The History and Legend of “Hian Thian Siang Tee”

OVERVIEW

Welahan Pagoda called “Hian Thian Siang Tee” is located 24 km south of Jepara city center, exactly at Welahan village, Welahan Sub-distric, Jepara Distric, a village with ancient Chinese heirloom and becoming one of the historic tourism assets in Jepara, where strongly standing two pagodas built by a Chinese traditional healer named Tan Siang Boe together with his elder brother named Tan siang Djie. Visiting for this tourism historic object, some asphalted road or infrastructure through whom prospective tourists can pass by and get on 2-wheeled or 4-wheeled vehicles or many other public transports, as the location is nearby Welahan traditional market.

HISTORY AND LEGEND

In 1830 the Dutch General Governor, Johanes Graaf Bosch reigning Indonesia, which was called as the Netherlands Indies Cononization at that time coming a Chinese from China called Tan Siang Boe. His leaving from China to Southeat Asia was to find his elder brother named Tan Siang Djie in Indonesia. Leacing from China together in one boat was a Tasugagu Priest who had meditated from Pho To San at Cinese land, as a meditative place of his excellency minister / emperor Hian Thian Siang Tee during his trip and falling in sick, than with his solidarity and sympathy among people, Tan Siang Boe treated him with his medicines brought with from China, than he could cure Tasugagu’s sickness.
Gratefully for his treatment, while landing at Singapore, Tasu provided a gift in his express of thanks to Tan Siang Boe in the form of a bag with Tionggoan heirloom consisting of : a piece of Sien Tjhiang (smooth paper painted with His Excellency Hian Siang Tee), a stick of pokian (a Chinese sword), a Hio Lauw (place for dust from cremation), and a Tjioe Hwat (a book of medicine / forecast).
After Tan Siang Boe arrived at Semarang, overnight staying in Kong Kwan’s group house where he got an information that his elder brother was in Welahan Jepara, so he left for meeting Tan Siang Djie, his elder brother living together in a house with Liem Tjoe Tien’s family.This house is located at a gang way along side Welahan and now used for keeping the heirloom called Pagoda as a place for praying and respected by each Chinese believing in. After some time ago,Tian Siang Boe staying with his elder brother in Welahan, once upon a time, he went to work for another place In that case, the heirloom were entrustede to his elder brother considering that it was necessary to save the heirloom, so Tan Tjoe Tien entrusted the heirloom to the house owner, Liem Tjoe Tien, who always kept the heirloom up the balcony of his house. At that time, in general, he did not know what heirloomit was kept up the balcony During the storage up the balcony, every 3rd of Sha Gwa’s birth, i.e., Imlek of Seng Tan Djiet from Hian Thian Siang Tee, the heirloom sparked a magic power like sparkling-out fire, sometime like a very marvelous fire-dragon and turtle that made the house settlers gor surprised. This event made him to call back Tan Siang Boe, the entrustee of the heirloom to Welahan to open the heirloom kept in the bag up the balcony. Opening and showing the heirloom to the members of the house settlers, he said that the heirloom were the relic from His Excellency Hian Thiam Siang Tee, so since then, the heirloom were praised according to the ancestor’s custom and tradition.
One day, Liem Tjoe Tian fallen in hard sickand it could be recovered by the magic power of the heirloom. With this event, mouth to mouth talk by people made the power famous, respected and praised among people believing in till now.
Accordingly, the only heirloom of ancient Chinese for the first time coming into Indonesia as brought by Tan Siang Boe is that kept at Welahan, so it is believed that the existence of Welahan pagoda is the oldest one in Indonesia.With this existence of pagoda in Welahan, not only dominated by Chinese ethnic, but alsonatives coming frommany cities or peovinces asking for treatment, destiny, partners, planting and advancement in bussines, etc.