most exquisite Buddhist sculptures I have ever seen.

The two samples below show how appropriate the title of the exhibition is.

A buddha with Apsala dancers.

A Boddhisatva


II - Thaipusam Festival

While driving to the museum, I had noticed a colourful Indian parade on the streets. After leaving the Peranakan Museum, I went to the area around Dhoby Ghaut where this was taking place and parked my car to witness this event.

This was Thaipusam, an Indian festival on which Wikipedia has this to say:

"Thaipusam (Tamil: தைப்பூசம்) is a Hindu festival celebrated mostly by the Tamil community on the full moon in the Tamil month of Thai (Jan/Feb) ... Pusam refers to a star that is at its highest point during the festival. The festival commemorates both the birthday of Lord Murugan (also Subramaniam), the youngest son of Shiva and Parvati, and the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan a vel (lance) so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman.

Devotees prepare for the celebration by cleansing themselves through prayer and fasting. Kavadi-bearers have to perform elaborate ceremonies at the time of assuming the kavadi and at the time of offering it to Lord Murugan. The kavadi-bearer observes celibacy and take only pure, Satvik food, once a day, while continuously thinking of God.

On the day of the festival, devotees will shave their heads and undertake a pilgrimage along a set route while engaging in various acts of devotion, notably carrying various types of kavadi (burdens). At its simplest this may entail carrying a pot of milk, but mortification of the flesh by piercing the skin, tongue or cheeks with vel skewers is also common.

The simplest kavadi is a semi circular decorated canopy supported by a wooden rod that is carried on the shoulders to the temple. In addition, some have a little spear through their tongue, or a spear through the cheeks. The spear pierced through his tongue or cheeks reminds him constantly of Lord Murugan. It also prevents him from speaking and gives great power of endurance. Other types of kavadi involve hooks stuck into the back and either pulled by another walking behind or being hung from a decorated bullock cart or more recently a tractor, with the point of incisions of the hooks varying the level of pain. The greater the pain the more god-earned merit."













This was a noisy pilgrimage. Each kavadi-bearer was surrounded by a group of people (family and friends?) cheering him on, chanting and beating drums. The ones in front of him were walking backwards, carrying the script for their chants and addressing themselves to him.