The Rockhampton Chinese Association is endeavouring to restore the original gold leaf on the artifacts
Artist and educator Pamela See (Xue Mei-ling) shares her experiences of temples in Rockhampton, where she taught paper cutting during the Moon Festival 2024.
The Darambal believe that Munda-Gadda, the Rainbow Serpent, fashioned the volcanic plugs, Baga and I-Gai, to divide the forlorn lovers. These formations are essential viewing for visitors to Central Queensland. St Paul’s Cathedral may be considered another significant landmark. Its “foundation stone” was laid in 1879, 21 years after the settlement was named “Rockhampton”. In the interim, it became a major British port.
Its contemporary status as the “Beef Capital” is evidenced by numerous elevated statues of bulls. As opposed to bovines, it’s the revenue generated by the abattoirs which is being revered. There is a Hindu temple in Rockhampton, discreetly housed in a wooden building on low stilts with a federation-style gabled roof. It seems that much of the rich cultural diversity in the region flows under the surface of European colonialism and commerce.
“White” settlers required labour “of colour” to work in the tropics. The emigrants who answered the call applied their skills to more than European-style infrastructure. They built communities of their own. Presently, in Berserker, the Rockhampton Chinese Association is planning to restore religious relics. Concurrently, in Port Curtis, the Sri Lankan Association of Central Queensland is constructing a pagoda at their Rockhampton Buddhist Temple. Built or restored, the objects offer foci for their respective communities. The custodians of the sites welcome their compatriots irrespective of religious persuasion.
A sanctum for the “saints”
-
- Rockhampton Chinese Association secretary Dorothy Khoo with an altar created at the turn of the 20th century in Guangdong Province
-
- Amal Meegawattage demonstrates some of the tools he and other community members have devised to help craft their pagoda
There is speculation that the Chinese settlers of Rockhampton have maintained a place of community worship since the 1860s. In the 1840s, Amoy Shepherds were “sent for” to address a scarcity of labour. They originated from present-day Xiamen in Fujian province. A proliferation of immigration from the neighbouring Canton, or Guangdong province, was catalysed by the opening of the port in the mid-1850s. Many prospected for gold at Crocodile Creek and Mount Morgan. The diversity of other roles occupied by the diaspora is demonstrated in the account books of estates, Certificates of Domicile, and alien registries. Listed among the professions are carters, upholsters, fishmongers, clerks, and cooks. Three of the four temple locations were among market gardens.
While Chinese settlers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries may not have identified with a specific religion, Taoism umbrellas both creation deities and the deified deceased. The designation of divinity seems to be at the discretion of worshippers. Carpenters, for example, have immortalised Lu Ban (鲁班), who invented many tools during the Spring and Autumn period (770–481 BCE). In the 1890s, funds were raised to establish a Lie Sheng Gong (烈圣宫) in the centre of the city. The prescriptive term was also attributed to temples in Cairns and Innisfail, which were respectively anglicised to “Lit Sung Goong” and “Lit Sing Gung”. It could be loosely translated into English as a sanctum for “martyrs” or “strong saints”. Rockhampton residents purportedly referred to theirs as “Lit Sing Goong”.
A key shrine is dedicated to the Song Dynasty (960 to 1279 CE) military official Chen Lao Guan (陈老官), who heroically died defending the kingdom from bandits. Praying to a plaque bearing his name in Taichung purportedly proved effective in dispelling the plague. Accordingly, his spirit was conferred the imperial title Bo Zhong Zhen (伯仲真). “True second uncle” is the literal translation of these characters. A proliferation of plaques ensued. One was built during the 1860s in Taishan, Guangdong Province, where the Lei (雷) clan originates. It’s pronounced “le-oi” in Cantonese. Names of its members appear at the top of the temple donor board.
The temple centrepieces were crafted in Foshan, Guangdong Province, an area renowned for woodcarving during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912 CE). Identified by his maker’s mark is Xu (许), one of three proprietors of Sanyoutang (三友堂) on Lianxing Street (联兴街). An altar embedded with tableaux exemplifies Guangpai wood carving. Depicting the Golden Palace (金殿) of the Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE) they exalt the exploits of Guo Ziyi (郭子仪). He was an official who repelled a foreign incursion. The wooden filigree integrates innumerable intricate representations of figures, florals, and furniture.
These artifacts were completed within months of the federation of Australia and weeks prior to the introduction of The White Australia Policy. They presently reside in the back room of the Besser brick Rockhampton Chinese Association clubhouse. Accompanying the Chinese saints are bodhisattvas, including both Budai and Guanyin. Their intimately scaled statues congregate around incense urns.
Secretary of the association, Dorothy Khoo, said of the shrines, “They’re there for people who want to use them.”
Their presence certainly provided comfort to this writer, a Taoist with “Amoy” and Cantonese heritage, who was raised in a Buddhist household.
Pointing to a glimmering portion of the intricately carved altar, Khoo explained, “I’m trying to raise funds to restore it.
