Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery

Singapore


Take a few hours to explore the Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery, Singapore’s largest (12 buildings) and most stunning. ‘Don’t speak unless it improves the silence’ is the creed here, the resultant quiet a surreal counterpart to dragon-topped pagodas, shrines, plazas and lawns linked by Escher-like staircases. On the premises is a large columbarium and several different halls devoted to various guises of the Buddha.

Finish your visit by reflecting under a bodhi tree beside the Hall of Precepts. (The tree is claimed to be a descendant of the sacred bodhi tree at Buddha Gaya.)


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Singapore attractions

1. Ang Mo Kio Town Garden East

1.2 MILES

This 5-hectare park was once home to a rubber tree estate. It's history has not been lost as rubber, nutmeg, cacao and cinnamon trees dot the park, as do…

2. MacRitchie Reservoir

1.31 MILES

MacRitchie Reservoir makes for a calming, evocative jungle escape. Walking trails skirt the water's edge and snake through the mature secondary rainforest…

3. Sasanaramsi Burmese Buddhist Temple

2.39 MILES

Next door to the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, this towering temple is guarded by two chinthes (lion-like figures) and houses a beautiful 3.5m tall…

4. Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall

2.43 MILES

Built in the 1880s, this national monument was the headquarters of Dr Sun Yat Sen's Chinese Revolutionary Alliance in Southeast Asia, which led to the…

5. Cheng Huang Temple

2.6 MILES

The Cheng Huang Temple is constantly buzzing with locals paying their respects. Dedicated to a god who administers justice in the netherworld (must…

6. Lian Shan Shuang Lin Monastery

2.61 MILES

This breathtaking monastery was established in 1898 and inspired by the Xi Chang Shi temple in Fuzhou, China. Two majestic gates frame the entrance, while…

7. Jacob Ballas Children's Garden

3.06 MILES

If you're travelling with little ones, be sure to check out the Jacob Ballas Children's Garden, the largest children's garden in Asia. The interactive 4…

8. Lorong Buangkok

3.32 MILES

This wonderfully ramshackle kampong (village) seems willed into existence from an old black-and-white photograph. Chickens roam past colourful wooden…