Wat Phra Kaew: The Temple of the Emerald Buddha

Wat Phra Kaew or the Temple of the Emerald Buddha in the royal palace is for many the main attraction of Bangkok. Just a little too busy and chaotic for my taste. Being overwhelmed by fanatically photographing and elbow-butting hordes of Chinese has never been my idea of ​​an ideal day out, but it is indeed a must-see.

The immense palace grounds are 94,5 hectares or about the size of 142 football fields and contain more than 100 buildings, but the Wat Phra Kaew commands all the attention and that is not surprising. It starts immediately upon approaching the complex. Behind the meticulously trimmed lawn, the dazzling whitewashed palace walls rise. The orange-red and deep green glazed roofs and the gold-coloured chedis stand out sharply against the sweltering, azure blue sky and hold an unspoken promise of a fairytale spectacle, which is soon confirmed upon entering.

Nowhere in the country can you get a better picture of Thai architecture than within this temple complex. Although the concept of Thai architecture should be taken with a grain of salt because in fact Thai architecture is an eclectic mix of all kinds of foreign influences, of which the Indian, Khmer, Sri Lankan, Burmese and Chinese were undoubtedly the most important. One thing stands like the proverbial pole above the equally proverbial water: The result of this fusion architecture is overwhelming and that is, no doubt, precisely the intention.

The most striking stylistic feature of Thai architecture is its extraordinarily opulent decorative ornamentation; a unique combination of eclectic, stylistic and floral elements. J. W. von Goethe's'In der Beschränkung zegt sich erst der Meister' was clearly not spent on the Siamese master builders. This is ornamentation in the superlative degree. For example, wood is not simply cut into decorative motifs and figures. No, it is cut and gilded and lacquered and also inlaid with colorful glass mosaics or mother-of-pearl. In other words, the ornamentation is just as layered as the temple roofs…. Precisely in the period that Wat Phra Kaew was built, the Siamese craftsmen excelled in their skills. This was facilitated by the best among them working in the guilds under royal patronage, which specialized in the classical art crafts or chang sip moo, as engaged in engraving, sculpture, lacquerware and stone carving, passing on the particular tricks of their trade from father to son.

Wat phra kaew

Construction of Wat Phra Kaew began in 1783, a year after Rama I, the founder of the Chakri dynasty, still in power today, inaugurated Bangkok's city pillar on Rattanakosin Island. This Siamese monarch not only wanted to realize his dynastic ambitions by founding a new capital, but also wanted to distance himself from Thonburi on the other bank of the Chao Phraya, founded by his predecessor Taksin. All memories of Taksin and his regime, who had been eliminated at his request, had to disappear and, moreover, the old palace, which was squeezed between Wat Arun and Wat Tha, was bursting at the seams. By building a temple next to the palace, Rama I followed a long tradition. Just think of Wat Mahathat next to the palace in Sukhothai, Wat Phra Si Sanphet in Ayutthaya and Wat Arun in Thonburi. The northeastern corner of the outer court of the palace was chosen as the location for the new temple complex.

The great Ubosot or ordination hall of the temple (saiko3p / Shutterstock.com)

The big Ubosot or ordination hall of the temple was the first building in Bangkok to be constructed entirely of brick. The royal palace, built at the same time, was still largely a teak construction. This spacious building, which stands on a platform covered with marble slabs, forms the central and most revered part of the temple complex. The works around the temple progressed so well that on March 22, 1784, in a grand ceremony, the emerald Buddha was transferred from Wat Arun to the newly completed ordination hall. To be clear, I would also like to debunk a persistent misunderstanding. This idolatrously worshiped Buddha statue is not carved from emerald but from jade. This misunderstanding has everything to do with the fact that the first English travelogues without exception and incorrectly referred to 'The Emerald Buddha' - the Emerald Buddha…

De Ubosot however, the one we see today is not the same one built by Rama I. In 1831, Rama III had the exterior of this building radically renovated and embellished. Now this building, which forms the heart of the temple complex, is the textbook example of the enormous degree of skill and perfection that the craft locks had achieved at the beginning of the Rattanakosin period. This is not only reflected in the exterior with the bluestone lions, gilded bronzes Garudas, the walls decorated with floral motifs and the pillars inlaid with gold leaf, mother-of-pearl and small mirrors, but especially in the almost fairytale-like interior with the large wall paintings, the oxblood red ceiling that is interrupted by gigantic beams with gold-coloured patterns and the breathtaking central pedestal with the enthroned Green Buddha in lotus position, meditating in it.

