Chiang Mai 2

I've just read this over. It is ridiculously long. I don't really expect anyone to read it. It's just my journal so I can remember. There will be pictures when we get to Korea. I know that is the best part. Sorry for all of this...

I'm writing this post on a computer in the Chiang Mai airport. We were supposed to leave this morning at 7:40 for Seoul, connecting in Bangkok and making a stop in Hong Kong. However....there were plane problems, and we aren't leaving here until 4:30 for Bangkok. We then take a flight from there which arrives at 5:something in the morning. It wouldn't be so bad because there are many more things to see in Chiang Mai, but they won't let us out of the airport because we have already gone through immigration. Oh well...we are now in a lounge that has computers, so I figured I might as well let you know what we have been doing.

We had another very interesting day yesterday. We boarded the bus in the rain to go to the Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep Rajvoravihara in the mountains above Chiang Mai. It rained and rained all day, so we were pretty soggy, but we had a great time anyway.

On our way, our guide, once again, told us all kinds of interesting things - this time in preparation for our visit to the temple. Wat means temple in Thai. There are 30,200 Buddhist temples in Thailand, 200 of which are classified as Royal 1st Class. They are maintained by the government. The others are maintained by local contributions - some better than others. There are 1,242 temples i Chiang Mai. They house 600 professional monks and 1.000 temporary ones. The monks where yellow or saphron colored robes. This orange color is the color of peace. 95 % of the people in Thailand are Buddhist. According to Pan, many or the people go to the temple but don't really follow more than the basic teachings of Lord Buddha.

When a man decides to becoe a onth, whether for a short or long time, he must follow a very strict routine: 5:00 - wake up; 5:30 - go out to collect food, carrying alms bowls. They are not begging - people voluntarily contribute the food. Women are not allowed to touch the monks or even touch the bowl. They have to drop the food in without touching it. Men are allowed to touch the bowl and touch the monks. 7:30-7:45 - the monks return to the temple. 8:00 - the monks have breakfast, the younger monks who went out share with the elder monks who stayed in the temple; 9:00 - the monks all walk into the assembly hall for the first ceremony of the day. It is in Pali and Sanskrit. 9:30 - the young monks go to the temple school where they are taught religious and secular subjects. 11:00-11:30 - the young monks return to the school to the cantine for the 2nd meal of the day. 1:00 - more school. 4:30 - back to the temple where they clean the temple and polish the Buddha. 5:00-5:30 - monks return to the shelter where they receive visits from their families. They shower and change. 7:00 - go to the assembly hall for the last sermon of the day. 8:00 - have discussios with the senior monks about meditation, etc. 9:00 - practice meditation. 10:00 - bed.

In the former days, all Thai boys before they married or entered the national service served as monks in the temple for 3 months. Many families would send their boys to be novices because they are very poor and can't afford to pay for schooling for all of their children. The temple provides the education and housing for the boys and the families pay to send their girls to school. Monks shave their heads once a month including their eyebrows. Now, many boys do not want to be monks. Many are Buddhist in name only.

The question was asked how a monk becomes a high priest. Formerly, he would have had to have been a monk for a long time, be well respected. Currently, they need to know how to use computers, have a bachelors or masters degree, have written books, etc. and be chosen by a committee.

The Wat we visited was at the top of a mountain outside Chiang Mai. It was built in 1383 for the holding of some of the bone pieces of the Lord Buddha. In 1371, the king of Chiang Mai who was very relitious heard of a monk who claimed to have some of the bones of Lord Buddha. He invited the monk to Chiang Mai where he determined that the bone was real. The king decided to buld a temple in his garden for the Buddha bone. He put some there and put the rest in a golden urn and wanted to find somewhere special to build a temple where he would put the rest. In 1383, the high priest came and saw the king's white elephant. He told the king to let the elephant go and wherever it stopped would be where the temple should be built. The elephant wandered for 3 days. It kept moving up the mountain. It stopped temporarily at a cliff, and the king thought that was the place, but then it moved on. Finally, after the elephant died after being in one spot for seven days, the king decided that was the place. He dug a whole 4 meters deepa nd buried the Lord Buddha bone. He asked for volunteers to stay there, but no monks would because it was in a very remote and dangerous part of the jungle, so they would take a pilgrimage up the mountain once a year for a special religious day in May when Lord Buddha died. They continue to make this pilgrimage today once a year - by foot. Last year there were more than 180,000 people who made the trek.

