Kwan Kung: The 105-year-old Chinese temple in Mumbai

Mazagaon in South Mumbai is today known for housing India's top shipyard, Mazgaon Dock, which manufactures warships and submarines for the Indian Navy. But about 150 years ago, Mazagaon was also home to the See Yup Koon community from Canton in South China.

They came to work for the East India Company and lived on Nawab Tank Road near Dockyard. They were a flourishing community with members who worked as traders, seafarers, and merchants. When the India-China War began in 1962, many members of the Chinese community left. However, some families chose to stay in the area then known as Chinatown. Today, this place is the Dockyard Road, Mazagaon.

Nestled in a narrow alley in Mazagaon is the 105-year-old Kwan Kung Temple in a two-story wooden house. It was built in 1919 when the Chinese community thrived in the area. 

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The temple's exterior is worn and unassuming, giving no hint that it is a place of worship. A small red-painted gate serves as the temple's entrance. In almost every Chinese temple, the visitors enter from the dragon (good luck) gate and leave from the tiger (fighting) gate. But the Kwan Kung temple’s entrance is single, plain and simple.

The God of war and wealth

The entrance door leads to wooden stairs that take one to the top of the temple.

There is a mural of three Chinese gods of blessing, longevity, and prosperity on the wall as one takes the staircase to the main shrine. The gods are dressed in yellow, purple, and green robes respectively. 

 The staircase also has pictures of Chinese scholars and their profound words of wisdom including Kong Qiu, famous as Confucius.

Red, the colour of luck and happiness in Chinese culture, abounds the temple. It is adorned with wind chimes, red paper lanterns, red flags, and other items significant in the Chinese culture. There are also scriptures on the wall and inside the temple. They are written in Chinese calligraphy, also hsing-shu. 

Visitors to the temple will also find Kau cim, or fortune sticks—small wooden sticks used in a fortune-telling tradition that dates back to the third century.

The temple is dedicated to the Martial God of War and Wealth, Kwan Tai or Kwan Kung. 

General Kwan Kung fought during the Battle of the Three Kingdoms in China and is one of the most famous generals in their history. Deified as the God of War, Kwan Kung eventually became known as the God of Wealth. Due to his roles in war and wealth generation, his blessings are much sought after.

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His ornate altar is elaborately decorated with traditional Chinese ornaments, incense, coins, rice and other items of worship. Until recently, the temple was looked after by Albert Tham of the Tham family. Now he has also moved out of Mumbai, like most other members of the Chinese community. A caretaker manages the temple now.

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The temple is open daily from 10 am to 4 pm. On some days, it closes at 11 am, but you can access it by requesting the keys from the first floor, where the elderly caretaker will provide them. Visitors can explore the Buddha temple on the ground floor and the Kwan Kung temple on the second floor. For history enthusiasts, this place is a must-see.

The temple becomes lively around the Chinese New Year and the Moon Festival (Chinese harvest festival), bringing together the Chinese community. The once-large Chinese-Indian community in Mumbai has now dwindled to only a few hundred families. The temple is yet another reminder that change is the only constant in life.

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