“It used to be covered in gold leaf.”
After having worked in London and Singapore, the nurse and her Chinese-born obstetrician husband returned to Australia in 1980. The choice of Rockhampton reflects their impression of the residents being welcoming of cultural difference. At that time, they were unaware of the region’s rich Chinese heritage.
Building a place fit for bodhisattvas
Physical remains of Gautama, which Amal refers to as “Sarwangnga Dhathu”, are contained within one of the ornate brass vessels.
A baker’s dozen of decades since the Chinese diaspora established a temple in Alma Lane, their Sri Lankan counterparts have begun building their own. In the census of 2021, 238 residents out of 81 967 stated Sri Lanka as their country of birth. “Spearheaded” by Dr Lilantha Wedisinghe, the Rockhampton Buddhist Temple was established by the Sri Lankan Association of Central Queensland at the corner of Jellicoe and Lee Streets in 2019. Bodhisattvas might be worshipped, but they represent people who took the path to enlightenment as opposed to gods. The facility is dedicated to Siddhartha Gautama.
In the garden, his granite likeness graces a concrete slab altar beneath a bodhi tree.
One of the engineers currently developing the site, Amal Meegahawattage, said, “We planted this tree, but I have another sapling related to the 2600-year-old original Bodhi tree in India.
“[It] is not yet strong enough to be transplanted here.”
He continued to explain that the Jaya Siri Maha Bodhi tree, in Sri Lanka, was cultivated around 2000 years ago from the roots beneath the very tree Gautama achieved enlightenment. In turn, a sapling from this tree was “returned to India”.
“The sapling I have was grown from a seed of that second-generation tree, making it third generation,” said Amal.
Upstairs inside the house, a dining room that opened up into a living room has been converted into “a shrine area” known as a “Budhu Madura”. Seated on the altar is a Buddha statue acquired second-hand from the Sunshine Coast. Although its place of manufacture and materials are indeterminate, it is seated adjacent to Sri Lankan and Indian stupas. Physical remains of Gautama, which Amal refers to as “Sarwangnga Dhathu”, are contained within one of the ornate brass vessels. This is destined to extend its authenticity into the pagoda presently under construction.
Amal proudly declared, ‘We come up with the concepts and then we construct [them].
“We make our own moulds,” said Amal.
The “Basal Rings” of the pagoda’s skirt, or the “Pesa Walalu”, are being moulded using a concrete edger he cut from wood. The extent of his ingenuity may be witnessed in watching the team of volunteers manoeuvre the tool using a rotating wooden arm. The renovations commenced during Vassana, a period of retreat and religious recital. Construction is anticipated to be completed by Vesak 2025, a celebration of the birth of its founder. This extension is entirely funded by community donations and built by volunteers.
A layered cultural landscape
Although much of Rockhampton’s geography could be described as igneous, cultural landscapes tend to be sedimentary. Perhaps reflective of the power dynamic among the population, the architecture that has withstood the past century is European in style. Despite being absent from the urban vista, the customs and beliefs of immigrants, like the Cantonese, manifest in the artifacts they brought with them. In the case of the more recently arrived Sri Lankan migrants, the structures they are building might also be considered repositories of their traditions. The fertile ground of the region continues to be enriched by these communities through their crafted objects.
Further Reading
Archer, A. (1972, August 24.). Fitzroy Waters: From Sheep to Cattle and Coal. The Royal Historical Society of Queensland.
The Art Institute of Chicago. (n.d.). The Taoist Church.
吕玉廉 谭楚明. (2012, August 8.). 镇宅之神”陈仲真传奇. 陈凤台研究. http://www.chens.org.cn/show.aspx?id=516&cid=17
Chen, Y., S, Sharudin, and Xu, Y. (2023). Study on the Influencing Factors and Mechanisms of the Evolution of the Architectural Characteristics of Guangfu Ancestral Halls in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Journal of World Architecture 8 (1).
Colville, A. (2020, October 19). Lu Ban, China’s inventor of Everything. The China Project.
i.dcommunity. (n.d.). Rockhampton: Birthplace.
Innisfail Temple. (n.d.).
Lakpura. (n.d.). Jaya Sri Maha Bodhiya.
吕玉廉, and 谭楚明. (2012, September 8). 镇宅之神”陈仲真传奇.
Mackett, P. (n.d.). Coloured Labour and Asiatic Aliens in Queensland 1913-1. Centre for Indigenous Family History Studies.
Mark, J. (2020, September 23). Siddhartha Gautama.
Museums and Galleries Queensland. (n.d.). Lit Sung Goon Collection.
Queensland Government. (n.d.). Baga National Park.
Su, M. (2022, August 28.). 澳大利亚洛金顿埠烈圣宫. City of Literature.
Rockhampton City Council. (n.d.). Approved Plans.
Wang, H. (n.d.). On Foshan Woodcarving. Foshan Museum.
