While we’ve spent the past fortnight primarily experiencing the culinary delights of the Thai culture and today was no different, having enjoyed a freshly prepared lunch at the Kaeng Liang restaurant in Thalong Street, following a mid-morning coffee and, you guessed it, accompanied by a baked treat, at the Campus Coffee Roaster, we also had the opportunity to enjoy some history of Phuket and delve a little deeper into the Buddhist aspects.
The quaint, colourful historic “shop-houses” of Old Town Phuket, however, were the first scenes to grab our attention, many beautifully decorated and providing an array of services from clothing stores, to cafés, restaurants, guest houses and hotels. Similar to China Town in Singapore and Georgetown on Penang Island, Malaysia, these homes are passed down through the generations and are traditionally associated with the Hokkien Chinese, who migrated from the southern provinces of China and to Phuket during the 19th century.
Testament to this migration were the numerous historic mansions scattered around the town, as well as the Thai Hua Museum, depicting the history of the Chinese people in Phuket, who came to work in the tin mines, as well as the merchants and others who built Phuket into a powerful trading center. However, this building was originally the first Chinese Language School in Phuket, established by the Chinese Hokkien and opened in 1934. It is a beautiful, classic "Sino-Portuguese" styled building, blending European styles with Chinese touches. In 2008 it received a citation from the Association of Siamese Architects for outstanding conservation of architectural arts.
The galleries of the current day museum covers various aspects of the Thai-Chinese culture, including the beliefs, lifestyles and art, as well as the history of the Chinese Thai Hua language school.
During our walking tour we also experienced the splendid “Wat Mongkol Nimit” or “Wat Putta Mongkon” temple complex, built in 1880. It is actually called “Wat Klang” by the locals, though, due to its location in the heart of Old Town Phuket, where “klang” means “middle”. The Thai word “mongkol”, however, means “auspicious”. It is believed that the importance of this temple to the local Buddhist community, is not merely its proximity, but the positive synonyms associated with the word “auspicious”, such as “advantageous”, “promising”, “optimistic”, “bright”, “opportune” and “fortunate”, to name but a few.
The monastery compound comprises the actual temple, a colonial building used by the monks for studies and living, and a “Chedi”.
Although this is not the first Buddhist temple complex we have visited, after visiting the Kek Lok Si temple on Penang Island and this complex today, Elaine was inspired to undertake a bit more research, in an attempt to understand the various buildings we’ve seen within these complexes. So, within the Thai context:
A “Wat” is a temple complex, consisting of several buildings like a “Chedi”, a “Bot” and a “Viharn”, which are erected first, within an enclosed wall. Then, depending on the financial means and the number of monks, other structures like a “Sala”, a Mondop” and living quarters for the monks may be built. On many temple complexes schools are also found, especially in rural areas.
The “Bot” or “Ordination Hall” is the main prayer room and one of the most important structures of the “Wat”, as this is where the monks are ordained, as well as being used for other important temple rituals. It is a rectangular shaped building with the main entrance facing east and a gilded sitting Buddha image, on a richly decorated pedestal, across from the main entrance. It is surrounded by eight boundary stones called “Sima”, which are placed outside the “Bot” in a rectangular shape. The “Bot” always has to be surrounded by eight “Sima” stones, marking the sacred area of the “Bot”. A ninth “Sima” stone is buried under the location of the main Buddha image inside the “Bot”.
“Chofah” adorn the ends of the roof of most temples in Thailand. Shaped like a slender bird, “Chofah” represent “Garuda”, a large bird like creature from Buddhist and Hindu mythology.
The “Dhamma Wheel”, also called “Dhammachakra” or “The Wheel of Law”, symbolises the “Dhamma”, the Buddha’s teachings. The wheel is often seen in temples, sometimes accompanied by two deer, representative of the fact that, after reaching enlightenment, the Buddha held a first sermon at the Deer Park in Sarnath, thus setting in motion the “Dhamma Wheel”.
The “Naga” is a large mythological snake, often depicted with multiple heads. These are often found protecting Buddhist temples, their bodies extending over the balustrades of the stairs that lead to the temple. This was very evident at the Big Buddha we visited during our first week on Phuket Island. This represents the Buddha, after reaching enlightenment, who was meditating under a Bodhi tree when a violent storm with torrential rain broke out. “Mucalinda” appeared and sheltered the Buddha with its hoods from the rain.
The “Chinthe”, is the term given to the creature resembling a lion, sometimes seen at the entrance of temples in Thailand, believed to be the guardians of Buddhist temples.
A “Viharn”, the “Assembly Hall”, will often look like the “Bot”, but it is not surrounded by “Sima” stones. Several Buddhist ceremonies take place here involving both the monks and lay people. In the early days of Buddhism, “Viharns” were built to provide shelter for travelling monks during the rainy season.
The “Chedi” is the most important and sacred structure of the “Wat”, originally containing relics of the Buddha, but later they were also used to enshrine the remains of Kings or very important monks. Sharing its cultural heritage with the “Stupas” in India and the “Chörtens” in Tibet, they are found in various shapes and variations, but typically, they have a conical shape. The most used “Chedi” style in Thailand is the bell-shaped form.
A “Prang” is a tower with a broad base getting narrower towards the top and an entrance on one side. “Prangs” originate from the “Khmer” architecture, with the oldest ones in Thailand inspired by “Angkor Wat” in Cambodia and can be seen in the central and northeastern parts of Thailand.
The “Mondop” is usually a square or cubical-shaped pavilion with a spired roof, used either as a place to store scriptures or objects used in temple ceremonies.
The “Ho Trai” is the library of the “Wat” where the Buddhist scriptures are kept. These can be found in many different architectural styles and sizes, although traditionally, a “Ho Trai” was a wooden building on stilts, over a pond, to keep the scriptures safe from all kinds of insects, given that Buddhist scriptures were originally written on dried palm leaves. In northern Thailand, however, the structure is often a high brick building with a wooden structure on top of it.
A “Sala” is an open rectangular shaped pavilion, used to provide shelter and for resting. Traditionally, it was used to provide shelter for passing travellers. “Salas”, however, can be found outside of the “Wat” too, often along roads and canals, where they are used as a bus stop or waiting rooms for passengers of river boats.
The “Kuti” is the living quarters for the monks living in the “Wat”. Traditionally these structures were very small detached building on stilts, but nowadays, it is a small room in an apartment building.
Many “Wats” in Thailand have a crematorium too. Contrary to western cultures, most Buddhists get cremated. After death, the relatives bring the body of the deceased to the temple, where the monks perform Buddhist rites, usually within a few days following the death.
Hopefully the next time we visit a Buddhist temple complex, we’ll be slightly more knowledgeable, but, on reflection, during our visit today to the “Wat”, we did see the “Bot”, although we couldn’t go inside due to the COVID-19 restrictions, which was a real shame, as we understand there is a beautiful gold gilded seated Buddha.
We definitely noticed the “Chofah” adorning the ends of the roof, but, unfortunately, we didn’t know to look for the “Sima” stones, a “Dhamma Wheel”, or the “Chinthe”. We did, however, see the “Kuti” and had the good fortune of seeing the “Chedi”, the most important and sacred structure of the “Wat”, although we had absolutely no idea what we were actually looking at, at the time, until Elaine completed this research and, due to this ignorance too, we didn’t notice a “Prang”, a “Mondop”, a “Ho Trai”, a “Sala” nor a crematorium. Regardless, it was a beautiful “Wat” and there was plenty to enjoy.
Of course, we had to top off a wonderful outing with the purchase of freshly baked doughnuts to enjoy back at the apartment with a nice cuppa.
