THAILAND: Temples - From Old to New

Sukhothai, which means “dawn of happiness”, is about a 6-hour drive north of Bangkok. It was the first capital city of Thailand and its glory days date back to 700 years ago.

Sukhothai Historical Park is just outside the current city of Sukhothai. It is an archaeological site containing the ruins of the original Sukhothai.

One of the temples, Wat Si Chum (Temple of the Bodhi Tree), was constructed approximately 700 years ago. 

The Phra Achana is the largest Buddha image in Sukhothai with the Buddha seated and 15 metres/49 ­foot high and over 11 metres wide. 

The sitting Buddha peers through the slit. 

 

In the historical archeological park you can see the ruins of the original city. 

In ancient Sukhothai different rulers fought for control of various parts of Siam (Thailand). 

King Naresuan (1555-1605), was known for his campaigns against the Burmese who ruled parts of Siam during his time. 

According to legend, before one battle King Naresuan set up camp at the temple of Wat Si Chum in Sukhothai. 

With his army low on confidence, King Naresuan selected one of his soldiers to climb, unnoticed by the other soldiers, up the secret narrow stairway in the temple. 

From behind the Buddha image he delivered a motivational speech to the troops. The acoustics of the small space and the fact that the speaker could not be seen made the soldiers believe it was the image of the Buddha speaking to them and it boosted the morale of Naresuan’s army. 

Another version of the story goes that the Burmese armies fled in fear when they saw the Buddha figure.

Today, Buddhists place gold-leaf on the tapered fingernails when making merit. 

Another 5 1/2 hours drive north of Sukhothai, just outside Chang Rai, is the Wat Rong Khun (the White Temple.)

In contrast to the ancient site at Sukhothai, the White Temple opened to the public in 1997. So it is very new.

Wat Rong Khun is a unique temple that stands out because of the white colour and the use of pieces of glass in the plaster, making it sparkle in the sun. The white colour signifies the purity of the Buddha, while the glass symbolizes the Buddha’s wisdom and the Dhamma, the Buddhist teachings.

The White Temple was designed and constructed by Chalermchai Kositpipat, a famous Thai visual artist from the area. He decided he wanted to have total control over the design, so he built it with his own money. 

He considers the temple to be an offering to Lord Buddha and believes the project will give him immortal life. It is not expected to be completed until 2070.

When completed, the white temple compound will have nine buildings, including a hall of relics, a meditation hall, an art gallery, and living quarters for monks.

The main building at the white temple is reached by crossing a bridge over a small lake. 

In front of the bridge are hundreds of outreaching hands that symbolize unrestrained desire. The bridge proclaims that the way to happiness is by foregoing temptation, greed, and desire. 

I am not sure exactly whether this is part of the original design, or, some budding artist wanted to add their own interpretations.

Crossing the small bridge represents the transition from the cycle of life to the land of the Buddha.

Another interesting building on site is the Golden Building. This golden building contains the toilets. It represents the body and how people focus on worldly desires and money. 

There is no shortage of Buddha temples in Thailand and these are just two that contrast the old and the new.