29 July 2019
Access to Chin Swee Temple from Resorts World Genting
Most visitors to Resorts World Genting would use the Awana Skyway cable car and alight at Chin Swee Caves Station. There are connecting escalators to take visitors down to the temple.
Since we had our rental car, we drove down from Genting Highlands to the temple. The drive took only a few minutes. Entrance to the temple site is free of charge and there are free car parking spaces within the temple site and along the road leading up to Resorts World Genting.
What we did at the temple
The first place we visited at the site was the 9-storey pagoda. It is worthwhile to take the spiral stairs to the top of the pagoda to get a nice overview of the temple site. Many small images of the Buddha lined the walls inside the pagoda. Little swifts could be seen nesting on the ceilings of the pagodas as well.
Obviously, the best view is at the topmost level. We could see the tiny cable cars in operation leading from the peak down to the Genting Premium Outlet.
What I like the most was the views of the temple site with clouds rolling in from behind. It made me feel like I am in heaven looking down on the tiny mortals beings.
Coming down from the top of pagoda, we joined the mortal beings at the temple’s main square. Here, a statue and memorial of Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, founder of Genting Highlands could be seen.
Chin Swee Caves Temple’s main square also houses several prayer halls for devotees to pray and meditate during their visit. The prayer halls were quite attractive and colourful.
Statues of Buddha, Goddess of Mercy (Guan Yin) and Luohans are among the attractions around Chin Swee Caves Temple.
A row of luohans at the Chin Swee Caves Temple. The Pindola or taming tiger luohan is in the foreground.
Statues of many Luohans or Arhats lined the wall along the path leading to the giant statue of Buddha. In Buddhism, the Arhats are original followers of Gautama Buddha. They have attained the four stages of enlightenment, are free of worldly cravings and are charged to protect the Buddhist faith.
I overhead a local tourist guide explaining the meaning of the swastika symbol on the chest of the huge Buddha.
“The horizontal line unites light and darkness, while the perpendicular line symbolically connects heaven and earth. These two combined, form a cross representing the universe in harmony beyond the limits of time and space.”
On the hill slope facing the temple’s main square is the Journey to Enlightenment or 10 Chambers of Hell. This is one of the most unique and interesting things to see at Chin Swee Caves Temple.
Entrance to the 10 Chambers of Hell, also known as Journey to Enlightenment.
The 10 Chambers of Hell or Journey to Enlightenment is based loosely on Buddhist concept of Naraka and traditional Chinese beliefs about the afterlife. It depicts a subterranean maze with various chambers, to which souls are taken after death to atone for the sins they committed when they were alive.
I remember seeing a similar exhibit in Singapore’s Haw Par Villa when I was a kid. The gruesome scenes depicting the punishments that bad people would receive in hell was enough to make me be a good boy during my growing days.
I will only share what happens at the First and Last Chamber of Hell. The punishments depicted in Chamber Two to Nine could be quite gruesome for some people and I will leave you to find out it for yourselves….. I mean when you visit Chin Swee Cave Temple!
The First Chamber of Hell, also known as Registration Office, is where the King Qin Quang (or Qin Quang Wang) conducts preliminary trials. After death, each person is judged according to his deeds in his past life.
A good person with no misdeeds would be sent for rebirth in the Heavenly realm while a person who has done equally virtuous and evil deeds will be sent to Tenth Chamber of Hell for rebirth back into this world. Those who has seriously committed unwholesome deeds and done more evil than good will be sent to the relevant chambers (Chambers Two to Nine) for punishment.
Experiencing the 10 Chambers of Hell, also known as Journey to Enlightenment.
After serving their sentences or punishments in the other chambers, the prisoners are sent to the Tenth Chamber.
The controller at the Tenth Chamber, also known as King Zhuan Lun, will determine whether the prisoners will be reborn rich or poor, male or female and so on, based on the merits and demerits of their past actions.
Here, the prisoners are given a cup of magic tea which, upon drinking, make them forget their past life. They are finally reincarnated into one of the six realms.
Other attractions at Chin Swee Caves Temple are exhibits depicting scenes and characters from Chinese mythology and literature such as the Journey to the West (Chinese: 西遊記).
The Journey to the West is one of the four classics of Chinese literature published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty. The novel is based on the actual 7th-century pilgrimage of the Buddhist monk Xuan Zang (602–664) to India in search of sacred texts. The Ming dynasty novel adds elements from folk tales and the author's invention.
The Bodhisattva Guan Yin provided the monk (referred to as Tang Sanzang in the novel) with three protectors who agreed to help him as an atonement for their sins. These disciples are Monkey King (Sun Wukong), Pigsy (Zhu Bajie) and Sandy (Sha Wujing), together with a dragon prince who acts as Sanzang’s steed, a white horse.
Overall, Chin Swee Caves Temple is worth seeing while visiting Resorts World Genting. Learn a bit about Buddhism, Chinese folklore and culture and enjoy the cool weather and scenic views at the same time.
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