Emerald Buddha

Coordinates: 13°45′04″N 100°29′33″E / 13.75111°N 100.49250°E / 13.75111; 100.49250
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Phra Kaeo Morakot
Thai: พระแก้วมรกต
The Emerald Buddha adorned in winter season attire
ArtistUnknown
Year15th century
MediumJade or jasper
Dimensions66 cm × 48 cm (26 in × 19 in)
LocationWat Phra Kaew, Grand Palace, Bangkok
Coordinates13°45′04″N 100°29′33″E / 13.75111°N 100.49250°E / 13.75111; 100.49250

The Emerald Buddha (

Gautama Buddha seated in a meditative posture, made of a semi-precious green stone (jasper rather than emerald or jade), clothed in gold.[1] and about 66 centimetres (26 in) tall.[2] The image is considered the sacred palladium of Thailand.[3][4] It is housed in the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) on the grounds of the Grand Palace in Bangkok.[1]

Origin myths

Sinhalese origin according to the Jinakalamali

The legend of the Emerald Buddha is related in number of sources such as

Nibbana. He was said to have predicted:[4]

This figure of the Buddha is assuredly going to give to religion the most brilliant importance in five lands, that is in Lankadvipa (

).

Arrival in Cambodia according to Cambodian Royal Chronicles

According to

Ayutthaya, Kamphaeng Phet, Laos and finally Chiang Rai, where the ruler of the city hid it until it was found in 1434.[4]

Burmese Chronicles

A version of the legend stated that in 457, King Anuruth(Anawrahta) of

Burma sent a mission to Ceylon to ask for Buddhist scriptures and the Emerald Buddha, in order to support Buddhism in his country. These requests were granted, but the ship lost its way in a storm during the return voyage and somehow landed in Cambodia
.

History

Discovery in Lan Na

A chedi at Wat Pa Yia in Chiang Rai.

Historical sources indicate that the statue surfaced in northern Thailand in the Lan Na kingdom in 1434. One account of its discovery tells that lightning struck a chedi in Wat Pa Yia (Bamboo Forest Monastery, later renamed Wat Phra Kaew) in Chiang Rai, revealing a Buddha covered with stucco inside. The Buddha was then placed in the abbot's residence, who later noticed that stucco on the nose had flaked off, revealing a green interior. The abbot removed the stucco and found a Buddha figure carved from a green semi-precious stone, which became known as Phra Kaew Morakot or in English the Emerald Buddha. ("Emerald" refers to its "green colour" in Thai, not its composition.)[8][9] Some art historians describe the Emerald Buddha as belonging to the Chiang Saen Style of the 15th century CE, which would mean that it is of Lan Na origin.

The legend reports that King Sam Fang Kaen of Lan Na wanted it in his capital of Chiang Mai, but the elephant carrying it insisted on three separate occasions on going instead to Lampang. This was taken as a divine sign, and the Emerald Buddha stayed in Lampang in a specially-built temple (now Wat Phra Kaeo Don Tao) for the next 32 years. In 1468, it was moved to Chiang Mai by King Tilokaraj, where it was kept in a niche in a large stupa called Chedi Luang.[10]

Presence in Laos in the 16th century

The Emerald Buddha remained in Chiang Mai until 1552, when it was taken to Luang Prabang, then the capital of the Lao kingdom of Lan Xang. Some years earlier, the crown prince of Lan Xang, Setthathirath, had been invited to occupy the vacant throne of Lan Na as his mother was the daughter of the king of Chiang Mai who had died without an heir.[10] However, Prince Setthathirath also became king of Lan Xang when his father, Photisarath, died. He returned home, taking the revered Buddha figure with him.[citation needed]

In 1564, King Setthathirath moved it to Vientiane, which he had made his new capital due to Burmese attacks and where the Buddha image was housed in Haw Phra Kaew.[11] The Buddha image would stay in Vientiane for the next 214 years.[10]

Settlement in Siam after the victory of General Chao Phraya Chakri in 1779

In 1779, the Siamese General

ubosot of the Wat Phra Kaew temple complex in February/March 1785.[4][a]

Temples of the Emerald Buddha: visual journey

Description

A photograph of the Emerald Buddha without its decoration, taken in 1932.

The Buddha image is made of a semi-precious green stone,[3] described variously as jade or jasper rather than emerald,[1][15] as "emerald" here refers to its colour rather than the stone.[16] The image has not been analyzed to determine its exact composition or origin.

The figure is 48 centimetres (19 in) wide at the lap, and 66 centimetres (26 in) high.[2] The Buddha is in a seated position, with the right leg resting on the left one, a style that suggest it might have been carved in the late Chiang Saen or Chiang Mai school, not much earlier than the fifteenth century CE. However, the Meditation attitude of the statue was not popular in Thailand but looks very much like some of the Buddha images of southern India and Sri Lanka, which led some to suggest an origin in India or Sri Lanka.[10]

Seasonal decoration

The Emerald Buddha is adorned with three sets of gold seasonal decorations: two were made by Rama I, one for the summer and one for the rainy season, and a third made by Rama III for the winter or cool season.[10] In 1996 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the Bureau of the Royal Household commissioned a replica set of the seasonal decorations to be made in all the same materials. This new set was funded entirely by donations. The original set, which were made over 200 years ago, were retired and are on display at the Museum of the Emerald Buddha Temple in the Middle court of the Grand Palace.[17]

