Sunday 13 March 2011

WAT PHOO POR

WAT PHOO POR, TAMBON KUKSAI AMPER PABON CHANGWAT PHATTALUNG, THAILAND.

The Old "Sima Hall"
I  went to Wat Phoo Por in 1977 for my three months monkhood.  During that time this Temple was very poor.  There were no electricity and water.  We had to use candles at night for chanting.  Several times a week when we came back from begging for food, we only had enough food to share for breakfast;  for lunch we had only rice with soya sauce.  When I prayed to Long Phor Kong  (former Head of this Temple), in between my tears, I asked him why is this Temple so poor and in such a poor condition.  The “Sima Hall” at that time was only built of zinc and wood.  The “Sima Hall” was on the verge of collapse and was leaking very badly.  In spite of the bad condition over 100 monks from 44 temples around Changwat Phattalung would recite the “Patimore” prayers (asking for 227 precepts) in the “Sima Hall” twice a month. Whenever it rained heavily, this Temple was flooded.  Sometimes the monks had to continue praying, standing in over two feet of flood waters.  At that time I made a vow to help to improve the Temple and to rebuild the “Sima Hall” when I have the opportunity to make Buddhasana.  I appealed to Long Phor Kong at that time to encourage people to come to this Temple and give their support for its improvement and expansion. 

Old Sima Chanting Hall 
Immediately when I left the Temple after my three months monkhood in 1977,  I donated a generator to this Temple to supply electricity throughout the Temple.  The generator was also used to pump water from the river at the back of this Temple to supply drinking water to this Temple.  However, everyone could have their baths only at the river.  Thereafter, we built a shrine for Long Phor Kong’s image.  Then the kitchen was built.  Gradually more donations came in and the incinerator building for the burning of the dead was built.

I made a vow that if I am successful to rebuild the “Sima Hall”, I shall be successful but if I am not successful to rebuild the “Sima Hall”, I shall flop.  I intended to sell my collections of antiques, jewelleries and my house  to raise funds to rebuild the “Sima Hall”.   A famous contractor in Penang had his big project stalled for over ten years.  I brought the Chief Monk of Wat Phoo Por to pray for his project to be successful.  Immediately he managed to sell all his units. I then approached him for help when I wanted to rebuild the “Sima Hall”.  He asked me how much it would cost.  I told him that the Chief Monk said that it would cost RM500,000/- at that time.  He asked me how much I had collected for this project.  I told me the collection was “zero” as he was the first person I had approached.  He told me that as the Wat Phoo Phor is located in the padi fields, far away from town, it would not be a successful project.  He did not give me a single sen for the project and discouraged from rebuilding the “Sima Hall”.  Thereafter, I did not approach him again.

The Chief Monk of Wat Phoo Por came to see me in Penang.  I told him to tear down the dilapidated “Sima Hall” in order to be able to raise funds  for the new “Sima Hall”.   He dared not do so.  I told him to go back to his Temple.   He came back to see me again one week later and agreed to tear down the broken “Sima Hall”.  I then got worried on how to raise funds for the new “Sima Hall.  I met up with a multi-millionaire in Penang and offered to sell to him one cupboard full of my antiques for RM380,000/- and told him that he could hand over the full proceeds to the Chief Monk for construction of the new “Sima Hall” and have this building named after his late mother or himself.

Long Phor Kong appeared to me in my dream the next day to inform me that it is not necessary to sell my antiques, jewelleries and house.  He told me that within two weeks devotees would come and make donations for building the new “Sima Hall”.  True enough, donations came pouring in.  

Finally, the “Sima Hall” was rebuilt over a period of four years.  The total cost for rebuilding the new “Sima Hall” was about RM1.2 million and the total cost for all the projects for the Temple which include the new “Sima Hall”, incinerator building for burning of the dead, Long Phor Kong’s Shrine Hall, Dharma Chanting Hall, Kitchen and Dining Hall etc: came to about Ringgit Malaysia Four Million (Thai Baht Forty Million). I raised this total amount single handedly without forming a Committee.  Donations came from the devotees of the Temple who came from as far as Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, besides from Thailand.  I prayed to Long Phor Kong and appealed to him to grant the wishes and answer the prayers of all those who have sincerely supported this Temple and have helped to make the rebuilding of the “Sima Hall” and other projects  a success.  The “Sima Hall” was officially opened in 1997, exactly twenty years after my first monkhood at this Temple.

 (Sangkha Chanting Patimokha at Old"Sima Hall" 1977)

Over 100 monks chanting the "Pattimore" Prayers (asking for 227 precepts) in the old Sima Hall twice a month
The new Sima Hall under construction
The New "Sima Hall" was builded exactly 20 years after my first  monkhood at this Temple.

Side view of new Sima Hall
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Paintings depicting Buddhas stories on the wall of the Sima Hall
The sponsored paintings on the wall of the new "Sima Hall"
The incinerator building
Dharma Chanting Hall
    Dharma Chanting Hall
 
    The Main Hall Of Wat Phoo Por 1997
    Main Table for Buddha's image with 48,000pcs of RM1 GoldCoin
    Long Phor Kong  image in Wat Phoo Por (师公像)