The Reclining Buddha Temple ‘Wat Pho’

Wat means Temple

Pho means The Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, India where Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment.

But most people have well known this temple as the enormous Reclining Buddha Temple.

Wat Pho is one of the largest and oldest temples in Bangkok covering an area of 80,000 sqm or 19 acres. Also this temple is classed as the highest grade of the first-class royal temples. King Rama I in 1788 who rebuilt the temple complex on an earlier temple site. It became his main temple and is where some of his ashes are enshrined. The temple was later expanded and extensively renovated by Rama II until 1832.

The Reclining Buddha Image

The highlight of the visit Wat Pho temple is seeing the largest collection of Buddha images in Thailand. This Reclining Buddha was built by Rama III in 1832, 46 meters / 150 feet long Reclining Buddha. This is considered as one of the most beautiful Reclining Buddha image in Thailand.

The right arm of the Buddha supports the head with tight curls, which rests on two box-pillows encrusted with glass mosaics. The figure has a brick core and shaped with plaster, then gilded. The soles of the feet of the Buddha are inlaid with mother-of-pearl. They are each divided into 108 arranged panels, displaying the auspicious symbols by which Buddha can be identified, such as flowers, dancers, white elephants, tigers, and altar accessories.

The First Center of Public Education in Thailand: Traditional Thai Massage School

Also, this temple is considered the earliest center for public education in Thailand as this place was also intended to serve as a place of education for the general public. The pictorial encyclopedia was engraved on granite slabs covering eight subjects of history, medicine, health, custom, literature, proverbs, lexicography, and the Buddhist religion. These plaques, inscribed with texts and illustrations on medicine, Thai traditional massage, and other subjects, are placed around the temple. These are 60 inscribed plaques, 30 each for the front and back of the human body, showing pressure points used in traditional Thai massage. These therapeutic points and energy pathways are engraved on the human figures, with explanations given on the walls next to the plaques. They are based on the principle of energy flow similar to that of Chinese acupuncture. It houses a school of Thai medicine and is also known as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage which is still taught and practiced at the temple. The marble illustrations and inscriptions placed in the temple for public instructions has been recognized by UNESCO in its Memory of the World in 2011. It houses a school of Thai medicine and is also known as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage which is still taught and practiced at the temple. Wat Pho has trained more than 200,000 massage therapists who practice in 145 countries.

The Ordination Hall

The ordination hall or Phra Ubosot, the main hall is using for performing Buddhist rituals. There is service by Buddhist monks every day in the evening by 5 pm - 6 pm with chanting and meditation. The ordination hall is surrounded by 400 Buddha images.

Group of Four Large Stupas

This is a group of four large stupas, each 42 meters high. These four stupas are dedicated to the first four Chakri kings. The first, in green mosaic tiles, was constructed by Rama I to house the remnants of the great Buddha from Ayuthaya, which was scorched to remove its gold covering by the Burmese. Two more were built by Rama III, one in white tiles to hold the ashes of his father Rama II, another in yellow for himself. A fourth in blue was built by Rama IV who then enclosed the four chedis leaving no space for more to be built.