Buddhas in Singapore museum

In Europe one can go to museums to see European art but in Singapore the best museum concentrates its attention on Asian art. One can see for example the development of a Buddha figure throughout the ages and in many countries. Here are just a few of them. 

Buddha from Gandhara (today's Afghanistan), 3rd century

Buddha from Java, 8th century, 

Buddha from North India, 9th century

Buddha from Thailand, 15th century

Buddha from Tibet, 16th century

Standing Buddha from North India, 10th century

Buddha from China, 6th century

Standing Buddha from Cambodja, 5th century

Hindu temple in Singapore

This is a Hindu temple in Singapore.
Hindus come to a temple for a "darshan", or seeing the face of God. Hinduism is of course a religion of many currents, for ascetics this darshan is achieved after a long meditation, but for ordinary people it is a visit in a temple to see a face of a figure. This is what the figure is there for. There is a special ceremony, analogous to the Catholic transfiguration, after which it becomes a body of God, very much like the Catholic host. It is not eaten but treated like a host in a monstrance. The priests treat this figure as a living being, they wash it, bring meals to it, put to bed. Which is a bit similar to figures of saints in Latin countries, where the figures are clad, and the clothing is regularly changed and washed.

Singapore old and new

A mixture of old and new and all world traditions can be seen at every corner in Singapore. They seem to connect well there. Just a few vistas here to illustrate this.

BC Indian hats

Do you think American Indian traditional head covering is a feather bonnet? Well, not in British Columbia. There the traditional head covering is a basket. A properly traditional one should be made with tree roots although nowadays one can see cheaper ones, perhaps not made in China but using some other than traditional materials. Anyway don't you dare put on a bonnet if you happen to paddle one of the traditional Indian ocean-going boats. 
All these pictures were taken during a rally of such boats in 2014 in Alert Bay.