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Probably the most famous
st ructure and undoubt -
edly the holiest temple in
Thailand, Wat Phrakeo was
built by King Rama I after
he moved the capital from
Thonburi to Rattanakosin
(present day Bangkok), and
was completed in 1882. The
temple also houses the holiest
image in the entire Kingdom,
the Emerald Buddha,
which sits on a highly ornate
golden throne surrounded
by 112 celestial birds and
serpents known as garudas
and nagas respectively. The
galleries surrounding the
main shrine are covered with
traditional mural paintings
depicting the entire Ramakien.
An unusual fact about
this royal temple is that no
monks are housed within its
complex.
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Bangkok’s oldest and largest temple was
built in the 16th century; its most famous
shrine is the temple of the reclining Buddha
that houses the colossal statue which illustrates
the passing of Buddha into nirvana.
The statue measures 46 meters long and
15 meters high and is entirely covered with
gold leaf.
The chapel and the statue were
built by King Rama III in 1832.
Wat Pho is also the center for learning and
preservation of Thai traditional medicine
and massage. There is an open-air massage
parlor in the temple which chargesan
amazingly low price and customers may
choose between Thai body massage and
foot massage.
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Across the river from Wat Pho sits another prominent
temple in Bangkok known as Wat Arun. The
impressive Khmer-style prang 67 meters high, is
unique to Thailand. The entire prang is covered
with thousands of colorful porcelain tiles which
shimmer beautifully when hit by the sun’s rays at
dawn, hence the wat is also known as the Temple
of the Dawn. There is a ferry that takes visitors
between the piers at Wat Pho and Wat Arun.
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Located in Bangkok Chinatown
, this is probably
the most famous Mahayana
temple where local Chinese
go to pray. Built in 1871
in a Chinese architectural
style, it took 8 years to finish
and later received the name
Wat Mangkorn Kamalavas
from King Chulalongkorn, or
Rama V. The temple is very
crowded on special Buddhist
occasions and Chinese
festivals such as Chinese
New Year and the Chinese
Vegetarian Food Festival.
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