Gilded bronze Garudas

Twelve identical SalaSmall pavilions, open on all sides, surround the ordination hall. They were built by Rama I to receive pilgrims. Just like the Ubosot these are no longer the original buildings because they too were renovated and even replaced with the regularity of a clock. The major renovation of the Ubosot and the rest of the temple, which began in 1832, was by no means the only one. In 1832 formed the 50^e Bangkok's birthday for Rama IV was the direct reason to extensively restore and embellish the temple. These restoration works were only completed under his son Rama V, just in time to add luster to Bangkok's centenary in 1882. In 1932, it was Rama VII who completed the 150^e Bangkok's anniversary for new construction, while Rama IX did the same in 1982 when the capital celebrated its 200th anniversary.

The bell-shaped gold-leaf clad Phra Sri Rattana Chedi

At least as interesting as the Ubosot it is by gilded bronze Kinnon – mythical half-bird, half-man creatures – guarded Than Phaithi, a terrace on the north side of the ordination hall. Here you will find, among other things, the bell-shaped, covered with gold leaf Phra Sri Rattana Chedi which was built by Rama IV in 1855 as a shrine for a piece of the Buddha's sternum. This relic is housed in a smaller, black-painted stupa inside the chedi. The chedi itself was inspired by the stupas of Wat Phra Si Sanphet in Ayutthaya, which were destroyed by the Burmese, which in turn were based on Sri Lankan examples. Next to this impressive shrine is the square, which is interesting from an architectural point of view Phra Mondop. This richly decorated structure houses a number of holy scriptures. The core of this library is the revised version of the Tripitaka, the canonical sacred texts of Theravad Buddhism.

Prasat Phra Thep Water Bottle

After the centuries-old royal Siamese collection of this collection of texts was lost due to the sack of Ayutthaya in 1767, Rama I commissioned the monks of Wat Mahatat Yuwaratrangsarit in 1788 to rewrite, revise and supplement this collection. The result of this diligent painstaking work ended up in the Phra Mondop. This Shut up is flanked on four sides by Buddhas that were given to Rama V by Carel Herman Aart van der Wijck, the governor-general of the Dutch East Indies, during his visit in July 1896 to the Borobodur in Java. The third building on this terrace is the Prasat Phra Thep Water Bottle. Construction of this pavilion had begun in 1855 with the intention of housing the Emerald Buddha. But delays in the construction plans and a raging fire prevented this. Finally, in the early XNUMXs, Rama VI decided to turn it into a royal Pantheon in which life-size statues of the monarchs from the Chakri dynasty are displayed.

And when visiting a complex, don't forget to visit the galleries that contain beautiful and particularly detailed frescoes. These murals were created in the reign of Rama III and depict excerpts from the national Ramakien epic.

Like all temples on Rattanakosin Island, Wat Phra Kaew is overflowing with life-size Chinese bluestone statues of warriors, mandarins and animals—mostly lions—who act as temple guardians. They date back to the period of Rama III when they were used as ballast on Chinese junks heading for Siam. However, some of these statues were also carved on site by Chinese stone and sculptors, true masters of their craft.

Yaksha

And speaking of temple guards: To conclude, a Dutch link. When visiting this temple complex, be sure to pay attention to the 12 gigantic ones Yaksha, the almost 5 meter high tutelary deities of the temple & palace complex. They inspired Anton Pieck for the terrifying guards of Efteling.