Temple sights in Asia
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Wat Suwan Dararam
This temple is not one of the most-visited sites but its different architectural styles make it worth seeing. Set in the southeast of the island, King Rama I designed the exterior of the older-style uposatha while Rama III was responsible for the interior. The slightly bowed line along the temple's edge and its plain finish are typical of the late Ayuthaya period. Next to it is a wí·hǎhn from Rama IV's reign, resplendent with a glittering external mosaic.
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Wat Suan Dok
Built on a former flower garden in 1373, this temple is not as architecturally interesting as the temples in the old city but it does have a very powerful photographic attribute: the temple's collection of whitewashed chedi sit in the foreground while the blue peaks of Doi Suthep and Doi Pui loom in the background.
Wat Suan Dok is also spiritually united with the temple that sits upon Doi Suthep thanks to an auspicious relic brought to Chiang Mai by Phra Sumana Thera, a visiting monk from Sukhothai. According to legend, the relic miraculously duplicated itself: one piece was enshrined in the temple's large central chedi (recently wrapped in gold sheet), while the other was…
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Wat Sisuphan
This wát was founded in 1502, but little remains of the original structures except for some teak pillars and roof beams in the wí·hăhn. The murals inside show an interesting mix of Taoist, Zen and Theravada Buddhist elements. The ubosot (chapel) next door is allegedly the only silver ordination hall in Thailand (although technically they were using a mix of aluminium, compounded silver and pure silver), and the result of the recent renovation is magnificent. The temple hosts a monk chat and meditation instruction. Wat Sisuphan is one of the few wát in Chiang Mai where you can see the Poy Luang (also known as Poy Sang Long) Festival, a Shan-style group ordination of…
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Wat Si Sawai
Just south of Wat Mahathat, this Buddhist shrine (dating from the 12th and 13th centuries) features three Khmer-style towers and a picturesque moat. It was originally built by the Khmers as a Hindu temple.
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Wat Sa Si
Also known as 'Sacred Pond Monastery', Wat Sa Si sits on an island west of the bronze monument of King Ramkhamhaeng (the third Sukhothai king). It's a simple, classic Sukhothai-style wát containing a large Buddha, one chedi and the columns of the ruined wí·hăhn.
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Wat Saphan Hin
Located on the crest of a hill that rises about 200m above the plain, the name of the wát, which means 'stone bridge', is a reference to the slate path and staircase that leads up to the temple, which are still in place. The site is 3km west of the former city wall and gives a good view of the Sukhothai ruins to the southeast and the mountains to the north and south.
All that remains of the original temple are a few chedi and the ruined wí·hăhn, consisting of two rows of laterite columns flanking a 12.5m-high standing Buddha image on a brick terrace.
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Wat Ratburana
Across the street from Wat Phra Si Ratana Mahathat, Wat Ratburana draws fewer visitors but in some ways is more interesting than its famous neighbour. In addition to a wí·hăhn with a 700-year-old gold Buddha, an ùbohsòt chapel with beautiful murals thought to date back to the mid-19th century, and two hŏr đrai, the temple is also home to a few quirky attractions that offer a fascinating insight into the practices of Thai Buddhism.
The most obvious of these is a large wooden boat decked with garlands that originally served to transport King Rama V on an official visit to Phitsanulok. Today the boat is thought to grant wishes to those who make an offering and crawl…
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Wat Phra That Narai Cheng Weng
About 5km west of town at Ban That is a 10th- to 11th-century Khmer prang (named Phra That Nawaeng, a contraction of the words Narai Cheng Weng) in the early Bapuan style. Originally part of a Khmer-Hindu complex, the five-level sandstone prang is missing much of its top, but still features several lintels including a reclining Vishnu over its northern portico and a dancing Shiva over its eastern one. It's not very impressive or evocative, but it's the most complete Khmer ruin in the province.
To get here by public transport take sŏrng·tăa·ou 3 (10B) from near the market or catch it heading north on Th Ratpattana. Get off at Ban That Market and walk 500m south.
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Wat Phra That Doi Tung
At the peak, 1800m above sea level, Wat Phra That Doi Tung is built around the twin Lanna-style chedi. The chedi were renovated by Chiang Mai monk Khruba Siwichai, famous for his prodigious building projects, early in the 20th century. Pilgrims bang on the usual row of temple bells to gain merit. Although the wát isn't that impressive, the forested setting will make the trip worthwhile. From the walled edge of the temple you can get an aerial view of the snaky road you've just climbed. A walking path next to the wát leads to a spring and there are other short walking trails in the vicinity.
A bit below the peak is the smaller Wat Noi Doi Tung, where food and beverages…
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Wat Phra That Doi Suthep
Like a beacon projecting a calming blanket on the urban plains below, Wat Suthep is seen clearly from Chiang Mai, majestically perched atop Doi Suthep's summit. It is one of the north's most sacred temples, and Thai pilgrims flock here to make merit to the Buddhist relic enshrined in the picturesque golden chedi. Offering sublime city views, when the clouds and smoke-dust haze (March-June) permit, the temple also has an interesting collection of Lanna art and architecture.
The temple was first established in 1383 under King Keu Naone and enjoys a fantastically mystical birth story. A visiting monk from Sukhothai instructed the Lanna king to take the twin of a miraculous…
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Wat Phra Si Ratana Mahathat
The full name of this temple is Wat Phra Si Ratana Mahathat, but the locals call it Wat Phra Si or Wat Yai. The main wí·hăhn appears small from the outside, but houses the Phra Phuttha Chinnarat, one of Thailand's most revered and copied Buddha images. This famous bronze statue is probably second in importance only to the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok's Wat Phra Kaew.
