Wat Phra Singh ‘The secret of Lanna Kingdom’
Lanna culture is something valuable! Chiang Mai, in the past, was once a part of Lanna Kingdom. Therefore you shouldn’t miss a chance of learning Lanna history when you arrive Chiang Mai!
And what is the best thing for learning a town’s history? Temples, probably. Temples are usually built in ancient ages. That’s why they should reflect the lifestyles of people from centuries ago.
Wat Phra Singh is one of the temples in Chiang Mai. It consists of many memorable things, including art, decoration style and atmosphere. Go see once in lifetime for yourself!
Wat Phra Singh, or formal name ‘Wat Phra Singh Woramahawiharn’, had been being a respectable temple of Chiangmai since the age of Lanna. In the year 1345, it was established along with a 24-cubited Chedi, by King Payaphayu, Lanna’s 5th king from Mangrai Dynasty, in order to be used as the storage of His Father’s relics.
As soon as you walk in to the Phra Singh temple area, you will see how stunning and glorious it is. The color tone is brown and gold, looking so dazzling and sparkling.
This temple is the location of Phra Singh, or Phra Buddha Sihingh, which is the very valuable and respectable Lord Buddha’s statue of Chiangma. The statue is well-known. Every year, a bunch of tourists travel to the temple to pay respect to the statue. If you want to, you can do this also, just for your own luck.
Chiang Mai people love this temple very much. This temple is actually their hearts-gathering centre and representative of peace. Especially in some special festivals like Songkran or New Year, more locals and tourists go up to the temple to celebrate. The celebration of the temple is to bring Phra Buddha Sihingh up to a movable throne, set a parade and walk around the town, in order to stimulate people’s faith.
The temple is quite wide, but, however, here are some interesting spot in the area that you may want to visit.
- The Ubosot : A rectangle-shaped building decoareted with golden-yellow tone and Lanna’s art style. It consists of big windows on its sides. These windows appear as lath openings, but they are real windows inside. At the entrance, there are glorious Naga statues nearby the stairway. In another way, the whole ubosot is full of complexed carving works from root to top.
- Trai Tower : Or ‘Hor Trai’, its Thai name. This architecture is made of wood and lime. There are the statues of Gods outside. These Gods are in different manners, for instances, flying and standing. Inside, you will see the statues of Himavanta animals, including winged mermaids and winged elephant-headed lions.
- Lai Kham Vihara : The vihara is decorated neatly. You will see how incredible the ancient workers are. In the age that there aren’t any hi-tech equipments like nowadays, but people still managed to build such marvellous thing like this. Lai Kham Vihara appears in northern Thai art style. There are two Naga statues nearby the stairway. There are two lion statues behind the Nagas. And inside the vihara, Phra Buddha Sihingh is located. The indoor area is full with unbelievable murals, all of these tell the stories of some Thai literatures.
The temple is available everyday, from 7:00-17:00. Feel free to go whenever you want. It will be best to bring your children, your family or someone you love with you. You will have a great time with them right in the middle of thie ancient religious place. It is good for people of all ages, kids, teens or even elderly people. Restrooms are prepared for both men and women, don’t worry.
How to get there
Wat Phra Singh is located on Sam-Lan Road, Phra Singh District, Muang County, Chiang Mai Province.
There are two ways for traveling there. First, you can take your very own car. Just drive and find Wat Phra Singh within the area of inner moa, just right on the joining point between Singharat Road and Ratchadamnoen Road.
The second way is to grab a red truck and ask for a trip. However, the travel fee is depend on how far how far your path is.
Nearby Places
In the center of the old walled city, behind the monument to the Three Kings, stands the old provincial hall. Chiang Mai City Arts and Cultural Centre is the center of Lanna arts and culture. Set in the former Provincial Hall, a handsome Thai-colonial-style building from 1927, this museum provides an excellent primer on Chiang Mai history. Dioramas, photos, artefacts and audiovisual displays walk visitors through the key battles and victories in the Chiang Mai story, from the first settlements to the arrival of the railroad. Upstairs is a charming recreation of a wooden Lanna village.
One of Chiang Mai’s most important temples is the Wat Chedi Luang located in the ancient walled part of the city. The Wat Chedi Luang, also known as the Jedi Luang and “The temple of the Great Stupa” initially consisted of two more temples named Wat Ho Tham and Wat Sukmin, that were all merged into one. It’s most prominent feature is the massive and very impressive chedi dominating the area.
In the year 1545 disaster struck when a massive earthquake destroyed much of the chedi. The quake took off some 60 meters from the top of the chedi after which about 60 meters remained. In the 1990’s the chedi was partially restored.
Wat Phan Tao is an ancient temple that sits right next to the sacred Wat Chedi Luang in Chiang Mai town. It is known for its exquisite Lanna-style ordination hall (Wihan) entirely made of teakwood, which served as a throne hall during the reign of King Mahotara Prateth. It is now where the sacred Phan Tao buddha image is enshrined.
Chiang Mai’s oldest temple was established by the city’s founder, Phaya Mengrai, sometime around 1296. Wat Chiang Man was built in 1296 by King Mengrai of Lanna kingdom. The temple is famous for its Lanna-style chedi supported by rows of elephant-shaped buttresses. The beautiful Lanna-style ordination hall enshrines an ancient Buddha image named Phra Kaew Khao, revered by Chiang Mai locals. Wat Chiang Man is situated off of Ratchapakhinai Road in the northeast corner of the old city.
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