WHAT? WAT AGAIN?

Going from a nation where places of worship mushroom overnight specially at every nook and corner of streets, where religious places- big or small, old or new and even teeny weeny makeshift ones - are venerated so much that is not an extraordinary happening to come across a road that suddenly veers to the right or left just to avoid a tiny place of worship. The road works department clearly couldn't surmount the holy obstacle of a holy place! Never mind that in the process it seems like the road suddenly developed convulsions and decided that bah! it didn't like its old route and carved out or rather snaked one of its own. So when I mentioned that visiting some notable Buddhist temples, called Wat locally, in Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand there were not too many takers! Why was  I not surprised?

An hour or so flight from Bangkok, Chiang Mai (Yup! Thailand again - need you ask?) is one place that has a mix of everything- a river cutting through the city, hills and mountains in the distance, night safaris, the ubiquitous night markets, malls, endless eateries, massage parlours, spas and the usual stuff you expect a tourist destination to have. What catches the eye immediately are however the temples or Wats with the typical Thai architecture, most of them overladen with golden gilt, huge number of monks swirling around and large crowds of Thais thronging the Wats. Before heading for Chiang Mai- this being the first visit there- one had checked out what the place had to offer. The Wats trounced everything else. Listed were Wat Phra Doi Suthep; Wat Chedi Luang; Wat Pan Ao; Wat Umong; Wat Phra hat Di Kham D; Wat Buppharam ( what would you get if you hyphenated Buppharam = Bupp Haram!); Wat Chiang Man and Wats all the way.

It was a biggish group to Chiang Mai - us from Delhi and friends from Kolkata (the majority) Bangkok and Singapore. Barring the Singapore and Bangkok friends, the rest of of us all caught up at Bangkok airport early in the morning after a night's flight. And there itself started the agreeing-to-disagreeing over the itineraries. But then what are old friends for if one can't have their say? Not many were happy over the Wat hopping proposal; some consented for the sake of peace.  By the time we got to Chiang Mai, checked in and all that, all everybody wanted was food and a lengthy luncheon session it was. The issue of what to do with the Wat visits, that some of us were keen on, still remained unresolved.

Thankfully, the next day saw us - okay some of us- driving up to Wat Phra Doi Suthep. The up here is literal because the Wat is located on the top of Mount (Doi) Suthep and it was only later that I learnt that the temple is called What Phra That but is locally always called Doi Suthep. That technically, it is Wat Phra That on Doi Suthep. This Theravada Buddhist temple is where a copy of a giant emerald Buddha statue is houses( a copy because the original is in Bangkok). After a drive that took us around 40+ minutes, we reached the base of Doi Suthep and as we looked up the first thing that had us gaping was the huge glittering golden spire reaching up the skies. It was simply awesome, maybe in a dazzling way, but awesome it was. 

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Getting to the temple leaves you with a choice to either climb up the steep 309 stairs called the Naga Serpent Staircase or pay a nominal fee and take the lift straight up. We opt for the lift on the way up. Everything about Wat Phra That is on the grand, spectacular scale. The temple/monastery, said to have  been built in the 14th century, is a huge complex with shrines, statues, murals that can be best described in one word- GOLD!  I mean no offense but it does make you wonder that why Buddhism founded by one who gave up royalty, why a religion associated with innate humbleness which propounds simple living and shining of materialism, the monks who live an austere life and yet the temples- at least the ones in Chiang Mai- redefine grandiosity and take it to another level altogether. Looking at the giant emerald 'copy' Buddha statue one couldn't help but feel that if an emerald Buddha statue had at all to be made couldn't it have been much smaller? Then the overwhelming sheen of gold and more gold everywhere- even the tiles on the floor reflect back more golden huge- it tended to be a bit too much. A golden swamp it was.

The 'copy' emerald Buddha statue

Don't forget to don your sunglasses

 

Golden spire and golden filigiree golden canopy and gold on the floor too!  

After the rounds of the temple, after gaping at the golden overload, we followed the walkway around the temple to a large terrace that provided a panoramic view of Chiang Mai. There are the usual small cafes and souvenir stalls. We sat under a beautiful canopy of flowering bougainvilleas admiring the vast greenery spread out below. A lazy dog resting in the shade gave us the royal ignore!   But another member of the canine family, although a small build one happily obliged me with not just photographs but also offered his best profile for the camera. The trendily dressed chhihuahua came accompanied by his parents, a young couple who clearly over-dote on him. That really made me miss our miss haughty queen back home - the lady chhihuahua, Trudy!   

