Tua Pek Kong

One of the prominent Tua Pek Kong was named Zhang Li ({{lang|zh|张理}}) from the Hakka clan. His Indonesian Sumatra-bound boat was struck by wind and accidentally landed on Penang Island in present-day Malaysia, which at that time had only 50 inhabitants. He is believed to have arrived in the island 40 years earlier than Francis Light in 1746. After his death, the local people began worshipping him and built the Tua Pek Kong Temple there where he was buried behind the Sea Pearl Island Tua Pek Kong Temple in Tanjung Tokong. The story of the first Tua Pek Kong in Penang demonstrates the tradition of sworn brotherhood between the Chinese diaspora:

{{quote|[Zhang Li] lived in the small community of fisher folks {{sic}} as a teacher. He was known for his kindness and friendliness – the villagers never failed to seek his guidance and help if had any problems. Two men became his sworn brothers – Chiu Hsiao Ching, a charcoal maker, and Ma Fu Choon, a blacksmith. As he was the eldest, he was addressed by the young in the village as Tuah Pek Kong [sic]. The trio seemed very much attached to one another. When the day's work was done, they would meet each other without fail in their favourite place in the village. One day, as the records continue, Chiu and Ma, as usual, went to meet their respected elder but were shocked to find him sitting motionless beside a huge boulder! They tried to awaken him but soon realised that their revered elder was no more alive [sic]. A sense of gloom seemed to overwhelm the residents of the village who helped to bury him beside the boulder. Chiu and Ma eventually died and they, too, were buried there beside their sworn eldest brother. Today, the "graves" of the trio can be found just behind the [Sea Pearl Island Tua Pek Kong] temple.}}

Since then, he has been worshipped by Malaysian Chinese throughout the country. Tua Pek Kong is often mistaken for Tu Di Gong, partially because of their physical similarities.{{citation needed|date=August 2022}} Between 1865 until 1868, Chung Keng Quee was a principal donor to the Haichu-yu (Sea Pearl) Tua Pek Kong Temple in Tanjung Tokong, Penang.

