Letter 8: Tuesday, 26th September 1854

　　…The beach in front of the Chinese town is a hive of activity to rival the river basin, boats landing and setting forth, others being repaired, goods bought and sold, Malays plaiting ropes, Bugis making their great mat sails, and amount it all children plying and swimming. Here at Telok Ayer many a grateful voyager has first set foot on Singapore and so the street above has many shrines where thanks can duly be offered. At either end are two for the Mohammedans from the South of India, the Chulias, one a rather plain mosque, the other a strange structure rather like an upturned table, and an elaborate one at that, a shrine to some god, Nagore Durgha. But it is in the centre that the most marvellous place is seen, a Chinese Temple of curved roofs and quiet courtyards, of candles wreathed in incense smoke, of bells and drums, of fierce stone gods and smiling golden Buddha. This is the temple of Heavenly Bliss, Thian Hock Keng, as colourful and lively a place of worship, and as aptly named, as you could hope to find in a month of Sundays.

　　Today the temple is crowded with people, all going about their business independent of each other, arriving and departing when they will, talking animatedly or prostrating themselves in silence, lighting incense sticks or burning golden papers, all as different as can be from a well ordered English church. We enter through a fine doorway guarded by a herd of fierce beasts, tigers and lions and nasty looking warriors. The place is not a single building but rather a walled compound with splendid halls set amongst spacious courtyards. The central temple, flanked by two lesser building, is a shrine to the Goddess of the Sea, Ma Cho Po. Her statue, which came from China itself, is flanked on either side by large images of jolly looking old man, sages I am told, and in front to left and right are two more figures but this time of horrible aspect, to frighten off evil. Over all stand two enormous red silk umbrellas beautifully embroidered in gold. On a central table are huge brass urns to hold incense sticks, candles, and flowers in vases, these all replenished by the worshippers. Here Lim and his sister light some sticks and prostrate themselves, she as lovely as ever bent thus,

her hair spread around her on the tiles.

　　通信8：星期二，1854 年9 月26 日

　　……唐人街前面的海滩是一个热闹的地方，可以与河流盆地相媲美，一些船只刚抵达，有些船只则准备启航，其他船只在维修中，货物买卖，马来人在编织绳索，武吉士人整理他们巨大的船帆，还有许多儿童在走窜和游泳。在直落亚逸这里，有许多心存感恩的旅客第一次踏上新加坡，因此街道上有许多庙宇，让他们在那里感谢神明保佑安抵新加坡。街的两头是来自印度南部的回教徒注辇人所建的回教堂，一头是一座很普通回教堂，另一头则是一座建筑结构奇特，像是一张翻过来的桌子，那就是供奉某位神明的纳哥德卡神殿，非常精致。但最叹为观止的还是在街道中心的华人庙宇，其弧形屋顶和安静的庭院，香火缭绕的蜡烛，钟声和鼓声，凶神恶煞的石雕神像和微笑的金身佛祖。这就是天佑之殿天福宫，五彩缤纷，生机勃勃，是一个让人们敬神祈福的地方，恰如其名，每月的星期天人们都会到来求神拜佛。

　　今天，庙里挤满了人，他们各自忙着做着自己的事，随意地来，随意地离去，或生动交谈，或安静跪拜，点着香，或烧着金纸，这一切都与秩序井然的英国教堂不同。我们从一个精美的门口进入，门口由一群猛兽、老虎、狮子和面目狰狞的战士（塑像）

守卫着。这个地方不只是一栋建筑，而是一个有围墙的大院，华丽的殿堂耸立在宽敞的庭院中。中央的主殿供奉海神妈祖婆，其两侧有两座较小的建筑。她的塑像来自中国，两边各有一大塑像，看上去像很快活的老人，据说是圣贤。在雕像前面左右侧，还有另外两樽塑像，不过这次是可怕的模样，目的是吓走邪恶。整体看，两把巨大并有着精致金色刺绣的特大红色丝绸伞立于中。在中央的神台上有一个巨型用来献香的黄铜瓮，蜡烛和花瓶里的花，这些都是香客续献的。在这里，林和他的妹妹点燃一些香枝，跪拜着，她像以往一样可爱地弯着腰，她的头发在她周围的地砖上散开。