Penang Snake Temple
Penang Snake Temple
This is the snake temple also known as Hock Kin Keong or Cheng Hoon Giam. This was built for the worship of the deity of “Cheng Chooi chor Sor” or also known as Chor Soo Kong. We got this information from the temple.
We visited this Snake Temple during our younger days during the school holiday bus tours. We believed that most people experienced the school holiday bus tours like we did in the good old days.
There are not many people talking about The Snake Temple as one of the main attractions of Penang anymore. This temple is also featured in The Amazing Race Season 16 during the 8th leg and also one of the location in Tan Twan Eng’s novel “The Gift of Rain”.
The Penang Snake Temple is located in Bayan Lepas and away from the busy Georgetown. It is actually nearer to the airport than the city. The Snake Temple Penang is built in 1805 for a Buddhist monk called Chor Soo Kong who lived during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and he is famous for healing the sick and giving shelter to snakes.
There are many devotees from other countries such as Singapore, Taiwan and China will come to pray in the temple on the monk’s birthday on the sixth day of the first lunar month.
From what we know and understand that the snakes appeared in the temple by themselves. We read that most snakes are de-venomed with their fangs intact.
You can find many Pit Vipers around the temple around the trees. There are notices of Beware of poisonous snakes signs are put near the trees.
There are other species of snakes you can find in this temple such as the python. In 2005, there is a snake breeding centre was set up in the temple.
There are two brick wells inside the temple with two giant brass bells but we didn’t venture much around the temple but just took some photos of the temple exterior and interior as well as some snakes.
If you do visit Bayan Lepas, you can check out the Penang Snake Temple. Please take care of yourselves and travel when it safe to do so.
Penang Snake Temple
Opening Hours: 6 am to 7 pm
Address: Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, Bayan Lepas Industrial Park, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Pulau Pinang
Phone: 04-643 7273
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