Last Updated on June 24, 2019 by PowersToTravel
Yesterday I asked for colorful temples, and today I received them! We still did not get blue skies, but the gold of several Chiang Mai temples gleamed brightly under the overcast skies.
Our first stop was at Chedi Luang, an historic temple on which construction was started in the late 14th century, and which was completed in 1475. It was home at one time in the 16th century to the Emerald Buddha, but following the earthquake of 1545, the Emerald Buddha was moved to Luang Prabang in Laos.
That earthquake destroyed a good part of the chedi (pagoda), but it was restored in the 1990s, with the assistance of UNESCO.
It seemed at every turn a new and different colorful, carved feature presented itself, from painted warriors guarding the temple wall, to a golden reclining Buddha, to a huge standing Buddha in the hall, complete with golden aura.
As one of the most important temples in Chiang Mai, it is a must-see, and the traffic outside the gates certainly testified to this. Since we ourselves were delivered by Mr. Lucky in our van, and escorted by Bom, our guide, we were unpressured by the throngs of people.
What happened to the Emerald Buddha?
Just now, I tried to research Why the Emerald Buddha was moved to Luang Prabang. Was it due to war or theft? Oh, my, what an interesting story I have stumbled into.
The Emerald Buddha story comes from Indian Hindu mythology, with stories of Visnu and Indra and their journey to Mt Meru to obtain a huge gemstone worthy of being carved into a Buddha likeness great enough to cause everyone for five thousand years to revere the teachings of Buddha. Visnu and Indra succeed in bringing down a large piece of jade, not emerald, which is then carved into a likeness of the head of Buddha.
This myth of the Emerald Buddha wanders around India, Burma, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Thailand and Laos. Suddenly, in 1434 the Emerald (actually Jade) Buddha comes to documented life as it is discovered hidden in a stupa in Chiang Rai, when the stupa was struck by lightening.
The actual Emerald Buddha makes his way to Lampang and then Chiang Mai, where he is installed at Chedi Luang. This brings me to the answer to my question, “Why did he go to Luang Prabang?” The story of his travels is similar to the story of King James the VI of Scotland, who became King James the First of England. Is he Scottish, is he English? Oh, these royalty just mix together a bit too much sometimes…
It goes like this: Phra Chao Phothisan was king of Luang Prabang, in Laos. He married the daughter of the king of Chiang Mai, and had a son Chao Chaiyaset. When Chao Chiayaset was only fifteen, the King of Chiang Mai, his grandfather, died, and the officials of Chiang Mai offered Chao Chiayaset of Luang Prabang the Chiang Mai throne. Chao Chiayaset did what anyone would do – he accepted!
However, later the old King of Luang Prabang died, and in Luang Prabang the officials searched for the right person to replace their king… who came to mind but his son Chao Chiayset?
When Chao Chiayset traveled to Luang Prabang to attend his father’s funeral, he took the Emerald Buddha with him, perhaps afraid that he might lose it forever. Ah the lack of trust with the rich and famous! It is uncertain as to whether he actually stayed to become the king of Luang Prabang, or whether a half-brother did. Many of the details of this story have become more myth than fact.
One fact that is certain is that the Emerald Buddha came to have a home in Laos for many centuries. As it is considered very, very good luck, and a Buddhist national treasure to all the Buddhist countries of Southeast Asia, its ultimate loss to Thailand in 1778 was a terrible blow to Laos.
I hope to continue this story when I write about Laos, at this rate many months from now!
For now, a black stone-carved Buddha sits in one of the alcoves of the great chedi in Chiang Mai, a reproduction of the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok. I took the obligatory picture of it at the time, but didn’t realize its importance, until just now.
Related Links
I highly recommend the story of the origins of the Emerald Buddha by Eric Roeder, written in 1999. I made it through page 11 of 24!
Check out this article of mine too:
Thailand Travel Blog – Itinerary, Impressions and Diabetic Travel Tips
I have to admit that I became so interested in the text of this piece, that I went back and looked at the beautiful images again, and again. Well done.