The story goes that construction of this wát was commissioned under the reign of King Li Thai in 1357. When it was completed, King Li Thai wanted it to contain three high-quality bronze images, so he sent for well-known sculptors from Si Satchanalai, Chiang Saen and Hariphunchai (Lamphun), as well as five…
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Wat Phra Phai Luang
Outside the city walls in the northern zone, this somewhat isolated wát features three 12th-century Khmer-style towers, bigger than those at Wat Si Sawai. This may have been the centre of Sukhothai when it was ruled by the Khmers of Angkor prior to the 13th century.
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Wat Phra Borommathat
Across Mae Nam Ping are the neglected ruins of Wat Phra Borommathat, in an area that was settled long before Kamphaeng Phet's heyday, although visible remains are post-classical Sukhothai. The compound has a few small chedi and one large chedi of the late Sukhothai period which is now crowned with a Burmese-style umbrella added early in the 20th century.
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Wat Pa Silawiwet
It's the hundred or so resident monkeys rather than anything religious that makes this forest temple on the edge of town worth a visit.
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Wat Pa Lelai
For something completely different, visit this wát 500m north of the burial site, across the little bridge. The awesome childlike murals in the two-story building at the back are both enlightening and entertaining.
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Wat Nong Wang
Down at the south end of the lake, Phra Mahathat Kaen Nakhon, the stunning stupa at the heart of this important temple, is Khon Kaen's one must-see. It features enlightening murals depicting Isan culture; various historical displays, including a collection of rare Buddha images on the 4th floor; and a 9th-floor observation deck.
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Wat Mahathat Worawihan
Centrally located, gleaming white Wat Mahathat is a lovely example of an everyday temple with as much hustle and bustle as the busy commercial district around it. The showpiece is a five-tiered Khmer-style prang (Khmer-style stupa) decorated in stucco relief, a speciality of Phetchaburi's local artisans. Inside the main wí·hăhn (shrine hall or sanctuary) are contemporary murals, another example of the province's thriving temple craftsmanship. The tempo of the temple is further heightened with the steady beat from traditional musicians and dancers who perform for merit-making services.
After visiting the temple, follow Th Suwanmunee through the old teak house district…
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Wat Mahathat
Completed in the 13th century, the largest wát in Sukhothai is surrounded by brick walls (206m long and 200m wide) and a moat that is believed to represent the outer wall of the universe and the cosmic ocean. The chedi spires feature the famous lotus-bud motif, and some of the original stately Buddha figures still sit among the ruined columns of the old wí·hăhn. There are 198 chedi within the monastery walls – a lot to explore in what many consider was once the spiritual and administrative centre of the old capital.
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Wat Khu Yang
This Buddhist temple contains a handsome wooden hŏr đrai dating back to the 19th century.
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Wat Chetupon
Located 1.4km south of the city walls, this temple once held a four-sided mon·dòp featuring the four classic poses of the Buddha (sitting, reclining, standing and walking). The graceful lines of the walking Buddha can still be made out today.
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Wat Chetawan, Wat Mahawan & Wat Bupparam
These three wát along Th Tha Phae feature highly ornate wí·hăhn and chedi designed by Shan and Burmese artisans. Financed by Burmese teak merchants who immigrated to Chiang Mai a century or more ago, evidence of Shan/Burmese influence is easily seen in the abundant peacock symbol (a solar symbol common in Burmese and Shan temple architecture) and the Mandalay-style standing Buddhas found in wall niches.
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Wat Chedi Si Hong
Directly across from Wat Chetupon, the main chedi here has retained much of its original stucco relief work, which shows still vivid depictions of elephants, lions and humans.
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Wat Chedi Luang
Another venerable stop on the temple trail, Wat Chedi Luang is built around a partially ruined Lanna-style chedi dating from 1441 that was believed to be one of the tallest structures in ancient Chiang Mai. Stories say it was damaged by either a 16th-century earthquake or by the cannon fire of King Taksin in 1775 during the recapture of Chiang Mai from the Burmese. The famed Phra Kaew (Emerald Buddha), now held in Bangkok's Wat Phra Kaew (), sat in the eastern niche here in 1475. Today there is a jade replica sitting in its place, financed by the Thai king and carved in 1995 to celebrate the 600th anniversary of the chedi (according to some reckonings), and the 700th…
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Wat Chang Lom
Off Hwy 12 in the east zone, Wat Chang Lom (Elephant Circled Monastery) is about 1km east of the main park entrance. A large bell-shaped chedi is supported by 36 elephants sculpted into its base.
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Wat Chama Thewi
A more unusual Hariphunchai chedi can be seen at Wat Chama Thewi (popularly called Wat Kukut) and dates to around the 13th century. Known as Chedi Suwan Chang Kot, it has been restored many times since then, so it is now a mixture of several schools of architecture but is widely regarded as one of the most recent examples of Dvaravati architecture. Each side of the chedi has five rows of three Buddha figures, diminishing in size on each higher level. The standing Buddhas, although made recently, are in Dvaravati style.
The temple is about 1.5km from Wat Phra That Hariphunchai; you can take a motorcycle taxi (20B) from in front of the museum.
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