In the 40s and 50s Singapore spirits, gods, demons, ghosts and human beings jostle for space among the crowded quarters of old Singapore town. The supranatural and other worldly were not some dimension to be evoked through magical rituals but were just another aspect of life. To put it another way, the two existed side by side.
Daily existence followed the rhythm of this other worldly (if it is indeed right to call it that) dimension. When you get up in the morning you would change the tea or water on the altar table where the house gods (Guan Yin, Monkey God or some other deity that had been ritualistically and properly invited) and the ancestral tablets would be displayed. Then you lit the incense sticks to start the day.
That inaugurated and began the day setting the stage for the activities to follow whether it be work or study or simply cleaning the house. It also acknowledged the protection of the deities that had guarded the house and inhabitants through the long, often dark night because in those days night time often meant darkness as it was too expensive to switch on lights and the street lamps would often not be working
or there would be simply no street lamps.
The act of lighting and offering the incense sticks to the deities affirm an important link between the devotee and the spiritual world. You lit three incense sticks representing Heaven, Earth and Man. However three incense sticks were also lit because the number three signifies change, the opening of the mind that allows the movement that links the devotee through his act to the spiritual world.
In the evening at 5.00 pm just before dinner and when the household members had returned from the day's work or activity another three incense sticks would be lit for the altar. This acknowledged the deities' role as well as the ancestors in a safe (and productive) day and anticipated the closing of the door after dinner. As in the morning the incense sticks also prepared for the night when ill-meaning spirits or passing demons might prowl round the house.
The last set of incense sticks to the Heaven God (Tien Gong) would be lit after dinner and just before bed time usually about 9.00 pm. The incense would not be placed on the altar but in a separate container with a tablet to the Heaven God. This last prayer before the day was "officially" over paid respect to the pantheon of heavenly spirits acknowledged the larger forces of Nature and the Universe.
All the households in old Singapore town carried out this ritual, some more religiously others when they had the opportunity. However, all accepted and participated in the customary traditions that this enacted.
On a larger platform, the tradition sustained a set of beliefs as well as actions that mark the life of old Singapore town from Chinese New Year to Ching Ming Festival and to the Moon Cake Festival. So each festival was not just "theatre" (easy enough to describe it as such nowadays making it even easier therefore to put culture on for display for tourists) but acts of faith and conviction that came from and affirmed cultural sensibilities and religious outlooks.
This was the rhythm of a daily and then yearly life following the dates and events spelled out by culture and the past.
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