Chiang Mai
We arrived in Chiang Mai in time for the Saturday Night Market on Wualai Street. This was a pleasant break from temple viewing even though the market was packed with people along the two kilometers of vendors selling everything from household articles, clothing and food to nice paintings and junky tourist souvenirs. For those who like to eat, the food stalls offered all kinds of delicacies, from sushi to local Laotian dishes. In the middle of the street, musicians would play offering various kinds of entertainment. At the Sunday market in the center of town we came across a woman, Mai Maung, who has a beautiful voice and were so impressed that we bought one of her cds. The Saturday Market is just outside the perimeter of the old town, while the Sunday market is in the center of the moat enclosed gated ancient city. Temples are on either side, many lining the moat area. Further outside are the main new malls, some of which put many U.S. malls to shame, and excellent (and inexpensive!) dentists, which I happened to need to use. (The level of health care I received on short notice was amazing. I had three dentists working on a broken tooth, and fixing it quickly and well, so that I could continue to travel without concern. The entire three hour visit, including x-rays, cost $78. My insurance co-pay in the States for the same thing cost me over $600. There is something severely amiss in our health care system.)
I had come to Chiang Mai to see the similarities and differences in the architecture of the wats here versus in Myanmar and Northern Laos and was not disappointed. Starting with perhaps the earliest Wat Chiang Mun on the opposite side of the Northern moat to the most recent relic addition to Wat Lokmolee in 2003, the temples, their imagery and architecture tell stories of the political and sacred history of the region.
Wat Chiang Mun was “built during 1296-1297 by Phya Mungrai, It was the first royal temple built in vicinity to Chiang Mai’s ancient city. The temple has several valuable historical artifacts, the most significant are the white quartz Buddha image of Phra Setangkamani or ‘Phra Kaew Khao’ in lanna style which Phya Mungrai brought from Hariphunchai and also a stone Buddha statue in the posture of subduing the elephant “Nalakiri” carved by craftsman of the Pala school. … The 700 year old chedi ‘Chang Lom,’ or elephant-surrounded stupa, is the oldest and most significant stupa within the temple compound. Phra Setangamani (Crystal Buddha) is supposed to be 1,800 years old and ‘Phra Sila’ (Marble Buddha) is supposed to be have been made 2,500 years ago. The red/gold lacquered walls are filled with paintings of legends, kinnaras, and mythical beings as part of the life story of the Buddha.
“Phra Dhatu Chedi Luang is an old pagoda, dating back over 600 years; it is the tallest in Lanna (Northern) Thai Kingdom and in Thailand. It was first constructed in 1391 during the reign of King Saennmuangma (1386-1401). During the reign of Tilokaraja, the 9th monarch of the Mongrai dynasty (1442-1487), the pagoda was reconstructed and enlarged to 80 meters in height and 56 m on each side of its base. It was the mix of Lanna, Sri Lankan and Pagan architectural forms, which indicates the syncretism of religious imagery of the time. The most important change was an alteration of a niche at the eastern side of the pagoda to enshrine the Emerald Buddha, now housed in Bangkok. During the 80 years of its presence in Chiang Mai, the statue was kept in grand a special shine
In 1512, during the reign of Phra Muangkeo, the 11th monarch of the Mongrai dynasty (1495-1525), renovations were made on the pagoda enlargening and strengthening its base and making walled enclosures. Later in 1545, during the reign of Queen Chiroprabha, the 15th monarch, there was a large earthquake which caused the pagoda to topple, leaving only half of its structure standing. It was impossible to restore and remained that way for 400 years. In 1990 the government allocated a budget of 35,000,000 Baht for its restoration. The restored pagoda is 60 m wide at the base but the original height, which would have been higher, is not known.
A new reclining Buddha is housed in a black/gold lacquered building at the back of the ancient chedi. Also near the back is a relatively new Buddhist Manuscript Library and Museum and a Buddhist University. Women are forbidden to enter the section that houses the pillar of Chiang Mai.
The Baan Ping Temple has a 16th C inscription built in peach sandstone again with red painted interiors of gold leaf. There were a number of monks engaged in a teaching session when we were there. A wedding or some other special occasion was underway as there was a teen-aged band playing in the courtyard and young dancers getting ready to rehearse for an evening performance. Some of the monks were preparing to set up tent awnings while other performers and their mothers enjoyed a quick snack at the back of the complex.
Across the street at another Wat there was a beautifully carved white stucco Buddha underneath a Banyan tree. In the back there was a stupa that had rings of pale sandstone mixed in with those of brownish-red and topped with a canopy of gold leaf. The ancestor spirit shrine is housed next to a pure white Buddha. Young monks and girls were scrubbing the ceramic tiles of outside walkways clean while a group of young men were polishing a set of large gongs near the entrance. While this activity was going on inside the temple, a Tuk Tuk driver was catching a few zees, sleeping in driver’s seat outside the wats oblivious to the blaring music.
