The God of big trees

A few revered spirits arrived in Singapore earlier this month. A monkey God, Lord Ganesh, Lord Buddha and Guan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, have all made appearances over the past couple of weeks, causing frenzies of excitement. This has cast fresh doubt on the notion that Singaporeans only care about money.

The furore started around September 12, when somebody spotted the shape of a monkey on a tree along Jurong West St. 42, and promptly decided that it was a Monkey God. According to a sign on the tree, written in Chinese, “Three years ago, a divine monkey had come searching for his father, Monkey God, at this tree. A recent accident caused the bark of the tree to fall off, thus freeing the Monkey God.”

Swarms of devotees gathered everyday, praying, burning incense and placing offerings at the foot of the tree. Before long, Lord Ganesh had been spotted on a nearby tree. There is much debate about the identity of the amorphous figure on a third tree, some saying it’s Lord Buddha, others Guan Yin. The entire area has become a melting pot of worship, with Chinese and Indians of all stripes jostling to get near the sacred trees, sinewy joss sticks and fat garlands in hand.

When people get richer, do they become more or less religious? Amongst other things, it probably depends on how big a role God played in their wealth creation. For instance, Europeans have become less religious over the years, leading to current tensions with God-fearing new migrants. One explanation for this is that following the Age of Enlightenment in Europe, with its emphasis on Science and Rationality, people stopped attributing their newfound wealth to God’s help, but rather to secular foundations. On the other hand, Americans seem to have gotten more religious. The protestant ethic described God as the foundation for hard work and rich rewards. In Europe, the proportion of people who do not believe in God was 18% in 2005. In the US it was 10% in 2004.

It’s hard to tell which way Singapore will go. The number of atheists in the country has been rising, from 14.1% of the total population in 1990 to 14.8% in 2000. On the other hand, some religions are getting bigger—the ranks of the Christians have been growing, from 12.7% in 1990 to 14.6% in 2000. Many of the new converts were plucked from Chinese religions, like Buddhism/Taoism, which saw a decline from 53.5% to 51% of the total population during the same period. The proportion of Muslims dropped from 15.3% to 14.9%; Hindus grew from 3.7% to 4%; and those with ‘Other religions’ (English football?) stayed constant at 0.6%.

But statistics only tell so much. After all, religiosity is difficult to measure. Simply listing your religion as “Christian” or “Buddhist” does not say how religious you are.

In Singapore, it appears that while the proportion of atheists is growing, religious people are as devout as ever. Monkey Gods in Jurong, the rise of the mega-church, and the large role of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) are all proof of the importance of God to many people.

What’s more, money-making seems to be well tied in to Christianity and the Chinese religions. Churches in Singapore have been raising eyebrows with their lavish spending and aggressive investments, but most Christians we meet take it all in their stride. It’s very reminiscent of the US. Work hard, earn lots of money, and have God at the centre.

Soon after Monkey God appeared, so did the entrepreneurs. Typical pilgrimage-site businesses sprouted out, selling ice cream, drinks, food offerings, joss sticks and even A4-sized print outs of the deities, for those unable to get close enough. Meanwhile, fortune hunters have started scouring the surrounding vegetation for apparitions of winning 4D numbers.

And so that area along Jurong West St. 42 has developed into an ecosystem of worshippers, businessmen, hawkers and curious passers-by. Very Singaporean, indeed.