Just came back from a short but absolutely thrilling Thai
trip. Have got countless memories to share but due to limitation of time and
space on this blog, I will try to do it one by one.
Here is the story of our first stop in Bangkok, the famous
and magnificent Golden Buddha Temple.
The Golden Buddha is the world's largest solid gold statue.
It is located in the temple of Wat Traimit, Bangkok Thailand.
Temple of Wat Traimit
Side view of the Shikhar of Wat Traimit
Monk seated @ the entrance of the temple, blessing devotees with Holy water
Intricate wooden carving on the way to main temple hall
Buddhist mythology is indeed Hindu mythology, but with different local names at times
The origins of this statue remain uncertain. It is made in
the Sukhothai Dynasty style, and is thought to have been made during the
Sukhothai period in the 13th-14th centuries. The head of the statue is
egg-shaped, which indicates its origin in the Sukothai period. Sukothai art had
Indian influences. Metal figures of the Buddha made in India used to be taken
to various countries for installation. So the Golden Buddha statue may have
been cast in parts in India.
Later the statue was moved from Sukhothai to Ayutthaya in
1403. At some point of time, the statue was completely plastered over to
prevent it from being stolen. This plaster was later painted and inlaid with
bits of coloured glass. It is believed that this plastering was done to protect
the statue in Ayutthaya kingdom from Burmese invaders. The statue subsequently
remained among the ruins of Ayutthaya without attracting much attention.
In 1801, Thai King Rama I after establishing Bangkok as a
new capital city of the Kingdom, and after commissioning the construction of
many temples in Bangkok, ordered that various old Buddha images should be
brought to Bangkok from the ruined temples around the country. So this was the
time that the Golden Buddha was probably brought from Ayutthaya to Bangkok.
After being moved to the temple of Wat Traimit in Bangkok the statue was kept
under a tin roof for about 20 years. Thus, it seems like the true identity of
this statue was forgotten for almost 200 years
Celling of the main temple hall beautifully decorated with elaborate gold work
In 1954, a new Viharn building was built at the Temple, so
it was decided to house the statue there. The statue was being moved to its new
location on 25 May 1955. During the final attempt to lift the statue from its
pedestal, the ropes holding the statue broke, and the statue fell down hard on
the ground. At that time, some of the plaster coating of the statue chipped
off, allowing the gold surface underneath to be seen. So this is how the real
statue beneath the plaster was revealed. The work was immediately stopped so
that the full evaluation could be made.
Later, all plaster was carefully removed, so that the Gold
Buddha could be seen again in all its glory. In the process, the photos of
different stages of plaster removal had been taken and are now displayed in the
Temple for the visitors. Also on display are some of the old pieces of the
plaster.
When the plaster was being removed, it was also found that
the gold statue actually consists of nine parts that all fit smoothly together.
Also, a key was found encased in plaster at its base. This key could be used to
disassemble the statue, to facilitate its transportation.
The statue made or 18
carat Solid Gold is 3 metres (9.8 ft) tall and weighing 5500 kg, is the World
Biggest Solid Gold Statue holding a Guinness Book of World record on it name.
For all those people whose mind has already started
calculating the price of gold used for the statue, let me tell you that Im no
different and tried doing the same. However to my bigger surprise, just before
displaying the final result of calculation my device said, RESULT TOO LARGE TO
DISPLAY. Then it suddenly struck me, I thought to myself, mathematics could
probably measure the money spent for moulding the statue but not the Devotion
of the people. Science has its own limitations you see.
However, going by the present market price of Gold at 30000
Rs for per 10 grams, a Solid Gold Statue of 5500 Kg would value at around
1650,000,000,00 Rs. Yes of course that’s only the cost of gold involved,
without considering the Antique Value of the statue. My knowledge of
mathematics is however limited to express the amount in words. You may like to
give it a try....
Chatraa covering the head of Lord Buddha, again very similar to Hindu ways of worship
Beautiful gold hangings on the edge and dull silver finish at the centre makes a perfect combination
Temple columns decorated with gold enamel
Beautiful arches and windows with detailed work
Bells form a very integral part of Buddhist culture and philosophy
Garuda the divine carrier of Lord Vishnu on the bell
There are something’s which get etched into your memory for
ever. This was one of those experiences. Golden Buddha Temple is truly a
marvel. A height of human perfection and devotion which might never be
paralleled in the time to come.
Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed it putting it together for you... Stay in touch for more..
Images curtsey: Canon DSLR 550D mounted with Telephoto Tamaron 80-210mm
History curtsey: Wiki & our amazing Thai Guide cum Trip coordinator, Mr. Andy
This one's for you Andy...
Till then, as they say in Thai, Sawasdee
Images curtsey: Canon DSLR 550D mounted with Telephoto Tamaron 80-210mm
History curtsey: Wiki & our amazing Thai Guide cum Trip coordinator, Mr. Andy
This one's for you Andy...
