Nakhon Si Tammarat (NST ) in Thailand:
Home away from home!
Disna MUDALIGE
The year 2013 is a year of celebrations for Buddhists in Sri Lanka
and Thailand. It marks the 260th anniversary of the re-establishment of
Upasampada and establishment of Siam Maha Nikaya of Sri Lanka with the
arrival of Ven. Upali Maha Thera from Thailand.
‘Wat Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan’ temple with a distinctive
Sri Lankan style Stupa |
Parallel to this occasion, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT),
Mumbai Office in coordination with the Royal Thai Embassy in Sri Lanka
invited a group of Sri Lankan media for a tour in Nakhon Si Tammarat (NST),
a province which I would like to call as ‘home away from home’ for any
Sri Lankan brought up under the Buddhist culture.
Almost everything we experienced in this province situated in the
Eastern shore of the Southern Thailand reminded us of familiar locations
and features found in Sri Lanka. The etymology of the name of the city
itself depicts how much we have in common to share. Nakhon Si Tammarat,
as pronounced by Thais, has derived from its Pali-Sanskrit name ‘Nagara
Sri Dhammaraja’.
Within this province, there is a separate district and city under the
very name NST which had been the centre of trade and administrative
capital at one time in the history of Southern Thailand. It had also
been an independent kingdom for many centuries.
The flight distance between Bangkok and NST is about 582km. It took
about one hour and ten minutes for the domestic air carrier to take us
to our destination.
Inspiration
We paid homage to the biggest temple in the Southern Thailand ‘Wat
Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan’ during our stay at the NST. Interestingly
this temple, even though not well known by many Sri Lankans, has greater
connections with Sri Lanka.
A Buddha statue in the temple museum which is similar
in design to those of the Polonnaruwa period |
Dr Bancha Pongpanit, professionally a doctor, and an archaeological
enthusiast, who volunteered to explain us the historical value of the
site, observed the shape of the stupa in this temple is similar to that
of ‘Kiri Vehera’ in Polonnaruwa. As believed this stupa houses Buddha’s
relics. According to the legend of the temple as explained by Dr
Pongpanit, the ship on which Prince Dantha and Princess Hemamala (Thais
pronounce as Prince Thontha Khuman and Princess Hem Chala) was voyaging
to Sri Lanka with sacred Buddha Relics had wrecked in the Indian Ocean,
and they were helped to enter the shore of Southern Thailand safely.
Thereafter they sailed to Sri Lanka on boat. Once they arrived in Sri
Lanka some relics were gifted back to those in Southern Thailand and
King Si Thamma Sokarat built a pagoda housing the relics. The present
pagoda had been restored and refurbished at many times over the history
while retaining the distinctive Sri Lankan style. It has a height of
55.78 meters and the top is entirely covered by pure gold. The gold
covered part is 8.29 meters high. This temple has been submitted to the
tentative list of the UNESCO since August last year to consider for
inscription as a cultural heritage on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Natural beauty of the Kiriwong village |
The temple also consists of a Bo tree brought from Sri Lanka and its
museum contains ancient Buddha statues with similar features as those
found in historical sites in Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura.
Being a Sri Lankan Buddhist, it was a happy, proud and rare occasion
to witness the close association of our ancestors with Thai counterparts
in their perseverance to protect Theravada Buddhist culture.
Faithful devotees
When we visited this ancient temple on the day prior to the Navam
Poya, it was crowded and busy with devotees preparing for the annual
Makha Puja Festival which fell on the next day.
Devotees carrying yellow robes to wrap around the stupa that
houses
the relics a day prior to the Makha Puja |
A section of the participants at the Makha Puja Festival |
‘Lan Saka- the Best Ozone’ Souvenirs at a sales outlet |
As explained by our tourist guide, it was a merit making ceremony
observed mainly in Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos on the full moon
day of the third lunar month (this usually falls in February).
At the temple we saw devotees, ranging from youngsters to very old,
carrying long pieces of yellow robes with so much faith to wrap around
the body of pagoda as homage to Lord Buddha. We learnt these robes were
their donations to the temple.
This unique tradition practiced for more than 800 years is called
‘Hae Pha Khuen Thart’ in Thailand, and is regarded as a great Buddhist
virtue that one should practice at least once in a life time.
The Makha Puja day is to appreciate the divine grace and goodness of
the Lord Buddha and has been declared a national holiday in Thailand.
Colourful procession
Next day, we could watch the long charming procession of the
International Makha Puja Festival 2013 heading to the temple. Thousands
of people belonging to all folks of life were taking part in the
procession representing various organizations and institutions in the 24
districts in the NST.
They were carrying yellow, red and white long pieces of cloth to wrap
around the stupa. Making the event more colourful, school children were
carrying the paintings related to the life of Buddha on the cloth. These
painting were their creative contributions.
Towards the end of the parade, teams from other countries joined in
holding the country’s name board. This year 10 countries were
represented at the parade including Sri Lanka. The rest of the countries
were Nepal, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, India,
Bangladesh and Japan.
NST Rajabhat University President Chatchai Sukrakanchaua told us they
hope to invite cultural groups from other countries to perform at the
parade from next year. He also said the NST airport would open for
direct international flights by next year making the journey to the
Southern Thailand much easier, observing that it would help to attract
more tourists.
Natural beauty
The visit to Kiriwong village in Lan Saka district was the most
interesting part during our tour in the NST. This village is memorable
for its greenery, stunning natural beauty and self reliant community.
Some assume the name ‘Lan Saka’ has its etymological connections with
the word ‘Lanka’.
Kiriwong village reminded me of a typical Sri Lankan village and the
Divi Neguma national programme aimed at achieving self reliant economy.
The villagers in this locale lead simple and quiet life styles and
engage in variety of community sustainable income generation activities
such as growing chemical free organic fruits, eco tourism related home
stay, chemical free natural tie-dye, handicrafts and herbal products
etc.
This village surrounded by mountains and jungles has been found to
account for the best Ozone in Thailand and has been rated number 7 in
relation to the finest air quality in the world. My attention was
grabbed by a nicely decorated small tin priced 69 bahts on which it was
written ‘Lan Saka- the Best Ozone’ at a handicraft sales outlet. To my
amusement it was found to be a souvenir containing nothing but air to
recall the unpolluted fresh air a visitor could breathe in this locale.
While walking around the village we could see and often pick and
taste fresh chemical free fruit varieties such as Durian, Mangusteen,
Jampada and Long Gong. As learnt, these quality controlled chemical free
fruits have found their way to export markets in Japan, Hong Kong,
China, Vietnam and some Europeans countries. |