The cult pillars of some Hindu temples in Singapore
On the 9th of September 1977 while doing some sightseeing in Singapore the author
passed the Sri Mariamman temple, the oldest temple of the city, and discovered a
fairly surprising thing. As is often found in Hindu temples in general, there was
a cult column set up in front of one of the sanctuaries (Fig. 1-5).
It was made of copper, about 8 m high, and was erected in the central axis of a secondary
sanctuary adjacent to the main sanctuary in the open part of the precinct. From the
bottom up to about the middle it was covered with grasses. The stalks were fixed
by ropes wound spirally around the grasses and the column. There was a grass bundle
at the top of the column with its loose upper part protruding into the air. Together
with some twigs, it was fixed there with a textile band.
The arrangement was surprisingly similar to cult markers the author had studied in
Japan (Fig. 15)
. Informants explained that this decoration with grasses was only a temporary one
and was fixed to the column for the annual main festival of the temple. This stimulated
the author to check other Hindu temples in Singapore which, according to the informant, the priest of Sri Mariamman temple, showed similar rites. In 1977 two other temples,
three in all, were located and visited. In later years the survey was extended. 15
Hindu temples were found in Singapore, although some of them were rather small and
insignificant. Four temples had pillars in their precincts or halls.
Temples with pillars
The following temples were found to have pillars in their temple compounds.
1) Sri Mariamman temple,
242 South Bridge Road, most ancient Hindu temple of the city of Singapore. It was
built in the years 1827-43. It displayed a high pillar of copper covered with grass
as described above (Fig. 1-5)
2) Sri Sinivasa Perumal temple,
397 Serangoon Road, near Lavender Street. Contains temple buildings of recent date.
On the occasion of early visits it had a pillar of wood, which was later, in 1979,
torn down and replaced by a copper type of pillar. (Fig. 6,7)
3)
Sri Senbaga vinayagar temple,
19 Ceylon Road. This temple is situated outside the city centre in the east. It had
a permanent pillar of silver placed within the main hall. (Fig. 8)
4) Sri Vadapathira Kaliamman temple,
555 Serangoon Road, Beatty Road. (Fig. 9-14)
This temple had a wooden pillar
which was set up within the temple hall in front of the deities. It was covered with
grass.
Columns and festival calendar
All four temples showed materially permanent pillars. All are decorated once a year
partially or wholly with a grass coating for the main festival performed once a year.
In the following are some remarks regarding these statements:
In the case of (1) the pillar is made of copper and is actually related to the deity
named Droppadai. The pillar is fixed to the ground and stands in the open air. Characteristic
for this type are three plates fixed horizontally below the top. Their outlines are dynamically curved. They are pierced by the copper column in such a way that
the larger part of the plates cantilevers towards the front and is directed towards
the sanctuary. At the lower surface of the plates close to the tip, directed towards
the temple, a small bell is fixed. The festival starts on the 15th of August and lasts
about 3 months.
Temple (2) shows a similar pillar as in the case of temple (1). Until 1979 it consisted
of wood. At the time of the visit it had been renewed, i.e. replaced by a copper
type, and could not be observed in regard to its cultic decoration. What is discussed in regard to this case rests on declarations of the informant. The pillar is attributed
to the deity Mahavishnu. The festival begins on March 14th and lasts 10 days.
Temple (3) was discovered in a later survey. It is situated outside of the city
centre in the Northeast. Its pillar is made of silver. Bells now are mostly situated
on the uppermost symbol plates (Fig. 8)
. How the pillar is decorated and when, could not be clarified reliably. The statement
that it is annually decorated was obtained from the informants.
In the temple (4) a very crude wooden pillar is used. In the lower part it is square
in section, and octagonal in the upper part. On its top it shows a wooden grid fixed
asymmetrically to the wooden pole (Fig. 13, 3a).
In contrast to the column in temple 1, this pillar is not fixed to the ground. Throughout
the year it is preserved in some particular annex space of the temple. Before the
festival it is brought in front of the temple and mounted on a mobile pedestal. The whole arrangement is placed in front of the open prayer hall (Fig. 11)
set up axially in front of the sanctuary of the deity Kali (Fig. 9, 10)
. The festival starts on August 14th and ends on September 17th.
Regarding the content of the festival and
regarding the grass decoration of the columns.
A common feature of all the festivals at temples 1 to 3 is that before their opening,
the columns concerned are partly or wholly clothed with grasses. In all three cases
the grass decoration is removed after the end of the festival. Exception: bundles
and twigs at the top of the column in the case of temple (1) were still found later at
the occasion of a visit on the 18th January 1978. In all cases the same type of grass
is used: terpey-grass (terpey-pul). This type of grass is widespread in India but
only grows sparsely and only at particular places in Singapore. The informant indicated
that this grass is not only widespread in India but has a ritual meaning in Hinduism
<4>
Due to the dates of the festivals, the forms of clothing could only be recorded in
the cases (1) and (2). Characteristic for both of these examples is the symbolic
use of grass bundles in the upper part of the columns. Similarly the bindings with
grass-straw ropes were symbolically emphasised and decorated with flower garlands and white
and red textile bands with Mango branches inserted.
