Malaysia is a multicultural country with a very diverse makeup, and because of that, all these influences can be seen and felt all throughout the country. Despite being a Muslim majority nation, there is a large population of Buddhists and Hindus as well. We made a point to see the Batu Caves and the National Mosque, so we decided to make a trip to Wat Cheatwan to see a Buddhist temple.

We had done research on places to go and found a Buddhist temple in the Thai style – Wat Chetawan, so we decided to make our way there. As was our ritual for Kuala Lumpur, we got an Uber and then proceeded on our way.

Wat Chetawan Kuala Lumpur

Getting to Wat Chetawan

We had done research on places to go and found a Buddhist temple in the Thai style – Wat Chetawan, so we decided to make our way there. Part of the appeal was that it is located in Petalying Jaya, which is where we were staying. As was our ritual for Kuala Lumpur, we got an Uber and then proceeded on our way. The temple was about fifteen minutes from our Airbnb, it would have been a bit shorter, but traffic was pretty bad.

We arrived to the compound, and our driver dropped us off down what appeared to be a little alley way. The entrance to the complex was rather small and modest, so weren’t sure if we were in the right place. But we stepped through and quickly realized we were in the right place.

The address is: 9-7, Jalan Gasing, 46000 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.

First a Few Shrines

The compound appears to be rather small at first glance, but you quickly realize that it is quite expansive. It was constructed in 1962 and received a large donation from the King of Thailand. The King had also organized a fund from the Thai people to fund the project which was met with a very positive resonse.

We initially came upon a building to the right which was a little on the small side. There was a shrine room with some carvings and wax molds of monks. There were also some fortune telling devices but we did not try them out.

Off to the left was a compound for the monks to live in, it looked quite nice, but was closed off to visitors so we didn’t get to see inside. This is pretty typical of most Buddhist temples – and monasteries – where the living quarters are strictly reserved for the residing monks. They do deserve privacy.

The Main Shrine Hall

Straight ahead, though, was the central building – the Viharn – which was what attracted us to see the temple in the first place. It consisted of a large marble staircase, leading to a grand open air room. The outside of this building was intricately decorated, and the inside was lined with dozens of gilded buddhas, burning incense, and offering altars.

A single monk sat within, to whom devotees would go up to pray and give offerings to. The temple was quiet and calm, with a light breeze occasionally causing a small bell to ring up above.

There’s Even a Gift Shop

We proceeded out of the temple and noticed a gift shop. We went into it, but found it to be very crowded. The objects were really quite interesting, but were out of reach for our budget, so we made our way back out to explore the rest of the compound.

Pay Your Respects at the Altar

On the other side of the central building was a open altar, to which many devotees were praying to. They would take incense sticks, and bring them to their forehead. They’d then mutter their prayers while bowing repeatedly before placing the sticks in an ash pot and then ringing a gong.

The ritual was very interesting to see. At first we weren’t sure how appropriate it was for us to be in the area with cameras – but once we saw a monk taking selfies with his (better than ours) smart phone, we decided we were probably fine. Proceeding even further, we walked between two giant dragons that lined a wall and entered another part of the compound to which there were two more buildings. It is worth noting that this might actually be the real main entrance.

Many, Many Buddhas

The first was a large and wide, open-aired building containing many statues of various bodhisattvas. They were various stages of being gilded with gold leaf. While not clear, I think people come and donate gold leaf. Slowly, devotees add to the statues until they are covered in solid gold.

The second building in the area, was a solid marble building that contained a large statues of buddha. Within the building were dozens of insets which contained smaller statues of the same buddha. Each of the statues was donated by someone and was deemed to bring good fortune to the family that donated it.

There was some construction taking place on a new shrine. But it wasn’t that close to being finished. All we could really tell is that it was going to be tall.

Having finished the compound, we slowly made our way back towards the entrance. While it was small, we still managed to get a good hour’s worth of exploring. We highly recommend checking out the temple and seeing for yourself.