The decorations are changed by the

King of Thailand, or a senior member of the royal family in his stead,[18] in a ceremony at the changing of the seasons – in the 1st Waning of lunar months 4, 8 and 12 (around March, August and November).[19]

For the three seasons, there are three sets of decorations for the Emerald Buddha:[3][19]

  • Hot/summer season from March to August – a stepped, pointed crown (makuṭa); a breast pendant; a sash; a necklace, a number of armlets, bracelets and other items of royal attire. All items are made of enameled gold and embedded with precious and semi-precious stones.
  • Rainy season from August to November – a pointed headpiece of enameled gold studded with sapphires; a gold-embossed monk's robe draped over one shoulder (kasaya).
  • Cool/winter season from November to March – a gold headpiece studded with diamonds; a jewel-fringed gold-mesh shawl draped over the rainy season attire.

The sets of gold clothing not in use at any given time are kept on display in the nearby Pavilion of Regalia, Royal Decorations, and Thai Coins on the grounds of the Grand Palace, where the public may view them.

The Emerald Buddha in the three seasonal decorations, from left to right: Summer season, Rainy season, Winter season.

Ceremonies

Early in the Bangkok period, the Emerald Buddha was occasionally taken out and paraded through the streets to relieve the city and countryside of various calamities (such as

Rama IV's reign as it was feared that the image could be damaged during the procession and the king's belief that; "Diseases are caused by germs, not by evil spirits or the displeasure of the Buddha".[4]

The Emerald Buddha also marks the changing of the seasons in Thailand, with the king presiding over seasonal ceremonies. In a ritual held at the temple three times a year, the decoration of the statue is changed at the start of each of the three seasons. The astrological dates for the ritual ceremonies, at the changing of the seasons, followed are in the first

waning moon of the lunar calendar, months 4, 8 and 12 (around March, July, and November). Rama I initiated this ritual for the hot season and the rainy season; Rama III introduced the ritual for the winter season.[4][16] The decoration which adorn the image, represent those of monks and the king, depending on the season, an indication of its symbolic role "as Buddha and the King", which role is also enjoined on the king who formally dresses the Emerald Buddha himself.[1] The costume change ritual is performed by the king who is the most elevated master of ceremonies for all Buddhist rites. During the ceremony, the king first climbs up to the pedestal, cleans the image by wiping away any dust with a wet cloth, and changes the gold headress of the Emerald Buddha. The king then worships nearby while an attendant performs the elaborate ritual of changing the rest of the decorative garments.[19] The king also sprays holy water, which is mixed with the water rinsed from the wet cloth used to wipe the dust of the image, upon his subjects waiting outside the ordination hall. Previously this was a privilege afforded only to the princes and officials who were attending the ceremony (uposatha) inside the ubosot.[10]

Ceremonies are also performed at the Emerald Buddha temple at other occasions such as Chakri Day (6 April 1782), a national holiday to honour the founding of the Chakri dynasty. The king and queen, an entourage of the royal family, as well as the prime minister, officials of the Ministry of Defence and other government departments, offer prayers at the temple.[4]

See also

Notes

  1. Chulasakkarat 1146,[12] which is erroneous as that lunar date falls on a Wednesday. A later Fine Arts Department publication corrects this to 5th waning moon,[13] which corresponds to 28 February 1785.[14]
    However, many sources report an incorrect date of 22 March 1784.

References

  1. ^ from the original on 10 July 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Chapel of the Emerald Buddha". Asia for Visitors – Your complete online travel resource for Southeast Asia. Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  3. ^
    ISBN 978-9747919615. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2020.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link
    )
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Roeder, Eric (1999). "The Origin and Significance of the Emerald Buddha" (PDF). Explorations in Southeast Asian Studies. 3. Honolulu: Center for Southeast Asian Studies, University of Hawai'i at Manoa: 1, 18. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  5. from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  6. from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
  7. ^ Chantrabot, Ros (1998). ប្រវត្តិសាស្រ្តខ្មែរ [History of Cambodia, through Khmer legends and Khmer inscriptions] (PDF) (in Khmer). L'Harmattan. pp. 69–75.
  8. ^ Diskul (M.C.), Subhadradis (1982). History of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Bangkok: Bureau of the Royal Household. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  9. from the original on 1 August 2020. Retrieved 27 March 2010.
  10. ^ a b c d e f M.C. Subhaddradis Diskul. "Wat Phra Kaew". www.cs.ait.ac.th. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  11. from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  12. .
  13. [History of the Emerald Buddha] (PDF). Dhammanusasana (in Thai). Chaplaincy Division, Directorate of Education and Training, RTAF. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  14. ^ Thailand, MYHORA com. "ปฏิทิน 100 ปี พ.ศ.2327-2328(2327) / ค.ศ.1784-1785" [100-year calendar, 1784-1785]. myhora.com. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  15. ^ "The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica". Emerald Buddha (sculpture). Archived from the original on 12 April 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  16. ^ a b "Wat Phra Kaew – Bangkok, Thailand". www.sacred-destinations.com. Sacred Destinations. Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  17. from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  18. ^ Barrow, Richard (19 November 2013). "Cool Season Robes for the Emerald Buddha". Thaibuddhist. Archived from the original on 19 July 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  19. ^ from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 26 November 2020.

External links