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Wat Pho, or Wat Phra
Chetuphon as it is generally known to the Thais, is mainly famous
for the huge Reclining Buddha statue it houses. At 20 acres
large, it is the largest Wat in Bangkok, and is technically
the oldest too, as it was built around 200 years before Bangkok
became Thailand's capital. However, today the Wat today bears
virtually no resemblance to that originally constructed, as
it was almost entirely rebuilt by Rama I when the capital was
moved to Bangkok.
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holds the dual honors of having both Thailand's largest reclining
Buddha image and the most number of Buddha images in Thailand.
The highly impressive gold plated reclining
Buddha is 46 meters long and 15 meters high, and is designed
to illustrate the passing of the Buddha into nirvana. The
feet and the eyes are engraved with mother-of-pearl decoration,
and the feet also show the 108 auspicious characteristics
of the true Buddha.
The large grounds of Wat Pho contain
more than 1000 Buddha images in total, most from the ruins
of the former capitals Ayuthaya and Sukhothai. The grounds
are split in two by Chetuphon road. The northern section is
generally the only one most people go to, and it includes
a large bot (temple hall), enclosed by 394 bronze Buddha images.
Outside the bot, there are 152 marble slabs depicting the
second half of the epic Ramakian story. Also near here are
four chedis, constructed to honor the first three Chakri kings
(two for King Rama III). There are also a massive 91 others
Chedis of varying sizes arounds the grounds, along with chapels,
rock gardens, an array of different types of statues, inscriptions,
belltowers and resident fortune tellers. The library is nearby
too, decorated impressively with figures and pagodas made
of porcelain, in much the same way as Wat Arun across the
river. The much less visited southern section has less of
interest, but makes a good place to find a monk to chat to
for a while. Most would welcome the chance to practice their
English on visitors. |
