00:00 [Chanting]
00:08 The Cheng Hun Teng Temple in Malacca is celebrating its 350th anniversary
00:13 by showcasing its proud heritage.
00:16 The temple management searched archive records of the temple
00:19 to organise this year's celebration in a bid to preserve its historical significance.
00:25 They hope that the five-day celebration which started on Wednesday
00:28 will connect the current generation to their ancestral roots.
00:32 So far, some 500 overseas devotees had visited the temple
00:36 and many of them took the opportunity to participate in the event
00:39 in search of ancestral roots.
00:42 The temple conducted similar events between 1849 and 1933.
00:47 After the last event 90 years ago, the temple brought their tradition back
00:52 including the offering of traditional items to the deities.
00:55 This year, we try to bring back all the very traditional offerings
01:00 and the rituals, everything, to celebrate this 350 years of Cheng Hun Teng.
01:07 We're having a few types of very traditional Chinese arts
01:12 where it comes from like paper cutting.
01:15 Second is paper puppet, where also very traditional we created in Malacca.
01:21 And then we also have the food where we arrange to become some motifs or flowers
01:28 where we gather 120 devotees to make it together.
01:33 The temple boasts unique and traditional Chinese architecture
01:37 and was a centre of religious and social activities over the centuries.
01:42 The temple was awarded by UNESCO for outstanding architectural restoration in 2003.
01:48 At first, this temple was a place to gather all the Chinese
01:54 where they have all the weddings, the cremations, everything.
01:59 They have it in this temple.
02:01 And other than the religious centre, it is also something like a courtroom
02:08 for the Chinese communities.
02:10 They can settle their problems here, their quarrels here, their misunderstandings.
02:13 They can all settle here.
02:15 During the building of this temple, all the building materials were from China.
02:19 Even the artisans and the builders, they were employed from China.
02:23 The unique thing about this temple is this temple was using the technique of tenon and mortise.
02:29 In Malay, it's called tanggam, not using any nail at all.
02:32 Until today, Cheng Hun Teng temple is still regarded as the oldest
02:37 and finest of Chinese temples in Malaysia.
02:41 The temple is a century for history buffs seeking information on the early Chinese settlers
02:46 and its structure is a living testament to the city's colourful past.
02:51 (Chinese music)
02:55 (music ends)
02:57 (no audio)
03:01 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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