The Goddess of Mercy Temple in George Town, Penang is fondly known among the locals as 'Kuan Yin Teng' in Hokkien dialect. Stands as one of the oldest Chinese temples in Penang, it was built in 1728 by Chinese settlers boasting Hokkien and Cantonese architecture.

Located at the intersection where China Street meets Jalan Kapitan Keling (formerly known as Pitt Street), The Goddess of Mercy Temple is always incredibly active throughout the opening hours from as early as 6 am and as late as 8 pm.

If you pick any Chinese (or even some other ethics) Penangites, I bet more than 9 out of 10 would know where the 'Kuan Yin Teng' (unless one does not catch your pronunciation!) is located. For Taoist devotees, The Goddess of Mercy Temple is the place of worship where they seek good fortune, good health, good academic result, good marriage and everything that one could thought of in their prayers. In fact, this is also the place where the devotees are looking for salvation. In Malaysia, Goddess of Mercy or Kuan Yin (Guan Yin in Mandarin) is often depicted as female and according to Mahayana doctrine, she is a bodhisattva. She has vowed to listen to the prayers of all sentient beings in times of difficulty and postpone her own Buddhahood (enlightenment) until she has assisted every being on Earth in attaining Nirvana.