Unusual temples of Thailand
One of the most unusual temples in Thailand – Wat Rong Khun or the White Temple, is located in a place called Amphuar, in the province of Chiang Rai. This rather young temple managed to gain great popularity among residents and tourists.
The designer, as well as the artist and designer of the White Temple is Mr. Chalermchay (and his brother) – one of the most sought-after artists in Thailand. All that is in the territory of the White Temple is his work. It is noteworthy that Mr. Chalermchay built the temple with his own money only because no one could dictate his terms to him. The construction of the White Temple took more than one million dollars.
The White Temple is really amazing, it looks like it was made not from stone and concrete, but from sugar and mastic! Intricate sculptures of snow-white color, mirror mosaic on the walls, all this never ceases to amaze the newcomers to the White Temple travelers. Right in front of the stairs leading to the temple, there is a composition of many stretching hands and huge teeth. So the artist depicted hell.
The interior of the temple combines traditional images of the Buddha and scenes from his life, as well as modern interpretations of Buddhist teachings: scenes from the movie “The Matrix”, “Star Wars” and so on. So the artist is trying to convey to modern visitors the meaning of religious teaching. The white temple is surrounded by unusual alabaster-mirror sculptures, interesting small buildings in the form of small pagodas and other “sugar” sculptures.
Wat Lan Kuad (Wat Lan Kuad) or “The Temple of a Million Bottles”
Another unusual temple of Thailand was built by Buddhist monks from ordinary glass bottles. The walls and the roof are made of glass, which is why the temple received the saying name – Wat Lan Quad (Wat Lan Kuad) or “Temple of a million bottles.” How many exactly took the bottles to build this temple, Buddha alone knows. But bottles for the construction of the temple, Thai monks began to collect back in 1984. There were not enough bricks, then there was an idea to use non-standard building material. Thus, a bottle-shaped temple appeared 400 miles from Bangkok, in the Sisaket area.
Everyone who wanted to contribute to the construction of the temple: the monks, local authorities, residents of the area, all those who collected such an unusual building material. Thanks to the mass character, it was possible to create not just a temple, but a whole complex consisting of twenty buildings: this is the main temple near the lake, prayer rooms, a hall for ceremonies, a crematorium, a water tower, several small bungalows that serve as housing for monks, as well as accommodations for travelers .
Decades later, it turned out that builders had not missed the choice of materials – bottles are not inferior in strength to bricks, do not lose color, are easily cleaned of dirt, allow light to penetrate inside buildings and look very aesthetically pleasing.
For the construction of the temple complex used bottles of green and brown glass, which was once spilled beer. Even the mosaics in the temple are made of processed beer lids. By the way, the monks do not stop on their laurels, which means that the collection of bottles does not stop. Decide to go to the temple from the bottle, grab a glass container.
Thai people believe in spirits and believe that they surround every Thai in any situation. Spirits are evil and good, many of them are able to help in work, play, business and even during the race. One of the clearest examples of such a desperate faith in the spirit of female fertility is the temple of the phallus in Bangkok. It is believed that the temple of the phallus or the chapel of the goddess Tabtim (Shrine of Goddess Tubtim) is able to help all desperate women become pregnant.
At first glance, this temple is no different from hundreds of others, scattered throughout the numerous provinces of Thailand. A cozy garden corner, immersed in the shade of trees, literally made of the sculptures of the male sexual organ. Hundreds of various penises – big and small, stone and wooden, decorated with ribbons left here dreaming to conceive by girls and women.
Those who wish to become pregnant bring offerings in the form of candles, lotus flowers and fruits to the temple. If the wish comes true, the woman is obliged to return and put another phallus in the temple, as a sign of gratitude to the goddess Tabtim. And if we take into account the fact that the number of figures on the territory of the temple exceeded one hundred, we can safely speak about the effectiveness of visits to such a temple. This kind of temple does not speak at all about the depravity of the Thai nation. Buddhism, as a true Hindu religion, welcomes the worship of the phalluses as an organ of fertility and the continuation of life. So that.
