The Temples of Chiang Mai

I spent Thursday morning walking through the old city of Chiang Mai (which, ironically means “new city”) alone. Learning from the heat of the previous afternoon, I decided to get out before it was so intense. I employed a Tuk-Tuk driver to take me to my starting point, just inside the moat and remnants of an ancient wall that mark the old city. Then I followed the instructions for a walking tour I found in a brochure. It took about two hours, but I could have taken eight. Chiang Mai offers that much to see.

My walk started in the northeast corner of the city and followed a route that wound through busy city streets and some quiet lanes, passing some of the better known of the three hundred temples in Chiang Mai. The Tuk-Tuk dropped me off at the Wat (temple) Chiang Man, the oldest temple in the city, built in AD 1296.

I entered the gates of the compound by passing through two huge dragon figures. This would become a familiar experience, since the gates of all the temples were guarded by them. Each temple compound contained several buildings. The viham is the building containing a statue of the Buddha and is used for prayer. It is like a chapel. Often more than one of these stood in the temple compounds. You must remove your shoes before entering the viham.

The small viham at Wat Chiang Man contains two of the most highly valued Buddha images in the city. The Phra Sila is a marble based relief from Sri Lanka that is supposed to prevent destruction, and the Phra Sae Tang Khamani, a tiny crystal figure sheltered by an umbrella, is believed to have the power to bring rain. On the steps leading up to the building sat a woman selling caged pigeons to be purchased and released. I don’t know what the symbolism of that act would be in Buddhism. In the back of the building stood a huge structure called a chedi, capped with bright gold and supported by large carved elephants. It is shaped like a lotus flower, forming a point at the top, supposedly symbolizing the movement toward nothingness that the religion aspires to.

As instructed, I left by the back gate (a frequently given instruction on this walking tour) and turned left, right, then left again on Phra Pokklao Road. I continued down the street until I came to a traffic light, crossed the street and came to the Three Kings Monument. On a large plaza stands a monument to King Mengrai, who founded the city in AD 1296. He is flanked by two other kings who served as his allies. The black statues each wore a lime green silk sash.

The plaza there provided a good stopping place to sit under a tree and consult my map. After making my way down a very busy street whose sidewalks were under construction, forcing me into the street, I came to my next site, Wat Pan Tao. The entire temple appeared to be undergoing a radical restoration. It was surrounded by scaffolding crawling with workers, so I did not enter. I was able to see the beautiful glass inlaid peacock over its doors for which it is known.

Another block down the street I took a right and came to a very large temple, Wat Chedi Luang, sort of a Buddhist mega-temple. Groups of uniformed school children walked in the large plaza around the temple buildings, led by monks clothed in their bright orange robes. This temple’s main feature is a huge brick chedi that stands almost 200 feet high (until an earthquake damaged it, it was nearly 300 feet high). The temple also had a little snack bar outside where I bought a bottle of water and sat down for a while, completing a survey for the TAT (the Tourist Authority of Thailand) representative. A big yellow sign near the snack area announced that Monk Chat was held there from 12:30-6:00 every day and that you could talk to a monk about Buddhism, monastery life, Thai culture, or anything else, for free. I was too early to have a monk chat, but that would have been interesting. I thought about putting up a Pastor Chat sign at the King’s Table, but figured I would not do much business.

Out the back gate again, left on Ratchadamnoen Road, past the police station and a half dozen sidewalk restaurants, and I came to Wat Phra Singh. More Buddha’s and monks. I’m almost templed out. But I press on. (Wear sandals when you do this. The monks do. It makes it easier to take off your shoes to go inside.)

Out the back gate once more, turn left, left again, and then right on a small lane that wound through a residential area. Eventually it passed the Wat Muen Ngem Kong, a lesser known temple in Chiang Mai. One of the features of this temple was a large reclining Buddha image. It looked inviting.

Out the back gate again onto a very narrow lane that led past the Wat Phuak Hong. The gates were closed here, but you could see a brick chedi dating from the 16th century. A little further down the road and I came to the back entrance of Buak Haad City Park, the end of the walking tour. It is a beautifully landscaped park with benches and shade. I sat and reviewed my map again. Outside the front gates of the park merchants spread their wares on a red brick side walk. A three wheel bicycle parked there sported a bucket filled with burning charcoal and fuming incense. Across the street from the entrance was the city’s moat, the part that runs east and west on the south side of the city.

I crossed over the road and headed east, thinking I would walk all the way back to the Galare Guest House. After a few blocks, however, another Tuk-Tuk ride seemed like a good idea. I stopped the driver in front of the Starbucks and walked from there, dropping in to an internet café to check email and then grabbing lunch at the Honey Grilled Chicken sidewalk café across from the Bomb Car Rental.

After lunch I walked the two remaining blocks to my room, cleaned up, packed up, and waited for the taxi that would take me to the Suan Bua Resort for my meeting with the CBF Asia missionaries.

I was ready for a break from the three days of solitude I had spent in a city of 170,000. After looking at dozens of Buddhist images that morning I was also grateful for a Risen Savior and the grace of God that made the rituals of religion unnecessary. I wondered what it was like for the 170,000 Thai people here in this beautiful place who do not know Jesus Christ. I was grateful for the men and women who serve here with CBF or the IMB, bringing good news.