Nestled in the bylanes of Mazgaon, popular for docks and gardens, one can hardly expect to come across a Chinese Temple. Kwan Kung is the only Chinese Temple in the city and is definitely a hidden gem which can leave any history aficionado spellbound.
On the occasion of Chinese New Year which was celebrated on January 25, the temple was decorated by Albert Tham who has been looking after its maintenance along with his mother since the last 18 years. The temple was established in 1962 during the Indo-China war wherein many Chinese settled in Mumbai near the Mazgaon docks. It is open for locals and tourists from 10 am to 6:30 pm.
Tham, who was born and brought up in Mumbai said, "The Chinese had come to India during the East India Company's reign and many of them settled near Mazgoan. They worked in the docks and started feeling home-sick after a point of time. Therefore, to cater to their spiritual needs, this temple was established wherein people visited it during the new year, festivals and weddings. Currently, very few Chinese people visit it as they're dispersed in different parts of the cities including Navi Mumbai and Vashi. Therefore, it is very difficult to maintain the temple."
Talking about the idols of the deities and the infrastructure of the temple he further said,
"The main idol here is of Kwan Kung God who was a Chinese warrior and God of wealth. There's a statue of Goddess of mercy and compassion- Guanyin as well. As soon as you enter the temple, there are three-star gods near the staircase. Each god symbolises the three stages of life i.e. childhood, adulthood and old age."
Notably, the characteristic feature of this area is that there are many buildings who have ethnic Chinese names written above its entrance. One of them bears the words- Seeyup Koon which translates to 'inns for sea merchants'.
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