Buddhist Maha Vihara — Attraction in Kuala Lumpur

This is a beautiful temple which I visit whenever I come to KL, a few times a year. I wish to make a complaint about the problematic attitude of the cleaning staff. This morning around 9.20am I am meditating in the temple, when a cleaner comes to sweep within about one centimetre of where I am seated. (I was seated on the wooden flooring within the temple at the back right, the temple being reasonably full.). Fair enough, he has to clean. Then two minutes later he comes to clean exactly the same spot. I ask him, could he not wait a few minutes until he sees that the space is not occupied? He says no, and points that I should move to the front right of the temple. Then immediately he abandons his pile of dust outside the temple on the floor, to be blown by the wind, and now begins to clean / stack chairs in exactly the place he just told me to go to sit. This is frankly ridiculous from every point of view. I believe the Lord Buddha spoke about skilful means. Let us think about the temple sweeping from the point of view of skilful means. 1) Shouldn’t temple sweeping be completed before the temple opens to the public? Surely the morning sweeping could be done before 7 or 8 am to avoid this situation? 2) If one is going to clean, one could sweep mindfully and skilfully: sweep the dust into a pile and then transfer it promptly using a dustpan into some container such as a plastic bag / bin, from where the dust will not be blown by the wind. 3) There must surely be a large pool of volunteers who could manage to sweep the temple AND ALSO avoid sweeping those visitors who are at prayer. You may say, why such a fuss over a cleaner? As a practising Buddhist, I will speak openly if I may. I have observed so many occurrences of bad behaviour among the temple staff. I believe the management need to grasp the nettle and tackle this problem. About a year ago I attended an evening talk at Maha Vihara by a Sri Lankan monk (? Bante? I forget). Before the monk spoke, a corpulent middle aged man took the microphone, and spoke in a way which was openly disrespectful and discourteous, all with a smug expression. Such a joshing attitude might be suitable among student friends at a party. Here it was IMO not only cringeworthy but disrespectful of the monastic order and its harmony. How could the organisers possibly permit such an introduction??? The final example relates to the three Buddha statues in the courtyard: I hardly dare to stand there, because the cleaners will swoop up behind me and sweep my heels. If I am at statue B, they will come like bees to honey. If I hop over to statue C, so will they. Last year I coached myself to stand at an angle so that I have advance warning of their approach. I am guessing that the cleaners have a private wager among themselves to see how many foreigners they can defeat in this way. May I dare to speculate about the underlying root of the problem?Because the monks are Sri Lankan, I am guessing that in the past one of them has sensibly proposed: let us employ our Tamil neighbours here in our temple. This is merely a guess. Sounds good. I am a fan of Malaysia, India and Sri Lanka, having visited on about 40 occasions. But here is a suggestion: why not employ the cleaning staff to do different work, instead of working in the actual temple area? The cleaners appear to have an attitude, so clearly there is some underlying issue that needs fixing. Lord Buddha’s skilful means surely applies also to the choice of employment. For the status of the cleaning crew, presumably ANYTHING else would be better/higher than sweeping. There must be a wide variety of different jobs in the Vihara. It seems to this visitor that a segment of the staff disrupt the spiritual harmony and refuge that the...

My niece and her husband got their marriage registered here recently! A historical temple that is open for all devotees and public alike. It has a feel of a bygone era where life was simple and people were kind to each other. I studied at the Sunday school in the 1980 period, where I learned the elementary teachings of the Buddha. Sundays are days I looked forward to, because on top of learning about life and being peaceful with oneself and all things, I got to participate in the Dana (or giving of food to the monks of the temple). This practise give rise to kindness and chips away selfishness. Though around the age of 8 years at that time, I begun to love all the Sri Lankan cooking, especially the delicious dhall that was served. At the age of 15, I participated in the Novitiate Program for 2 weeks and learned the monastic way of life. Forgoing daily life routines, exams, study stress, TV, games in exchange for peace and serenity through meditation, one meal a day, cleaning up for others, and learning the way of life, filling us up with kindness, compassion, self discipline, thought clarity and community living. My early days were all filled with unforgettable memories of the Vihara, and for that I am very very grateful to everyone who had served and contributed to all beings who have walked thru this path, in various stages of...

Stepped into Buddhist Maha Vihara expecting inner peace, walked out feeling like my stress had been gently escorted off the premises. This Theravāda temple, established in 1895 by the Sinhalese community, isn’t just old, it’s gracefully timeless. A quiet cornerstone of Brickfields long before the traffic and towers arrived, it continues to serve as a spiritual hub for Buddhists across Malaysia.

The main shrine hall is dignified and serene, with a Buddha statue so majestic it might make your worries apologize and leave. The Bodhi tree? A leafy therapist. The bell? Tempting, but ring it only if you’re ready to shake up some karma.

Visited during Wesak Day, the annual celebration of Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, and passing, and it was a full-on sensory blessing. Lanterns, chanting, candlelight processions, and a thousand people trying to be mindful at the same time. If peace had a festival, this would be it.

It’s free to enter, open to all, and blissfully uncommercial, no tacky souvenirs, just quiet contemplation and the occasional monk gliding past like a real-life mindfulness reminder.

May All Beings Be Happy, Be Peaceful,...