Part 2: Theoretical Frameworks and Relevant Documents
6. Wat Thasutthawat
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Figure 31 People are paying homage to the reclining Buddha image and the statue of King Naresuan
(Panot Asawachai, 2014.)
Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn stands in the middle of a pond and a residence for her entourage is to the south of the royal residence. 5.) an old wooden pavilion for delivering sermons located by the river. 6.) two ancient stupas with indented corners, which are located by the river to the north of the old pavilion. Nowadays, they are currently in dilapidated condition. 7.) a new stupa is on the north of the ordination hall, which is kept ancient Budhha images and the relics of the Lord Buddha and 8.) a traditional crematorium and a pavilion for mourners.
Historic Value
Wat Thasutthawat is an ancient temple on the bank of Chao Phraya River. The date of its establishment is unknown, but there is historic evidence that this temple was closely related to the capital city of Ayutthaya as it was on the route that Thai armies took to fight with the Burmese. In particular, in 1592, King Naresuan encamped his army at this temple before crossing the Chao Phraya River to camp for the night at Wat Pamok Worawihan. From there, King Naresuan went forth on a campaign, during which he fought on elephant back at Don Chedi battlefield in which he gained victory. Thus, Wat Thasutthawat is taken a place in Thai history.
Wat Thasutthawat had fallen into declination. In 1973, when H.R.H Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, who was Princess Sirindhorn at that time, accompanied her Majesties the King and the Queen to visit people in Ang Thong province. Princess Sirindhorn noticed that the ordination hall of Wat Thasutthawat was in very poor condition, and on October 17, 1986, she suggested that the old ordination hall should be demolished and replaced with a new one and she consigned Ajarn Jurathat Phayakharanon to design the new ordination hall of Wat Thasutthawat.
The governor of Ang Thong province at that time, Mr. Thaveep Thaveephanit, and the abbot of Wat Chaimongkon in Ang Thong, Phra Khru Wisetchaiwat, together with people in Ang Thong and many other supporters collaborated in donating the money for building the new ordination hall. Also, because Wat Thasutthawat was of historical importance, they built statues of King Naresuan and Prince Ekatosarot at this temple for reminding his encamping at this temple before going to Don Chedi battlefield. Moreover, H.R.H Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn had come to work at this temple every year, a royal residence was constructed for her in term of a pavilion in the middle of the pond where is near the new ordination hall.
After the completion of the new ordination hall, H.R.H Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn consigned students from the Design Section of the Handicrafts Promotion Foundation
under the patronage of Her Majesty the Queen to draw the mural paintings inside the new ordination hall. The murals show the life of the Lord Buddha, particularly as in the Maha Chanaka Jataka which composed by His Majesty the King. Furthermore, the murals present historical events at Bang Sadet Sub-district where the temple is located and many important historic events of Ang Thong provice as well. Nowadays, the temple is the main tourist destination in Ang Thong province.
Aesthetic Value The ordination hall
From the time that H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn was a student at Chulalongkorn University, she has accompanied King Bhumibol and Queen Sirikit to visit many provinces in Thailand, Ayutthaya, Ang Thong, Singburi among them. Her interest in the teaching of the craft of making royal palace dolls had brought her back to Wat Thasutthawat many times so that she has become acquainted with the villagers and sometimes has had meal with them.
observing that the old ordination hall had deteriorated beyond repair, the Princess kindly offered to build a new one. On October 17, 1986, she presided over the ceremony to replace the old ordination hall.
The overall structure of old ordination hall of Wat Thasutthawat was King Rama III architectural style. The building was brick covering with plaster on lotus base, its width 10 meters and its length 20 meters. The building faced to the east and there was a low wall surrounding the old ordination hall. Porch covered with roof was constructed only in front. There were four columns supporting the porch and their capitals were in the form of a lotus. The roof of the building was double roofs and had three tiers covering with tiles without decorating roof finials.
The front pedimental relief was stucco with the standing Lord Buddha image and his disciples standing on the fish in the center. The rare pedimental relief was similar to the front but the stucco of the Lord Buddha image was in form of sitting posture. Under the pediments were decorated with circular porcelain dishes. The principle Buddha image inside the old ordination hall sat upon a pedestal in a subduing Mara posture, surrounding by other twenty Buddha images. There were two ancient stupas behind the old ordination hall. These two stupas was square-based stupa with twelve indented corners. These two ancient stupas was demolished during building the new ordination hall.
Figure 32 Old ordination hall of Wat Tha Sutthawat (Panot Asawachai, 2014.)
However five years later, construction had not yet begun. Concerned about this, the Princess consigned Mr. Thaweep Thaweephanit, the governor of Ang Thong Province, to be the chief of construction and Mr. Churathat Phayakharanon, a well-known master of Thai arts to design the structure while the Princess kindly accepted responsibility as chief fund raiser for the construction of this new ordination hall.
