Religious Buildings in Malacca (Melaka), Malaysia: Mosques and Temples

Two Mosques

(Left) Along Jalan Hang Lekiu: The Masjid Kampung Kling, or Kampung Kling mosque, which dates from 1748, has a most eclectic mixture of styles: a pagoda-like minaret, English and Portugese glazed tiles, a Victorian chandelier, and a pulpit decorated with Hindu and Chinese designs make it exemplify both Malaysia's approach to Islam and its Islamic religious structures, which appear far closer to indigenous styles than do those in Singapore. (Right) The local mosque in Kampung Morten.

The Merciful Cloud Temple

The Merciful Cloud Temple, or Tokong Cheng Hoon, on Jalan Hang Jebat, which claims to be the oldest Chinese temple in Malaysia, is dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy but also houses Confucian and Buddhist chapels. It was certainly the busiest, most bustling Chinese temple we encountered in either Malaysia and Singapore, and we watched people purchase large groups of joss sticks, light them, and then apportion them among the dozen or so altars.

Behind the main structure, and sharp contrast to the gloomier memorial chapels on either side whose cabinets were packed with memorial tablets, some bearing tiny photographs of departed relatives, is the garden of many Buddhas — an unsheltered diorama of various forms (or experiences) of the Buddha.

A view of the temple roof.

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