The view from the terrace

My best profile!

On the way down, I was the only one to take the Naga Serpent stairs. I am glad I did so. There was the cutest little girl dressed up in all tribal finery including an elaborate headgear and the most garishly painted cheeks ever. But what the elaborate get-up couldn't conceal was both her innocence and the fact that she was certainly not there asking for tips because she wanted to. At first, the suddenness and unexpected surprise  was delightful but as I climbed down further I realised that she was not the only one, there were several of them sitting around the stairs in one or twos and even boys. The novelty wore off and a tinge of melancholy and resignation crept in -  I guess there there are worse ways of making a living. 

Another day another temple - this timeWat Chedi Luang in Chiang Mai itself.  Chedis translate into stupas or pagodas. This one is simply magnificent. Its a massive complex and instinctively you feel that sense of veneration. You also know this is ancient history, the core of the complex is tall, at places crumbling, Lanna-style Chedi said to be built in in the mid 15th century and at one time said to be the tallest structure in Chiang Mai. Sometime in the 16th century, the Chedi was damaged. How? Some say it was an earthquake and the other version says it was damaged by canon fire during the fight to recapture the city from the Burmese. Thankfully in the nineties a Unesco and Japanese government financed restoration work was undertaken. There are five elephant sculptures atop the pediment and its total surprise when we are told that four or them were restored in cement and only one is original. Which one? The one that stands solo on the other side without its trunk and ears. In one of the shrines there is a lifelike figure of a monk in meditative pose within a glass enclosure. As we wonder if it is embalmed or wax figure, a Thai visitor informs us that it is wax indeed. There is something disconcerting about it and I hotfoot it out of the shrine.  And yes, there is a big golden Buddha statue and another mammoth of the reclining Buddha. Yup, once again all golden.   
 

 

We walk out and come face to face with a board that says, Welcome to the Monk Chat programme, Mahamakut Buddhist University, Lanna Campus. Naturally we walk and see a group of monks sitting on benches around a big table beneath a shady tree. Some are interacting with visitors. We go closer and suddenly we realise that one among the monks is definitely one of us - an Indian. Monk Mahesh from Maharashtra says he has been at Mahamakut for the last 3 years. From a Buddhist family he took Bhikshu when just 14 years old. Even as we interact - questions on life, Buddhishm etc - I can't help think that 14 is an awfully young age to decide to renounce the world and take to a life of total austerity. At Mahamakut Buddhist University the monks are up at 4 am, meditate and then go for Bhiksha. They have just one meal before 12 noon everyday and after that there is no taking of any food; they can though drink water and maybe some juice too. It certainly takes some strong will and utter devotion to the one they follow to give up the world for their faith. I begin to feel small, petty and even vicious especially at my sniggering about the gold and gilt at some Wats. I accept that the gods don't ask for them, the monks don't ask for them, it just us petty people who offer gold/gilt to assuage our guilt. Gilt to alleviate guilt!

Monk Mahesh from Maharashta

What next? Wat of course (bad one I know). Seriously however, we headed for Wat Ratchamontian. Another spectacular temple, this time with more oriental elements - red spires and and the large golden dragons guarding the stairs to the dragon temple. There seemed to be some function going on as there hundreds of monks, in bright orange robes, gathering in the dragon temple for some prayers. One spied a few women monks too and just as we were leaving a car stopped and an elderly lady monk, frail and ultra petite stepped out with some difficulty. But even before she was fully out of the car, several young monks ran to her assistance and she was almost carried inside.  

All the while I had there was just one Wat that I really wanted to at least see- Wat Buppharam. Yes, I pronounced the bupp as bapp and let's leave it at that! By this time of course, every had had enough of Wats especially the spouse. On our last day we took a walk in the area around Thapae Gate, moving into old Chiang Mai and we passed by a couple of Wats (going by the fact that Chiang Mai has more than 300 Wats !) that was inevitable. And then bingo! It was there- Buppharam Wat. On a smaller scale, similar architecture ,the main temple on an elevation as usual  and it seemed just appropriate that a few hours before flying out of Chiang Mai, there was Buppharam! 

I would have called that a fitting end to Wat hopping, but on the way back, we popped into a book shop called the Book Zone and there on one of the shelves was a book called What's What in a Wat, Thai Buddhist Temples by Carol Stratton! Serendipity? Did I pick up a copy? Wat, sorry, What do you think?