Once we left the beaches of southern Thailand, the north proved to be a cultural circus of endless Buddha's and a million wats in Chaing Mai.
So here's a little lesson on what's what and where it all came from and how it came to be meaningful.
The Big Man -
Buddhism was founded by an Indian prince named Siddharta Gautama around the year 500 BCE. According to tradition, the young prince lived an affluent and sheltered life until he took a journey; on which he saw an old man, a sick man, a poor man, and a corpse. Shocked and distressed at the suffering in the world, Gautama left his family to seek enlightenment through asceticism. But even the most extreme asceticism failed to bring enlightenment.
Finally, Gautama sat beneath a tree and vowed not to move until he had attained enlightenment. Days later, he arose as the Buddha - the "enlightened one." He spent the remaining 45 years of his life teaching the path to liberation from suffering (the dharma) and establishing a community of monks (the sangha).
Buddhism -
The Theravada form of Buddhism is dominant in southern Asia, especially in Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Cambodia and Laos. For this reason it is sometimes known as "Southern Buddhism."
Theravada means "The Way of the Elders" in Pali (the language of Buddist script), reflecting the Theravadins' belief that they most closely follow the original beliefs and practices of the Buddha and the early monastic Elders.
The purpose of life for Theravadins is to become an arhat, a perfected saint who has acheived nirvana and will not be reborn again. As a result, Southern Buddhism tends to be more monastic, strict and world-renouncing than its Northern counterpart, and its approach is more philosophical than religious.
There are four stages to becoming an arhat:
- Sotapanna ("stream-enterer") - a convert, attained by overcoming false beliefs
- Sakadagamin ("once-returner") - one who will only be reborn once more, attained by diminishing lust, hatred and illusion
- Anagamin ("never-returner") - one who will be reborn in heaven, where he or she will become an arahant
- Arhat ("worthy one") - one who has attained perfect enlightenment and will never be reborn
In Theravada, it is thought to be highly unlikely, even impossible, that a layperson can achieve liberation.
So you can count me out. But you can learn more about Buddhism here. (all the above information is taken from there anyways :-P)
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Wats -
A wat is a monastery temple in Cambodia, Thailand, or Laos. Strictly speaking a wat is a Buddhist sacred precinct with monks' quarters, the temple proper, an edifice housing a large image of Buddha, and a structure for lessons. A Buddhist site without a minimum of three resident monks cannot correctly be described as a wat, although the term is frequently used more loosely, even for ruins of ancient temples.
Structure
A typical Buddhist wat consists of the following buildings:
- chaidei or chedi (Thai เจดีย์) (from Sanskrit: chaitya, temple) - usually conical or bell-shaped buildings, often containing relics of Buddha
- vihan or wihan (Thai วิหาร) (from Sanskrit: vihara) - a meeting and prayer room
- mondop (Thai มณฑป) (from Sanskrit: Mandapa) - a usually open, square building with four arches and a pyramidal roof, used to worship religious texts or objects
- sala (Thai ศาลา) (from Sanskrit: Shala - School, from an earlier meaning of shelter) - a pavilion for relaxation or miscellaneous activities
- bot โบสถ์ or ubosoth อุโบสถ์ (from Pali uposatha) - the holiest prayer room, also called the "ordination hall" as it is where new monks take their vows. Architecturally it is similar to the vihara; the main differences are the eight cornerstones placed around the bot to ward off evil. The bot is usually more decorated than the viharn.
- bibiloteca (Thai หอไตร) - Tripitaka library where Buddhist scriptures are kept
- drum tower (Thai หอกลอง)
- bell tower (Thai หอระฆัง)
- multipurpose hall (Thai: ศาลาการเปรียญ, study hall) is a building in a wat. In the past this hall was only for monks to study in, as parian is a Pali word meaning 'educated monk' or 'monk student'.
The living quarters of the monks, including the monk cells, which are separated from the sacred buildings.
The roofs of Thai temples are often adorned with chofahs.
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