A few doors down, we came to the teak Wat Phan Tao , which was originally the living quarters for the monks at Wat Chedi Luang. Phan Tao was renovated in 1796 and repeatedly thereafter. “In 1875 Prince Inthawichayanon dismantled a royal residence and rebuilt it here with the most beautiful teak in Chiang Mai.”
There were a number of wats right near our hotel including one with a brilliant gold leaf chedi set amidst gold leaf horses, dragon stairs, land a very large Buddha overlooking the moat in the Earth Touching posture with flat fingers. The temple had three-levels to its sloping roof and in the courtyard images for 8 days of the week, in which the dragon for Saturday became a naga covered Buddha and the Lion for Tuesday became the reclining Buddha. Inside the temple was a beautiful over-life-sized white marble Buddha surrounded by painted scenes from the life of the Buddha on the upper portions of the walls.
There is no known record of the s founding of Wat LokMoLee, but it is mentioned in texts as early as 1367, when the 6th Lanna King of the Mengrai Dynasty invited a group of 10 monks from Burma to bring their study and practice of Buddhism to his kingdom (No, Thailand). The monks stayed at this temple. Phra Kaew Maung ordered a chedi built in 1527 and the main hall built in 1545. The temple houses the ashes of members of the royal Mengrai Dynasty and was maintained by the royal family until the end of their dynasty.
At the entrance to the temple, there are two gold and silver leaf wishing trees filled with red cloth which worshippers tie on to the branches hoping their desires will be fulfilled. The main temple hall is constructed of dark wood that highlights the gold relief carvings of scenes from local legends and the life of the Buddha. Outside the hall is a special shrine to Kuan Yin/Avolokitesvara in her 16 arm form.
Wat Lokmolee means the topknot of the world temple and as late as 2003 the supreme patriarch of Sri Lanka presented a Buddha relic to Wat Lokmolee. Two relics from both of Sangharajas (Supreme Patriarch) were put inside the head and body of Buddha image that cast on Nov. 6, 2546 =2003 AD.
Another temple enshrining Buddha relics is Wat Chiang Yuen whose original date is also unknown, but it is believed that Buddha relices were enshrined here no later than during the reign of Phra Muang Kaeo (1495-1525). The temple was abandoned during the Burmese rule, but reconstructed in 1794 after their expulsion.
Even in the midst of all the Buddha’s imagery, Ganesha has his place. There are a couple of fairly large shrines to him near the northern part of the old city and next to Wat LokMoLee.
We also visited two temples outside of town, Wat Umong and Doi Suthep. Wat Umong is a non-demoninational Buddhist site while Doi Sukhep is perhaps the most sacred of the Chiang Mai temples.
Wat Umong has large stone cats gracing the entrance with coins for good luck placed in their mouth, eyes and ears. In the spirit of universal good will, Universalist sayings are scattered throughout the site. Wat Umong is famous for its tunnels to a chedi in the forest and was renown as a mediation site. Today there is a large black statue of the starving Buddha off to one side, a reminder to keep to the middle way and not go to extremes. The Wat is in a peaceful forest setting where one walks from the chedi to a little pond/lake with Buddha statues and benches on a small island. Large fish, (I could only see the 6 inch tails) a couple of fairly large turtles on rocks, and hundreds of pigeons were part of the wildlife on and near the island. While watching the fish, I looked up to see columns of orange robed young men passing under the palm fronds to work and mediation.
“Identified from historic documents, architectural style and mural paintings, this Wat Umong is assumed to have been built in the 15th-16th C. In 1947 Chao Chen Siroret built the Dhamma garden in the temple and invited Phra Dhamma Kosajarn (Panya Nantha Phikku) to become the abbot of the temple.” This monk had been kicked out of his monastery and disrobed because he was more universalist in his teachings rather than preaching the strict doctrine of his order. He rebuilt Wat Umong to be a site of peace and meditation for people of all faiths. In this Theravadan society, a Tibetan Wheel of Life is painted on a wall in one of the teaching halls.
To get to Doi Suthep one has to go past the University and the zoo, and up the mountain until one reaches a long, 306 stepped, beautifully cut-glass inlayed Naga staircase. The main gold-plated chedi with its five-tiered umbrella at the top of the plateau is reminiscent of Burmese stupas, but with typical green and black Thai guardian figures. It was built during King Kuna’s reign, 1355-1385, to house a Buddha relic. The area around the chedi has a number of Buddha images, including not a few emerald Buddhas. There is one Kuan Yin image, who is strategically placed by a donation box. There is a blue Ganesha near the entrance to the central stupa. Additionally there are a number of sculptures of the founding monks of the current order and those instrumental in renovating the site. The view from Doi Suthep must be spectacular on a clear day when one could have a great view of Chiang Mai, but in the dry season it was just a bit too hazy.
