The Twin Pagodas

The Scene:

 

Pictured are the Twin Pagodas from the Chinese garden in the Jurong Area of Singapore. The garden was built in 1975. The main characteristic is the integration of splendid architectural features with the natural environment. The Chinese Garden is modeled along the northern Chinese imperial style of architecture and landscaping. 

 

In ancient times, the pagoda, originally a simple tower located beside a temple, was used for the keeping of human bones by Buddhists. Later, with improvements in architectural skills, incorporated with the traditional art of building, the pagoda was developed into a structure of striking architectural beauty.So the structure in itself - as it is with everything else here in Singapore - pretty new. Not a great deal of history behind it.

 

Here's bit of trivia for you. I had originally thought that the term "pagoda" was actually Chinese or Malay. Forgive me as I don't really have an insight into the South Asian cultures, let alone the nuances of their language, yet. I was surprised to find that the word is actually English!! Here is some explanation:

 

A pagoda is the general term in the English language for a tiered tower with multiple eaves common in Nepal, China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Some pagodas are used as Taoist houses of worship. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most commonly Buddhist, and were often located in or near temples. This term may refer to other religious structures in some countries. In Vietnam, pagoda is a more generic term referring to a place of worship, although pagoda is not an accurate word to describe a Buddhist temple. The modern pagoda is an evolution of the Ancient Nepal stupa, a tomb-like structure where sacred relics could be kept safe and venerated.

 

The word is first attested for in English in the period c. 1625~35; introduced from the Portuguese pagode, temple, from the Persian butkada (but idol + kada temple, dwelling.). Another etymology, found in many English language dictionaries, is modern English pagoda from Portuguese (via Dravidian), from Sanskrit bhagavati, feminine of bhagavatt "blessed" < bhaga "good fortune.". The second one is very interesting as I can relate to it. Also, it has nothing do do with South Asia!!

 

The story:

 

This was a photowalk that was meant to be a month ago - on the starting day of the Lantern Festival. And I'm now thankful that I didn't go on that day. It was a dull and rainy day. Thunderstorms threatened to play spoilsport today as well. But much to my rejoice they cleared away giving us a couple of hours of sunshine and some awesome orange hues in the sky. We reached there well in advance to scout around and plan for the best location to shoot the Pagodas.

 

I'm sure that I will return to the Chinese Garden sometime very soon. Even with the lanterns gone, there is no dearth of interesting subject around here.

The Shot:

 

Canon 10-22 @ 12 mm | ISO 100 | f/16 | 30 sec | Nikon thin Circular polarizer | Lightroom Editing, not a true HDR

Some text adapted from Wikipedia.