Off the coast of Pulau Ubin, lies the remnants of a temple few Singaporeans have ever heard of. Wooden planks, offering bowls, a brick furnace and two weathered deities Tua Pek Kong and Guan Yin, are all that are left of this forgotten temple. But before we dive further, where is Tanjong Tajam in the first place?
Where is Tanjong Tajam?
Tanjung Tajam on the western end of Pulau Ubin and is situated within the grounds of Outward Bound Singapore (OBS) which are off limits to the public. If you see where it is located from this Google Maps pin, its not difficult to see why most people wouldn’t know of its existence. It is hard to ascertain why it was built at such a hard to reach location, but it is said that caves and boulder formations are often seen as spiritual spaces. Another possibility is that boats could easily dock by the jetty so that seafarers could pray for safety while they were out at sea.
The temple’s rediscovery
The temple came to light again some time in 2021 when a YouTuber by the name of Alley Cat posted a video titled: SECRET LOCATION in Singapore! Towards the end of the video, a person by the name of @tigerzbeer shared a photo of his visit to this temple some time in the 1990s, but that was all that was shared. With ourselves being bored during the COVID-19 period, we too went to check this place out by ourselves.
On our visit
Upon visiting during low tide, the rocks were exposed, allowing us to venture further. Wooden planks were all that was left of the temple, along with:
There were fresh oranges, perhaps by past visitors that also had the same idea of visiting this place after watching the video. We made a reel of our visit and posted it on Instagram & TikTok. To our surprise, quite a few people commented that they visited this temple when they were younger. Out of all the comments, @tigerzbeer, the same person that sent his old photo of his visit to the temple dropped us a message, revealing even more crazy details of his trips there.
The man who remembered: Life on the offshore temple
As we spoke, he shared a treasure trove of never before seen images of his visits to the former temple between 1988 to 1992. He spoke of how the place acted like an off-grid chalet to them, where they camped overnight on hammocks, cooked meals under the stars and went fishing. They would call a boatman from Punggol Jetty at the price of $20 each way, but by the time it was split between all twelve of them, it was practically pocket change. It was quiet abode from the hustle and bustle of Singapore which they had all to themselves.
The night the STAR team arrived
One night in 1990, a trip took a dramatic turn when out of nowhere, officers from the Special Tactics and Rescue (STAR) team descended from the rocks as they were combing Pulau Ubin to hunt four robbers who had stolen a boat and fled to the island. They were likely having too much fun in their own offshore chalet that checking the news was the last thing on their minds!
Thankfully the officers didn’t put a pause to their party and let the boys be. However, being paranoid that armed robbers may suddenly appear, they each took turns doing guard duty with a parang (machete) in hand. Thankfully nothing happened in the end, but it was quite a story to tell.
Mischievous times
He openly admitted that him and his group were a bunch of troublemakers, as he recalled flashing SOS torch signals at passing boats for fun, until receiving a huge scolding from the coast guard.
He also shared how him and his friends trespassed onto OBS grounds while they were doing renovations to take large ropes which they used to toy to the top of the rocks. The rock wall essentially became a climbing gym them.
A quiet fade into history
When asked about when the temple was built, he was unsure either. However he shared that by his last visit in 1992, the planks in the temple were already loose and shaky, likely due to the constant beating by the waves. His friend who later on became a coastguard, shared that by 1995, the entire structure had eventually been demolished.
Not much else is known about this temple, but if anyone knows more about it or have photos to share, don’t hesitate to drop us a message!
