The Maha Vihara Duta Maitreya Temple in Batam Island is among the largest Buddhist-Taoist temples in South-East Asia. Located close to the international ferry terminal in Batam Center Area, the temple is likely one of the hottest landmarks within the island.
The Batam Center Area is the administrative heart of Batam Island, an island positioned within the province of Sumatra of Indonesia, considered probably the most progressive islands of the Riau Archipelago. But though Batam Island is a “holiday island”, there are still a number of temples and mosques that you just will discover attention-grabbing in the island.
In line with Batam’s historic science, the presence of a temple in an island with geographical properties akin to Batam will deliver luck to its people. And thus the Maha Vihara Duta Maitreya is believed to have helped Batam Island reach its present financial status. The temple, however, wasn’t constructed to make the island popular with tourists. Constructed by the native Chinese people, the temple aims to help its believers turn into compassionate, kind, more spiritual and to help them acquire self-control in their lives. In truth, except for praying and meditating, individuals come to the temple to study more about the principles of Buddhism and Taoism.
On the whole, there are three types of temples in Batam Island: Buddhist temples, Taoist temples and Hindu temples. These temples, though considered sacred places by worshippers in Batam Island and most Muslim countries, are open to the public, which means guests are allowed to see the insides of the temples. Ordinarily, all of the areas of a temple are open to the public, but in some cases, there can be rooms the place guests aren’t allowed entry.
The Maha Vihara Duta Maitreya (also referred to as the Laughing Buddha Temple) is both a Buddhist and a Taoist temple. Inside, there are plenty of rooms and corridors. There are three essential halls allotted for worshipping three Buddha particularly Buddha Sakyamuni, Buddha Guan Kong and Buddha Kwan Im. A few of the rooms are also made in honor of the goddesses of mercy known as Guang Ying and Sidharta Gaotama, while some are devoted to the god of war known as Kuan Gong, and others nonetheless are dedicated to various gods and goddesses of their religion. The rooms comprise images and likeness of the gods to whom they’re dedicated, and the three principal halls comprise a number of different statues of their respective Buddha.
The temple is alleged to attract thousands of believers and devotees each day, in addition to visiting overseas tourists. And with the quite a few prayer rooms it has, it could easily accommodate the large number of worshippers coming to pray and meditate in the temple every day.
As a vacationer, you are welcome to view the temple anytime. And it is worth seeing, especially if in case you have numerous time to spare. A slow morning or afternoon can be quite perfect to go to the temple, and there are a number of restaurants and diners close by where you can sample Batam Island’s native delicacies too. Indeed, visiting the Maha Vihara Duta Maitreya could simply flip into a pleasing day.