The oldest and the first Tua Pek Kong Temple in Malaysia is located in Tanjung Tokong, Penang which was established in a fishing village no later than 1792 that eventually sprouts the worship of Tua Pek Kong throughout West Malaysia, Singapore, East Malaysia and parts of Indonesia. In the foot of Bukit Cina (Chinese Hill) in Malacca City, the Poh San Teng Temple is dedicated to Tua Pek Kong.{{cite book|author1=Lonely Planet|author2=Simon Richmond|author3=Isabel Albiston|title=Lonely Planet Kuala Lumpur, Melaka & Penang|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VIMlDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT332|date=1 June 2017|publisher=Lonely Planet Global Limited|isbn=978-1-78701-060-4|pages=332–}} In Sarawak of East Malaysia, there are around 76 known Tua Pek Kong temples scattered throughout every Chinese settlement in the state;{{cite web|url=http://www.theborneopost.com/2016/01/03/the-name-sibu-predates-its-establishment/|title=The name Sibu predates its establishment|author=Chang Yi|publisher=The Borneo Post|date=3 January 2016|access-date=20 February 2019|quote=In almost every Chinese settlement, there is a Tua Pek Kong temple and as a result, there are 76 known Tua Pek Kong temples in Sarawak.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220020329/http://www.theborneopost.com/2016/01/03/the-name-sibu-predates-its-establishment/|archive-date=20 February 2019|url-status=dead}} some of the famous temples are the Tua Pek Kong Temple, Kuching,{{cite web|url=https://thedailyroar.com/culture/tua-pek-kong-temple-kuching-sarawak/|title=Tua Pek Kong Temple, Kuching, Sarawak|author=Galileo Petingi|publisher=The Daily Roar|date=27 February 2014|access-date=20 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220102535/https://thedailyroar.com/culture/tua-pek-kong-temple-kuching-sarawak/|archive-date=20 February 2019|url-status=dead}} the Tua Pek Kong Temple in coastal Miri which is built after an epidemic in the town,{{cite web|url=https://www.thestar.com.my/news/community/2010/05/05/tua-pek-kong-always-remembered-and-revered-by-miri-folk/|title=Tua Pek Kong always remembered and revered by Miri folk|author=Cindy Lai|work=The Star|date=5 May 2010|access-date=20 February 2019}} and the Tua Pek Kong Temple, Sibu with its 7-storey pagoda that has become one of the landmark for Sibu.{{cite web|url=http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/12/04/tua-pek-kong-temple-very-much-a-tourism-icon/|title=Tua Pek Kong Temple very much a tourism icon|author=Conny Banji|publisher=The Borneo Post|date=4 December 2013|access-date=20 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220011544/http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/12/04/tua-pek-kong-temple-very-much-a-tourism-icon/|archive-date=20 February 2019|url-status=dead}} In Batam of Indonesia, one of its notable Tua Pek Kong Temple is located in Nagoya,{{cite web|url=http://www.tribunnews.com/lifestyle/2010/03/14/turis-nyaman-di-klenteng-tertua-batam|title=Turis Nyaman di Klenteng Tertua Batam|trans-title=Point of interest in Batam's Oldest Temple|author=Widodo|language=Indonesian|publisher=Tribun News|date=14 March 2010|access-date=22 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222040514/http://www.tribunnews.com/lifestyle/2010/03/14/turis-nyaman-di-klenteng-tertua-batam|archive-date=22 February 2019|url-status=dead}} while in Singapore its most notable Tua Pek Kong temples is located in Balestier, Loyang, Kusu Island and Ubin.{{cite web|url=http://www.lytpk.org.sg/about.htm|title=Loyang Tua Pek Kong|publisher=Loyang Tua Pek Kong|access-date=22 February 2019}}{{cite web|url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_352_2004-12-27.html|title=Loyang Tua Pek Kong Temple|author=Naidu Ratnala Thulaja|publisher=National Library Board, Singapore|date=1 September 2016|access-date=22 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222041049/http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_352_2004-12-27.html|archive-date=22 February 2019|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.nparks.gov.sg/pulau-ubin/heritage/places-of-interest/fo-shan-ting-da-bo-gong-temple|title=Fo Shan Ting Da Bo Gong Temple|publisher=National Parks Board, Singapore|access-date=22 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222041824/https://www.nparks.gov.sg/pulau-ubin/heritage/places-of-interest/fo-shan-ting-da-bo-gong-temple|archive-date=22 February 2019|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|title=Goh Chor Tua Pek Kong Temple|url=https://www.roots.gov.sg/places/places-landing/Places/landmarks/balestier-heritage-trail-historical-landmarks-of-balestier/Goh-Chor-Tua-Pek-Kong-Temple|access-date=2022-01-25|website=www.roots.gov.sg}}{{Cite web|title=Pilgrimage to Kusu Island|url=https://www.roots.gov.sg/ich-landing/ich/pilgrimage-to-kusu-island|access-date=2022-01-25|website=www.roots.gov.sg}}

File:马六甲三宝庙.JPG|Poh San Teng Temple, Bukit Cina, Malacca City, Malaysia

File:Tua Pek Kong, Kuching.jpg|Tua Pek Kong Temple, Kuching, Malaysia

File:Marudi Tua Pek Kong - panoramio (2).jpg|Tua Pek Kong Temple, Marudi, Malaysia

File:Tua Pek Kong Temple - February 2019.jpg|Pagoda of Tua Pek Kong Temple, Sibu, Malaysia

File:Sejahtera Sakti Selatpanjang.jpg|Hoo Ann Kiong Temple, Riau, Indonesia

File:印尼 巴淡岛 大伯公庙 - panoramio.jpg|Tua Pek Kong Temple, Batam, Indonesia

File:Tua Pek Kong chinese temple (18802628562).jpg|Fo Shan Ting Da Bo Gong Temple, Ubin, Singapore

File:Tua Pek Kong Shrine in Singapore.jpg|Tua Pek Kong shrine at a hawker centre in Singapore.

• Ancestor worship
• Chinese mythology
• Fengshui
• Shenism in Southeast Asia
• Malaysian folk religion
• {{annotated link|Na Tuk Kong}}
• {{annotated link|Kusu Island}}

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{{Mythology of Malaysia}}

Category:Asian gods

Category:Religion in Malaysia

Category:Malaysian legends

Category:Hakka culture in Singapore