Wat Chedi Luang
The Wat Chedi Luang ( Thai วัด เจดีย์ หลวง , about Temple of the Royal Stupa ) is a Buddhist temple complex ( Wat ) in Chiang Mai in the Chiang Mai Province . It is a Third Class Royal Temple .
location
Wat Chedi Luang is located in the center of Chiang Mai. Originally there were three temples here: Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Ho Tham and Wat Sukmin.
Building history
Wat Chedi Luang was started in the 14th century when King Saen Mueang Ma wanted to keep his father's ashes here. However, after ten years of construction, the buildings remained unfinished. It was only when the king himself died that his widow continued the construction. Probably due to structural problems, King Tilokaratcha did not complete the complex until the middle of the 15th century. The building was 82 meters high at the time and had a diameter of 54 meters at the base, making it the tallest building in Lan Na at the time .
In 1468 the Emerald Buddha was set up in the east-facing niche. After an earthquake in 1545, the structure of the top 30 meters collapsed. Shortly afterwards, in 1551, the Emerald Buddha was taken to Luang Prabang , northern Laos .
In the early 1990s, the chedi was reconstructed with the help of UNESCO and the government of Japan . The result was a bit controversial as the new elements are kept in a central Thai style and not in the typical Lanna style. For the 600th anniversary of Chedi in 1995, a copy of the Emerald Buddha made of black jade was placed in the eastern niche. This icon is officially called Phra Phut Chaloem Sirirat , but Phra Yok for short by the locals .
Attractions
- The Wihan Luang was built in 1412 by Tiloka-Chuda, mother of King Sam Fang Kaen. In 1577 it was replaced by King Tilokarat with a new 18 × 38 square meter building, which was later rebuilt on the old site after a fire. Since this building was also made of wood, it was so in need of repair in 1889 that it was torn down and rebuilt again by King Intha Wichayanon. The current building is from Chao Kaeo Nawarat . In 1928 he had the previous building demolished and in the following year a Wihan, which was once again enlarged to 19.7 × 50.8 square meters, was inaugurated.
- The main Buddha statue in Wihan Luang called Phra Chao Attarot (Eighteen-Kubit Buddha) was cast at the same time, as were the two statues of the disciples of the Buddha that flank the Phra Attarot. Phra Attarot is 8.23 meters high, the statue of Mogallana is 4.43 meters and that of Sariputta 4.19 meters. Allegedly, several other seated statues are said to have been made at the same time, which are now grouped around the three standing statues. The place north of the temple where the statues were cast was later leveled and today's temple Wat Pantao was built.
- To the north and south of the Wihan Luang there is a chedi about 13.4 meters high . They should be as old as the temple. In 1993 they were restored with private funds.
- To the west opposite the Chedi Luang there is another Wihan with a reclining Buddha, which was supposedly made from bricks clad with cement when the temple was founded. The Buddha statue, gilded with gold leaf , faces north-south, the face looks at the Chedi Luang. The statue is 8.70 meters long and 1.93 meters high. The open Wihan was only recently built.
- West of the Wihan of the Reclining Buddha is a small space surrounded by a wall ubosot . However, it was abandoned in 1979 because it had become too small at 20.3 meters × 8.9 meters in size. All ceremonies are performed today in the Wihan Luang.
- The city pillar ( Lak Mueang ) of Chiang Mai, called Sao Inthakin , is also located on the site of Wat Chedi Luang . King Chao Kawila had it moved here in 1800 after it was originally located at Wat Sadue Mueang. He also had three yang trees planted to help the city pillar protect the city. The highest of them is now over 40 meters high and has a trunk circumference of 10.6 meters.
- The Lanna campus of the Mahamakut Buddhist University of Thammayut Nikaya is also located on the temple grounds.
- Only recently was a small Wihan built in the traditional Lanna style southwest of the Chedi Luang, which is entirely dedicated to the memory of Phra Ajahn Mun Bhuridatta , who lived here as an abbot in the early 1920s . Inside there are life-size statues of the teacher and his most famous student Ajahn Maha Bua Nyanasampanno .
swell
- Carol Stratton: Buddhist Sculpture of Northern Thailand . Silkworm Books, Chiang Mai 2004, ISBN 1-932476-09-1
- Phra Buddhaphotchanavarabhorn: A Guide to Wat Chedi Luang . Wat Chedi Luang, Chiang Mai 1995. (Brochure published on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of the temple)
literature
- Clarence Aasen: Architecture of Siam: A Cultural History and Interpretation . Oxford: Oxford University Press 1998. ISBN 983-56-0027-9 .
Web links
- http://deutsch.chiangmai1.com/chiang_mai/wat_chedi_luang.shtml Description of Wat Chedi Luang
Coordinates: 18 ° 47 '13.4 " N , 98 ° 59' 11.4" E