Heng Shan Temple, "A Temple for the Phuas"

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Ack to Mr Raymond Goh of API
If you cant see the pictures, pls proceed to ***>Pictures of Phuas Temple

It looks like an ordinary temple nested in a industrial area of Yishun New Town.

The plate on top reads Heng San Temple.



Current temple at Yishun

On the pillars bear the inscription in Chinese:

由进士起家治河功高加太子少保
从御史秉笔弹劾持正擢工部尚书

From an imperial scholar to a water expert and tutor to the prince
From an imperial censor upholding justice to a Minister of Works

This phrase would hold the identity of the deity and the temple history

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Phua Village at Heng Lee Pah

The Phua community came to Singapore from Lam Ann Province in China.
As strangers in a foreign land, they wanted to stay close together.

So in 1914, a Phua village was set up in Nee Soon. It was bounded by Nee Soon Road,
Lorong Persatuan, Lorong Handalan, Upper Thomson Road and Lorong Sungyi.
It was called Heng Lee Pah. This name was derived from a plot of land owned by a wealth Teochew businessman called
Soh Tiang Hoo who owned a rubber plantation then called Heng Lee Pah. This name later became preferred over the offiical name of Lorong Handalan.

Almost everyone who lived there was a Phua. And in 1936, a primary school was set up for the Phua children.

But the most important landmark at that place was not the school nor the village, it was a temple - Heng San Temple.


Heng San Temple before the relocation with the temple chairman (picture taken from New Paper)

The temple was named Heng San Temple, because near the ancestral village in Lam Ann, there was a temple built at a hill which runs from horizontally from west to east.

At that time when the Phua ancestors first came to Singapore, they brought along their most important asset which is more important than their life, that is their ancestral incense ash from this Heng San temple at Nam Ann. This they put in a temple and called it Heng San Temple, so that they can remember their roots, and that their ancestral god would continue to protect them in this new land.

At first Heng San temple was a welfare organisation. It allowed single people to reside there temporarily and provide shelter for the need. The old and sickly were also taken care of. The temple also gave them money to return to China so that they could retire in some comfort.

The temple also served as a communication centre for the villagers. It was a meeting place for the villagers during their lesire hours where they could gather around for tea or a game of Chinese chess.

Leaders from the various households held their regular meetings in the temple to discuss common problems. Disuptes within the village were brought and settled there. The temple was thus a means of social control in the village

Phua village was most prosperous during the 70's where there are 58 families, or about 1000 people.
Every household was supposed to contribute 6 dollars per year to this temple.

Every year on Lunar Month 9.27, this temple would be full of celebrations and wayang shows. It was the birthday of Pan
Ji Xun. The road would be lined with hawkers. The festive celebrations would usually last for 3 - 4 days.


(Picture taken from History of Phua Village)

The villagers would start to prepare all kind of food and items for worship. The temple would also prepare
special kind of flour dolls . These kind of flour dolls are then taken back to the devotees home for worship.

These wayang shows are the main entertainment highlights for the villagers then, which they use to bond together as a large
family. Initially the wayang shows are those of a Seven children Act, which were performed by teenage boys aged 13 - 18 years ago.
Later on then came the Gao Ga wayangs and then the Hokkien operas.

And so, this Heng San Temple has been the centre of activity for generations of the Phua clan

This temple worships Pan Ji Xun as the main deity.


Pan Ji Xun

"From an imperial scholar to a water expert and tutor to the prince
From an imperial censor upholding justice to a Minister of Works"

This actually refers :

Pan Ji Xun (1521 - 1595)

Pan Ji Xuan was a water engineer who in the sixteenth century fought to control the Yellow River.
He was the Imperial Commissioneer for the Yellow River and later became the Minister of Works for Water
Engineering.

Pan strategy is to narrow the Yellow river and confine the flood within the stem channel in order to
raise the velocity and keep high carrying capacity of the flow, preventing sediment from depositing and
even scouring the bed.

Pan regulated the levee system, blocked many branches of the river and made the river flowing in a single channel in the lower
reaches in the period 1565-1592. The river became relatively stable in the following decades.

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The signboard at temple bears three chinese character 横山庙 - Heng Shan temple.


Heng San Temple plaque

These 3 chinese characters were believed to have been written by Pan Shou



Pan Shou (1911- 1999)

Pan Shou - noted Chinese calligrapher and poet who had also served in various positions from newspaper editor to bank vice-president. He is also founding secretary-general and was de facto first vice-chancellor of the Nanyang University, then Nantah University. His calligraphic style is so unique that some have suggested he created his own "Pan style".


Statue of Pan Ji Xun

From a scholar to a water specialist to a Minister of Works, from taming the mighty Yellow River to patron deity of the Phua village temple,
Pan Ji Xun has certainly come far.

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References:

The Development of Nee Soon Community by Chua Chee Huan
Ong Zhen Chun : Roots II
The New Paper, 15 Nov 1988
History of Phua Village, Singapore Society of Asian Studies, edited by Lim How Seng