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Wat-Arun-Bangkok-Temple
Wat-Arun-Bangkok-Temple

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

The Temple of Dawn

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple is known as the Temple of Dawn on the Thonburi west bank of the of the Chao Phraya river.

The temple derives its name from the Hindu god Aruna, often personified as the radiations of the rising sun. Wat Arun is among the best known of Thailand’s landmarks and the first light of the morning reflects off the surface of the temple with pearly iridescence.  Although the temple had existed since at least the seventeenth century, its distinctive prang (spires) were built in the early nineteenth century during the reign of King Rama II.

Undergoing some Maintenance

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Wat Arun is quite fascinating, I found it every bit as interesting as the Grand Palace.  For foreigners, the temple charges an entrance fee of 50 baht. Wat Arun figures in one of Thailand’s most colorful festivals, the Royal Kathin and the king travels down in the Thai royal barge procession to present new robes to the monks after their three-month lent period.

Colored Porcelain

The main feature of Wat Arun is its central prang (Khmer-style tower) which are encrusted with colorful porcelain. This is interpreted as a stupa-like pagoda encrusted with colored faience. The height is reported by different sources as between 66.8 m (219 ft) and 86 m (282 ft).

You can climb up the temple, I didn’t.  😕

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Even Monks need a mobile phone.

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

It seems a little out of character, I always thought the monks had few possessions.

Did you see that Monk with a mobile phone?

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

I saw nothing, & I’m not saying a word, & I can’t hear you.  😆

Golden Buddha Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple of Dawn is really worth visiting, along with the Grand Palace as well.

Even Buddha’s need maintenance.

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Like any good painter he has lined the wall with newspaper to stop the paint splashing.

Golden Buddhas

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

In Thailand too many Buddhas are never enough.

Without a doubt AGODA is the best online Hotel booking site.

Phra ubosot ordination hall.

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

A phra ubosot  or short bot  is a building in a Buddhist Wat. It is the holiest prayer room, also called the “ordination hall” as it is where ordinations take place. The term ubosot, shortened to bot in Thai colloquial speech, is derived from the Pali term uposathagara, which refers to a hall used for rituals on the uposatha days — the Buddhist Sabbath, which falls four times a month on the full moon, new moon, and eighth day after each.

Phra ubosot

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

An ubosot stands within a boundary formed by eight sema stones which separate the sacred from the profane, and thus differs from a viharn. The sema stones actually stand above and mark the Luk Nimit, stone spheres buried at the cardinal points of the compass delineating the sacred area. A ninth stone sphere, usually bigger, is buried below the main Buddha image of the ubosot. Both ubosots and viharns typically house Buddha images. The entrance side of most ubosots face east. Across from the entrance door at the end of the interior is the ubosot’s largest Buddha statue.

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple.

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Everything is beautifully manicured at Wat Arun Bangkok Temple of Dawn.

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple of Dawn

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple

Wat Arun Bangkok Temple of Dawn is a very imposing structure.

Thanks for visiting my Wat Arun Bangkok Temple photo blog.

Unbelievably, there are over 31200 Buddhist temples spread around Thailand. In Thai these are called wat. One of these, the Wat Arun or the Temple of Dawn, is named after Aruna, the Indian God of Dawn. Sitting majestically on the Thonburi side of the Chao Phraya River, the legendary Wat Arun is one of the most striking riverside landmarks of Thailand. Despite the name, the most spectacular view of the glittering monument can be seen from the east side of the river at sunset, when the spires of Wat Arun make an impressive silhouette against the skyline.

This Wat or Buddhist temple is an architectural representation of Mount Meru, the center of the world in Buddhist cosmology. In the mythology of Tibetan Buddhism, Mount Meru is a place that simultaneously represents the center of the universe and the single-pointedness of mind sought by adepts. Thousands of miles in height, Meru is located somewhere beyond the physical plane of reality, in a realm of perfection and transcendence. The four-corner prang of Wat Arun, which house images of the guardian gods of the four directions, reinforces this mystical symbolism.

 
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                              Here are some more posts to check out         

Pattaya Hilton

Pattaya hotels, Hilton & Holiday Inn

This is the view from Horizons the amazing rooftop bar. A great five star hotel located opposte the beach & above the Central Festival shopping mall. Just book through THIS LINK for an excellent room rate. 

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 That’s all folks

1g Duck

 
 

Counter only started June 16 2020.

Author: David Herd

My history, particularly over the last 30 years is dominated by overseas travel. I sold my home in Australia October 20th 2011 and have have been living in Thailand since then. I don’t know where the time has gone? It seems like you go to sleep one night, wake up the next morning, and 20 years have flashed by. Not sure how many years I have left, however I have enjoyed a wonderful charmed life, and if it all ended today I would leave this world with no regrets. I was born in Sydney halfway through the last century, started my travels in the 60s with the usual U.K. Europe adventure at the age of 20, back to Australia and worked in Sydney, Melbourne & Adelaide in Sales & Marketing with multinational companies including Sanyo, Canon & Remington. Engaged to be married 3 times and never quite made it to the alter, finally realized by the mid 90s I was not cut out for "long term relationships" so I moved to the Gold Coast in Queensland in January 1987, worked for a couple of banks as a Financial Planner, I took a year off work in 1998 to travel and never went back to full time work again, after 25 fun filled years on the Coast I packed up and moved to Thailand. What is the purpose of this blog? Well I really want to use it to record my travel experiences & to display my photographs, give and receive travel tips, comment on places I visit, restaurants I eat in and use it to replace the autobiography I intended to write, apart from all that it helps me fill in my day. :) I moved to Thailand mainly because I wanted to keep travelling while my health allowed me to, there are huge advantages being closer to all the places I want to visit. Cost of living in Thailand is around 35% of the cost in Australia, plus flights are 50% cheaper because you are much closer to everywhere. ???? Consequently I am able to travel to many more places compared to living in Australia. Having said all that, it is & has always been my intention to return to Australia when my travelling is finished, I predict this will happen around 2021.

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