Chiang Mai was wonderful, but we wanted to get to know a bit of rural No. Thailand as well so we headed for Doi Saket and the Baan Chai Thung Resort. This was a fabulous place to stay. It was built by a German who was married a Thai woman and they have fastidiously and caringly created a little bit of paradise on earth for their guests. They had bicycles we could borrow to go into the town of Doi Saket, but it was also within easy walking distance. The first afternoon we arrived, we hit the village’s weekly market. This was strictly a local affair and we were the only non-Thais there. They sold all the normal household items, clothing and, of course, food. It was a lively event.
Doi Saket is also home to a couple of recently renovated temples. The most noticeable from the valley floor is the one with a huge golden Buddha overlooking the back of the valley with a Kuan Yin shrine off to one side. There were universalist sayings throughout this site, giving the impression that this is of the same order as Wat Umong, although a young monk told me the temple was about 300 years old. The chedi towers above the valley on a hill and is reached through a long fairly steep Naga staircase. The central platform has monks’ residences, some smaller shrines, the main temple with the large Buddha images, and a building at the back containing a probably more ancient chedi surrounded by statues of local monks. Behind this complex is the large imposing golden chedi. Behind that are more residences, shrines and shops. The main temple with the four levels of Buddha figures has walls decorated with modern New Age Buddhist paintings. Some of them include: “Image Hides the Buddha,” “Truth Beyond Desire and Ambition” which has a vast sea of animals representing our good and bad thoughts constantly churned by the rage of emotion in our hearts, “Lovingkindness Supports the World,” “Enlightening the Heart,” “Prior Action Determine Nature,” and “The Temple Shines with Truth.” The name of this last picture was given at the request of the sponsor. The artist had named the picture “Free from Theory;” the figure in the picture, who is neither man nor woman, sits (meditating) steady and unwavering above a temple roof with the light of truth shining overhead. Such a person is neither male nor female, is beyond all definitions, and is apart from those who throw themselves into the cycle of existence at the sides. The paintings are quite good and inspirational. Unfortunately, I was not able to find out anything about the artist other than that he was a monk.
On the neighboring hill is an unfinished temple that has both Hindu and Buddhist imagery. There is a nice large stone Kuan Yin up a staircase that only goes to the statue. A forest shrine with Buddha feet is lined with gongs at the back of the shrine complex. Near the front is a little aviary with love birds, cockatoos, various chickens and peacocks.
The walk back down the hill leads to a short staircase through a few local huts and provides a sense of how the people in the region live. There are a number of very large fairly fancy places in Doi Saket, but it doesn’t appear that they are owned by the locals. The region is filled with rice paddies amid small hills and is filled with lush vegetation even now in the dry season. As I look out the window there are three different kinds of palm trees numerous citrus tress, along with any number of trees I can’t identify. Irrigation canals are cut into the landscape throughout the area, some currently dry while others still have some water in them. At the hotel planters filled with water have flower blossoms that have fallen from the trees neatly placed to float on the still liquid offering a peaceful and beautiful accent to the greenery all around. It is really quite wonderful here amid the plants and singing birds.
& just fyi:
Wat = temple; Prathat = pagoda; doi = mountain
Thai B/E calendar = +543yrs from Gregorian
References for Vietnam, Laos and Chiang Mai:
Guillon, Emmanuel. Cham Art: Treasures from the Da Nang Museum, Vietnam. Bangkok: River Books, 2001.
A Historic Chronicle of Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep. Chiang Mai:Sangsilp Printing, 2013.
A Historical Chronicle of Wat Lokmolee, Chiang Mai: Sangsilp Printing, 2008.
Doi Saket handout on New Age Buddhist paintings
History of Wat UMong, Buddhanikom Chiang Mai, 1974
History and Meaning: Ziengkhuan Buddha Park, Pamphlet
Informal Northern Thai Group 21st Anniversary Dec. 1984-2005, Chiang Mai: S.P. Publishing, 2005
The legendary stories of ‘A bitter disappointment for Khunluang Wilanka’s love’ and ‘An immortal love of Pralaw’ Chiang Mai: Sangsilp Printing, 2008.
Vietnamese Folk-Tales Satire and Humor. Vietnam:The Gioi Publishers, 2010.
Vietnam. London: Lonely Planet, 2012
Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Northern Thailand, London: Lonely Planet, 2012.
