Sri Layan Sithi Vinayagar Temple

On a street known for its bars, the skyline belongs to Ganesha.

Sri Layan Sithi Vinayagar Temple is worth a respectful stop on any Keong Saik wander, and worth a plan of its own on the eve of Thaipusam. It is a working Hindu temple to Ganesha that has stood at the junction of Keong Saik Road and Kreta Ayer Road since 1925, and its five-tier gateway tower of painted gods is the most colourful building on a street better known for wine bars and boutique hotels. Look first from across the junction, then go in quietly, dressed modestly.

Its story starts somewhere else. Before 1925, a modest shrine to Vinayagar (Ganesha) with a metal-sheet roof stood near the Singapore General Hospital mortuary, used by hospital staff, workers from the prison on Outram Road and soldiers from the Sepoy Lines barracks. When the government acquired the land for a hospital extension in 1920, the Nattukottai Chettiars, the Tamil community that managed the shrine, bought the current site and built a grander temple. Its name nods to that old Sepoy Lines address. The original idol was kept and still sits in front of the black-stone Ganesha brought from India.

The gateway tower is what stops you. In 2007 the temple rebuilt its rajagopuram from three tiers to five, the painted figures telling episodes from Ganesha's mythology. The carvings are the work of 15 craftsmen from India, and the tiers taper towards the top, so the full effect only works from a distance. The temple has been renovated and reconsecrated several times over the decades: a two-storey annexe for special prayers was added in 2017, and the 2019 works brought a wheelchair ramp and repainted murals, with about 15,000 worshippers at the re-consecration.

Inside are three Ganesha idols, a statue of Naagar, the snake deity, and the Holy Vel, the spear associated with Murugan. The Vel is the key to the temple's biggest night. On the eve of Thaipusam, a silver chariot procession brings the festival idol of Lord Murugan from Sri Thendayuthapani Temple on Tank Road to Keong Saik, and it returns with the Vel. If you are in Chinatown that evening, it is one of the most remarkable sights in the city's religious calendar.

How to do it well: remember that this is a place of worship run by the Chettiars' Temple Society, not a sight laid on for visitors. Devotees pray, walk around the sanctum and chant Vinayagar's names; visitors are welcome to look in respectfully. Dress modestly, follow the usual temple etiquette and keep your voice down. Check the temple's own site for festival dates and opening times, and pair the visit with Cundhi Gong further down the road, which shows how many faiths share one short street.

Good to know This is an active temple, so dress modestly and follow the usual temple etiquette. Check the temple's own site for festival dates and opening times before you go.

Sri Layan Sithi Vinayagar Temple | 73 Keong Saik Road, Singapore