Remember these lit candles I mentioned in the first part of this series? I think they weren't just wishes in general. Some of them might even be well-wishes for a couple, which will go through a traditional Buddhist ceremony right here, in 佛牙寺, or Buddha Tooth Relic Temple.
Anyway let's get started with part 2 of our Chinatown trip!
Here's the main city from the 3rd floor of the temple:
And some other old, restored buildings in Chinatown.
Lots of people were also getting ready for Chinese New Year. As of now, Chinese New Year is 5 days away and I'm definitely looking forward to it! Snacks, red packets (containing cash)...
And yes, back to our main focus, the temple. Gosh, I'm getting carried away with the thoughts of Chinese New Year!
3 pictures of the exterior, and of course, more pictures of the interior will be coming up!
When we entered, we didn't know that there was going to be a wedding in the temple, and we thought it was some ordinary Buddhist ceremony. We were fascinated, nevertheless, so we decided to stay and find out what was going on.
I think we entered in the middle of the ceremony, as the monks were already chanting prayers and getting ready.
And there were rows and rows of devotees and nuns surrounding the altar (where the monk and the couple will kneel in front of later on).
That's less than half of the number of people within the main hall on that day, minus the photographers and tourists of course. We were desperately snapping away and walking around the entire place again and again.
The monk leading the ceremony then heads forward, from the golden sculptures, and walks towards the altar,
Where he says a few prayers, some of which were echoed by the devotees,
And kowtows a few times before the couple heads into the hall.
Ah yes, here's the couple, walking towards the golden sculptures...
And later on, they make their way back to the front of the altar, where the monk starts with the ceremony. He mainly wished them well, prayed for them, and of course, congratulated them and gave them tips for a long-lasting marriage. And later on, he mentioned that the bride was his niece or something.
There was also a lion dance performance during the ceremony.
And the prayers then continued. The lions look pretty cute when they kneel down! :3
After that they headed to the area where the Buddha tooth relic was, for more ceremonies, and didn't head back to the main hall after that.
And yes, that concludes our Chinatown adventure! Our next stop will be the YOG Park and DNA Bridge!