All three temples perform various ceremonies during festival time.
Temple (1) for instance performs a fire festival on 31st of October which is related
to fire-walking.
An important part of all festivals are processions with statues of the deities in
mobile form visiting adjacent settlements or parts of neighbouring settlements. For
instance at the temple (2) on August 14th the procession goes to upper Sengar, and
on the 15th to another district of Singapore.
In temple (2) the whole column is called ,codi stebem'. Codi means flag, stebem (pronunciation
stombom) is for ,tree'.
In both cases (1 and 2) the tops of the columns carried a flag with the emblem of
the deity. It was Hanuman, the monkey God, in temple (1) and a lion in case of temple
(2). In temple (2) the white cloth was twisted from the lower part of the flag and
was wound in spiral form around the column. In the middle which was characterised by a
bow of cloth, a bundle of grass was inserted into these windings. Evidently this
arrangement indicates that the flag and the picture it shows are closely associated
with the column.
Conclusions
Four points are important in this survey, partly in regard to art and architecture, partly in view of religion.
2) This is most clearly expressed in the symbol at the top of the pillars
. The pillars made of durable material (metal or wood) do not provide any meaning in regard to their symbol at the top
. But it is very evident that they have 'copied' the grass-symbol of the pillar in temple 4
. Now, and this is very important: in this grassy version the meaning of the symbol can be read very clearly
. The grass symbol tells us the meaning of the uppermost symbol. At the same time
this indicates that the grass type is the primary type
, the permanent types are derived from it.
3) All pillars stand strictly in axial relation with the coordinated sanctuaries and
deities. This strict axial relation of two different demarcation systems reflects
a superseding process. A primary demarcation system has been replaced by a more evolved one, definitely a materially
permanent one
. In addition - in this case - it is more evolved in the sense of an anthropomorphous
system. Since the primary system is the origin and the basic content of the cyclic
rites (renewal), it is conserved in temporary form in front of the permanent sanctuary
(Egenter 1980/1995, Fig. 20).
4) The "decoration" of the pillars opens the sequence of the more evolved types of ceremonies (puja, processions etc. performed by specific historically evolved social roles like Brahmins, priests, etc.). At the end of the accumulated types of ceremonies, the grass covering of the pillars is taken off and disposed of ritually <5>.
Thus, the rites related to grass, that is to the originally primary and most important fibroconstructive
markers, have a framing function in the cyclic cult
which now includes also more evolved types. We can therefore assume that on the one
hand these pillars evolved physically from the fibroconstructive type
, on the other hand, more in the sense of religion, the fibrous demarcators and their
harmonious categorical expression must have corresponded to the ancient teachings
cyclically preserved into later times. The world is composed of an endless multitude
of vertical and horizontal polarities is a gigantic truth which we can only start to
understand with modern anthropological methods. <6>
In addition, these symbols were the precursors of the domestic types of temples as
well as of the anthropomorphous types of deities.
The cultic element suggests an enormously conservative dimension. Indian settlers
have brought this Hindu tradition down to Singapore and it is kept strictly according
to the traditions observed in the homeland. Cult induces temporal depths: is the
grass a survival of times when there was no copper yet, no refined metal tools to chisel
wood? Is it thus also a REMINDER of some existential truth which had been important
and therefore was handed down?
What we have found in some Hindu temples in Singapore poses some serious questions
related primarily to art and architecture. In a very dense milieu of some Hindu communities
we have found various types of sacred pillars made of entirely different materials: Durable and highly refined, brilliant metal pillars, others made of wood, refined
ones and rather crudely cut types, then, finally indicators of a quite different
type, fibroconstructive pillars, that is, tectonic structures made of bundled grasses.
All three types seem to indicate an evolutionary line in which the primary fibroconstructive
type is the genetic prototype which creates the tradition, also the cyclic structure
of the festival through its need to be periodically renewed. The wooden type is rather a support in this case in view of a higher verticalised form, which takes its
significance only if it is covered with a coat of grass which gives it its important
texture. In the case of the metal forms, vertical stability is represented by the
stability of the material, the texture of its original condition becomes 'ornament', 'decoration',
but since the material is durable now, the cyclic element theoretically gets lost.
Surprisingly, it remains as a temporary cultic tradition. At the beginning of the cyclic festivals, the original type of natural grass is collected, the metal pillar
is 'decorated' with it.
It is very clear that with these three expressions of the theme 'cult pillar' we have
touched on a very fundamental context of what is called 'decoration', 'ornament',
'plant-ornament' etc. in the history of art and architecture. What is vaguely considered usually as a general behaviour of man appears in a very clear and plausible cultic
sequence in the present case.
In a wider sense these pillars also question the entire setting of Hindu temples.
Are they the prototypes of the whole larger temple arrangements. Were they the initial
place makers before there were Hindu temples, before there were anthropomorphous
deities? Are the poles prototypes of the historical deities which had become anthropomorphous,
zoomorphous, etc.? But this question definitely transcends our basic questions related
to art, human space organisation and architecture. It definitely tends towards religion. It seems that we find more positive answers to these questions with a survey
we did much later in India, our study of the Holi poles in the Konkan region of Maharashtra.
Illustrations
Notes
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