SINGAPORE – Madam Ang Ah Lang’s former home in Lorong 32 Geylang was hard to miss. One of the last remaining detached stilt houses in Geylang, it stood out among the mid-rise apartment buildings and terraced houses that line the street. 

A jackfruit tree had stood in the expansive front garden ever since Madam Ang’s father-in-law purchased the house for $18,000 in 1968. A small pink pagoda in the front garden was the only sign of the house’s past as a temple.

Down the front garden, a metal banner featuring intricate inscriptions of Taoist deities and the names of the temple’s benefactors stood beneath the shade of the verandah. 

The 2m-tall banner shielded the main hall of the house from public view. The temple, which occupied the main hall of the house, housed a large statue of the thousand-armed form of Guan Yin, the Buddhist goddess of mercy and compassion, flanked by two deities. A large table in the middle of the room held incense burners and candles.

“In the past, there were devotees who came here to pray every day. We would prepare for ceremonies during Chinese New Year, Hungry Ghost Festival, Qing Ming and Dragon Boat Festival. People would come, and the courtyard became a very lively place,” said Madam Ang, an 82-year-old homemaker, who spoke in Mandarin.