People call Bang Niew Shrine many names such as Tao Boo Geng Shrine or Arm Boo Tueng (Arm is the name Phuket people use to mean a shrine). Or it is commonly known as Dhebrasi Foundation or Chai Tueng Foundation. Villagers call it Tao Bo Geng. This shrine is considered as an ancient shrine as it was established in 1904. It is known that a Chinese opera troupe called “Gang Chai Yi Troupe” travelled from China to perform at Trok Mao Gao later known as SoiRomanee at present. At that moment, since there was a shrine located there, PraTienHooNguanSoi (Lao Yia) was brought for the public to make merits. Not long after that, a vegetarian festival and a tradition to observe religious precepts have existed up to now and villagers in that neighborhood have pinned such an unshakeable faith that a great number of people engage in the activities.Later, an accident in which fire broke out at the shrine occurred and no one knew the cause of the fire and a group of villagers decided to install PraTienHooNguanSoi (Lao Yia) at Arm Bang Niew (which is Bang Niew Shrine nowadays) and they co-operate to build a wooden shrine of which the roof is made of Nipa palm and 4-5 years later the same accident of which the cause is unknown took place. So, villagers agreed to install PraTienHooNguanSoi (Lao Yia) in the place opposite to the scene. They believe so strongly in the holy statue that the number of visitors has surged unexpectedly and the place become too narrow. The troupe led by KhunLerdpatarukagreew to expand the area of the shrine and transform the shrine into a concrete building which has enough capacity. The arc was built and carved in a Chinese dragon. Once entering the shrine, you will see two lion statues and the wall is colorfully painted as Chinese creatures believed to bring luck and tales telling the story appearing in the Chinese literature. In addition, every pillar is a dragon pillar, which makes the shrine look more colorful.
Resource : www.tourismthailand.org
