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Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Hwa Kuo Shan (花果山) @ Sedenak


In the Legend of Monkey God, Sun Wu Kong was born from a mythical stone and crowned the Monkey King of Hwa Kuo Shan (花果山). Do you know that there is a Hwa Kuo Shan temple at Kampung Baru Sedenak that is dedicated to the Monkey God?

Located about 34km (21 miles) from Johor Bahru, it seems like many pilgrims visit the temple to seek lottery luck judging from the numbers that can be seen everywhere around the area.


Beside worshiping the Chinese deities, Hwa Guo Shan also houses the Thailand Buddha. The coffee shop at the right side of the temple serves as a resting point, providing refreshment and snacks.

Overlooking the small hill is a panorama scenic view of the 12 Chinese Zodiac statues and Guanyin Bodhisattva sitting on the hill top. You can take the stairways and climb up to the top and have a close up view of the sculptures.

Statues of the 12 Chinese Zodiac animals

Fish pond

Tortoise pond

Next to the tortoise pond are bathing rooms where visitors can take a bath with the blessed water. Some even use the water to wash their car plate number hoping to be Lucky! "Heng Heng"

Hwa Kuo Shan would not have earned its name without the presence of monkeys. They are practically everywhere around the premises! Jumping on the rooftops, swinging on the cable, sitting by the ledge or even eyeing on your food!

Beware! Some monkeys can be quite hostile even when you try to take a picture. If you have young children with you, do keep a lookout and stay close to them.

Some monkeys seems rather tame. We spotted the Mommy and baby pair where she sat quietly with her little one clinging onto her - a heartwarming sight.

If you are keen and feeling daring enough, you may purchase peanut packets from the coffee shop to feed the monkeys. We brought some packets along with us and Hubby lead the children to feed the long-tailed imps.

Merely seconds after we made our way down, the monkeys swarmed towards our group. Despite feeling a little afraid, Denver & Gladys managed to satisfy their tummies by throwing the peanuts towards them.

Taking turn to savour the peanuts...

It can be quite daunting seeing so many monkeys within the temple but also an interesting one. For once, the children did not feel bored and was always on guard!

Hua Guo Shan (花果山) 
Address: Kampung Baru Sedenak, 81010 Kulai, Johor
GPS: 1.690758, 103.512730

14 comments:

Waiwai Leung said...

Interesting place! I think my children would love to chase (scare) the monkeys!

Phoebe said...

Beware though.. the monkeys are quite hostile..

Meeningfully said...

looks like fun for my boy who loves animals... But I think I will steer clear! Hahah.... I scared!!!

Unknown said...

The monkeys look fierce, best for young kids to stay away as they may turn aggressive.....

Susan said...

The last time we went to the temples in Bali, there were all lots of monkeys and our guide had to take a stick to keep them away from us in case they steal our things.

Phoebe said...

Beware though.. the monkeys are quite hostile..

Unknown said...

Oh my gosh, your kids are so brave!! I think I would be terrified of them. I was even terrified of the tiny squirrel monkey at River Safari... These are much bigger! *shivers*

Mummy Kless said...

This place reminded me of the Monkey Forest in Bali. I remembered feeling a little scared that I was surrounded by so many monkeys who may pounce on me any time! Nevertheless, this looks like a nearer and more accessible option if I want to experience that again. Thanks for sharing!

May said...

That's a lot of animals in one temple? And the zodiac statues remind me vaguely of the temple ruins in Cambodia :) aren't the monkeys aggressive when you feed them food? The Balinese monkeys were very aggressive and very smart! Stole my bag of shopping away and will return only when I gave it a banana!

Phoebe said...

Younger kids stayed on top while the braver ones went down. :)

Phoebe said...

We were there to pray too and were amazed that there are so many monkeys there! We left our stuff in the car so they didnt come to snatch from us

Phoebe said...

I thought so too! But my kids seem so chill about the monkey and wanted to feed.. Thanks to my hubby who was there to supervise too.

Phoebe said...

Were the monkeys in Bali scary too??

Phoebe said...

We didn't carry our bags when we were feeding. The kids dropped the peanuts on the floor and they will pick it up to eat..Once the food is finished, they left. I guess we were lucky not to see them being aggressive to us.

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