Wat Chiang Man - |
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วัดเชียงมั่น |
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Known as: |
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Wat Chiang Mun |
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Description: |
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The Wat Chiang Man is the oldest temple in Chiang Mai and goes
back all the way to the founding of the city in 1296. When
King Mengrai decided to build a new city and make it the new
capital of the Lanna Kingdom, he build the Wat Chiang Man as the
first temple of the new city on the site he used to supervise
the construction of Chiang Mai. The temple holds several very
old and important Buddha images. Structures of the Wat Chiang
Man Like in most wats, the oldest structure is the chedi. The
chedi named Chang Lom Chedi or Elephant Chedi sits on a square
base supporting a second level of grey stone that is surrounded
by 15 elephants that seem to emerge from it. On top sits the
gilded upper part of the chedi, which contains a relic chamber.
The chedi is a mixture of Lanna and Singhalese styles. The
larger of the two viharns is an impressive building with a three
tiered roof. The front of the Lanna style viharn is decorated
with wood carvings in gold and ochre colors. The building was
renovated in the 1920’s by the famous monk Khru Ba Srivichai.
This viharn houses the oldest Buddha image in Chiang Mai. The
image is a standing Buddha holding an alms bowl, the inscription
on its base dates it to 1465. The smaller of the viharns
which is also built in Lanna style contains two small, but very
old and important Buddha images. The stairs to the viharns
entrance are guarded by Nagas, a mythical snake like creature.
Opposite the entrance behind the large central Buddha image is a
ku, a throne like structure where the two highly revered images
are kept. The Phra Sila Buddha image is a bas relief stele,
sculpted from stone depicting a standing Buddha. The image was
most likely made in Sri Lanka more than a thousand years ago.
The highly revered image is believed to hold the power of
bringing rain and therefore plays an important role during
Songkran festival held in April at the end of the dry season.
The Phra Sae Tang Khamani is a small Buddha image carved from
quartz crystal, and it is therefore also known as the Crystal
Buddha. It is not known exactly how old it is, but it is
believed to have belonged to Chama Thewi, Queen of Hariphunchai
in the 8th century. When at the end of the 13th century King
Mengrai of Chiang Mai besieged and burned Hariphunchai, the Phra
Sae Tang Khamani image survived the destruction and was
therefore believed to hold protective powers. The ubosot or
ordination hall of the Wat Chiang Man dates from the 19th
century. The front facade is of the bot is decorated with
beautifully carved wooden details in ochre colors. A stone stele
in front of the ubosot dated 1581 mentions the exact date the
city of Chiang Mai was founded, namely April 12th, 1296. The
Ho Trai where the wat’s Buddhist scriptures are kept is a fairly
small wooden building on top of a white stone base to protect
the scriptures from flooding and pests. This Ho Trai is a lot
less elaborate than the one at the Wat Phra Singh.
How to
get to the Wat Chiang Man The Wat Chiang Man is located in
the North East corner of the old walled part of Chiang Mai,
between Phra Pok Klao 13 road and Ratchaphakhinai 1 road.
Entering the old walled part of the city through the Chang Puak
gate in the North wall, take a left turn to Ratchaphakhinai 1
road. The temple is then on the right side after about 200
meters.
Entrance fee & opening hours The temple
complex is open daily from 6 am until 5 pm. Admission is free. |
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Chiang Mai |
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District |
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Chiang Mai |
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City |
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Chiang Mai |
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Temple |
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Opening time |
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Entry fee |
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Free |
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GPS : |
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18.79389 N |
98.989276 E |
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