It took from 1383 to 1386 to build the temple. In 1538, the king donated 6,000 bhat in cash and 1700 baht in gold to rebuild the temple. The umbrella on top of the Buddha statue is made of pure gold - there is very strong security. In 1557, a monk volunteered to stay at the temple. He built a staircase of 173 steps up to the temple. The stairs were each one meter high. In 1935, more intermediate steps were added, making 306 steps in all. There is a statue to a famous high priest at the bottom of the road to the temple. He is revered because he decided in 1935 to build a road up the mountain to the temple. The local people provided the labor. So many came to help that it took 4 months and 22 days to complete. In 1965,the local government decided to expant the road because the king has a winter palace at the top.

So, we finally got to the temple. It was magnificent - so much gold, so many statue of Buddha in different poses. The most common are walking Buddha, meditating Buddha, and protecting Buddha. You can tell the Buddha statues from those of his disciples because Buddha has curly hair (!) and the others are bald. It was raining like crazy but we got some pictures that we'll try to post later - if and when we make it to Korea.

More tidbits - the king of Thailand was born in Massachusetts. He is the first king to have only one wife. He has one son and three daughters. It is almost as if the king is worshipped. His picture is everywhere. He is very highly regarded, his son who will succeed him, not so much.

There are many varieties of Buddhism. I think it somewhat like the term Christian - many different sects. The Thai variety is a very real combination of Hinduism and Buddhism. Lord Buddha was born into a Hindu family and his disciples were converts from Hinduism. There are statues of Hindu gods along side the Buddhas in the temples. The inhabitants of Thailand worshipped all kinds of the nature spirits anciently, and so that is also included in their religion. There are spirit houses and shrines all over.

There are not very many nuns - less than 20,000 in Thailand. Most enter because of economic reasons. They are all dressed in white. They have to follow 341 precepts.

Our guide is not very religious but he believes in trying to follow these basic Buddhist principles: do what is good, avoid evil, and purify yourself - then you will be happy. Sounds pretty good.

We asked the purpose of the dragon stair case - it is to protect the temple. When Lord Buddha was enlightened, there was a great storm. A serpent came to protect him for the elements. His head split into seven to offer more protection.

When we came down from the temple, we drove through the city of Chiang Mai. We saw the parts of the old wall. The Ping River flows through the center. Once a year in the dry season when the river runs clear (April), they celebrate the Thai New Year. People line the sides and scoop water and throw it on each other. This last for 3 days in the city and longer in the countryside.

In mid-November, there is another celebraton. Everywhere is decorated with banan trees. Everyonce maks floating lanterns, decorated with incense. After they pray at the temple, the light candles, and then float the lanterns down the river. The lanterns are individual and small on the first day and then very large on the next. They also fly hotair balloons. It sounds wonderful.

Transportation is still not that great here. It takes 14 hours to go by the rapid or express train to Bangkok which is 700 kilometers away. The ordinary train takes 17 hours and there are only wooden seats. The bus takes 9 hours.

Chiang Mai is a center of handicraft. It is famous for silk, silver, umbrellas, teak, jade, etc. We first went to a jade factory where we learned about the different kinds of jade. We then went to a silk factory where we saw the silk worms in action. They weave their cocoons. The cocoons are then boiled with the worm inside (the worm dies) and the thread is pulled up. Somehow when it is pulled up, other threads stick it forming a larger thread that can be used. 1,200 meteres of silk can come from one cocoon. We saw some absolutely beautiful silk. We went to a silver factory and saw people working the silver by hand and then visited an umbrella factory. The process for making the umbrellas is painstaking and fascinating. The people work hard and don't make much. Umbrellas have great significance. 9 layers are for the king, 7 for the queen, 6 for the crowned prince, 5 for religious leaders, 1 for regular people.

There is more to write, but Dad has had it with me - I don't know why.

We went for another traditional, very spicy Thai dinner. We saw some traditional dancers - the Thai women are so very beautiful and graceful.

Hopefully, we will get to Korea by morning. I'll have more to write - that I'm pretty sure noone will read - but the pictures will be good.