The foundation in charge of the historic Dharma Bhakti Temple in Glodok, West Jakarta, will soon reconstruct a burnt down portion of its sanctimonious structure, after Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama gave a green light last month. He vowed that the historic temple would be rebuilt and a nearby road expansion plan would not affect its progress.

Tan Adipranata, chairperson of Dharma Bhakti Temple Foundation, said on January 5 he was relieved that the city administration had spared the ancient temple, which is located in Petak Sembilan, from being affected by the road expansion.

“Ahok said that this temple is cultural heritage, therefore the city administration exempts the temple from the road widening project,” he said after meeting Purnama with a report on the obstacles blocking the temple's reconstruction.

A grand ceremony was organized to celebrate this progress on January 18, when the foundation publicly announced that it would use its own funds to reconstruct the portion of the structure that was burnt down in March last year. While he refrained from sharing details about the total cost that is to be incurred for the temple’s reconstruction, Tan claimed that all of the money would be arranged from the contributions of the congregation.

Supporting its reconstruction, Purnama said that Dharma Bhakti Temple has been recognized as part of the city’s cultural heritage since 1972. He also said that the city administration would offer a construction license to the foundation to help accelerate the renovation project.

“They asked us to provide a license fast and I told them, 'Build it quickly',” he told journalists.

Dharma Bhakti Temple was constructed as long ago as 1650. It was originally named Guo Xun Guan Temple in honour of a Buddhist priest. It was considered the largest temple in Jakarta until a fire engulfed parts of its premises last year.

Photo Credits: The Jakarta Post