Mr. Thaweep Thaweephanit appointed a committee consisting of Phra Khru Wisetchaiwat, the abbot of Wat Chaimongkol, who is very skillful in the construction of ordination hall, Mr. Kamchat Khongmisuk, a well-known master of architecture, and a team of engineers and technicians of the Municipality of Ang Thong Province to design and build the new ordination hall.
The construction commenced on June 9, 1990 and was completed in August 1991, last 1 year and 2 months. The new ordination hall was shown to the Princess on the occasion of her 36th birthday in 1991. On August 26, 1991, H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presided over the dedication ceremony of the new ordination hall and the statues of King Naresuan and King Ekathosarot. On this occasion the Princess visited the royal pavilion in the pond that the Province of Ang Thong had built for her.
Later in 1993 the Princess had masters and students of the Design Section of the Foundation for Handicraft Promotion under the patronage of Queen Sirikit paint murals in the
new ordination hall. The objectives are to celebrate traditional Thai murals and to provide a good opportunity for art students to accumulate excellent authentic artistic experience at the site.
The great goodness of H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn has brought together in a spirit of good cooperation monks, government officers, people in Ang Thong and people throughout the country to build this new ordination hall as a fine religious and historic construction.
The overall structure of new ordination hall of Wat Thasutthawat is brick covering with plaster on high raised floor, its width 9.40 meters and its length 23.40 meters. The building faces to the east. The upper roof of the building is double roofs and has two tiers covering with tiles and the lower roof is hipped. The building is surrounded by a colonnade. The roof finials are in the form of kranok motifs. The projecting gables can be seen in the front and back of the building. These projecting gables bear the insignia of H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn.
The principle Buddha image inside the old ordination hall sits upon a pedestal in a subduing Mara posture. The other twenty Buddha images are moved to keep inside the new stupa. Inside the ordination hall, the exquisite mural paintings decorate the walls.
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Figure 33 New ordination hall of Wat Tha Sutthawat (Panot Asawachai, 2014.)
The mural on the front wall of the ordination hall, opposite the principle Buddha image can be divided into three parts:
1. Above the door is the Buddha subduing Mara
2. The lower left presents the Bang Pa In Palace and the visit of King Rama IX, Queen Sirikit, the Crown Prince and Princess Sirindhorn to Bang Sadet Sub-district, Pamok District in Ang Thong Province. This visit occured in 1973-1974 when King Rama IX and Queen Sirikit together with the royal family stayed at Bang Pa In Palace during the great flood. Hearing about the suffering of the people at Bang Sadet caused by floods, the King and the Queen visited them at Bang Sadet and offered that they make royal palace dolls as a supplementary occupation.
Today, Wat Thasutthawat is a training centre for the making of royal palace dolls, which have become well known.
3. The lower right presents the history of building the new ordination hall and the way of life of the people of Bang Sadet district.
The mural on the rear wall of the ordination hall behind the principle Buddha image can be also divided into three parts:
1. Above the door is depiction of Buddhist cosmology, or Traiphum.
2. The lower right presents the town of Ang Thong. The mural depicts an important event in the history of Ang Thong, the bestowal of a royal sword by King Rama V on the town of Ang Thong in 1896. It also shows important places of the town such as the City Pillar, The Ang Thong Administration Office, The image of Phra Maha Buddha Phim (Luang Poh To of Wat Chiyo Worawihan), the reclining Buddha images at Wat Pamok and Wat Khun In Thapramoon which is the longest reclining Buddha image in Thailand, the Khamyad royal residence in Pho Thong District, the statue of Nai Dok and Nai Thong Kaew, the orination hall of Wat An Thong, and Somdet Phra Simuangthong at Wat Tonson, which is the largest gilded metal Buddha image in Thailand, as well as scenery of this fertile province.
3. The lower left presents a historical event: the elephant-back duel between King Naresuan of Siam and King Maha Upparaja of Burma. The mural shows the departure of the army of King Naresuan and Prince Ekatosarot, the King performing a ceremony to suppress the enemy at Baan Lumphi, the army’s halt before crossing the Chao Phraya River to the west bank where Wat Thasutthawat is located. Also, the mural shows the the King’s came to pay homage to
the reclining Buddha image at Wat Pamok before going on to the batterfield in Suphanburi. The mural then presents the duel on elephant-back between King Naresuan the Great and King Maha Upparaja, in which King Naresuan received the victory.
On the side walls above the windows, Princess Sirindhorn had a mural depicting the Mahajanaka painted. This is a story of special significance to her because her father often told this story to her. The story starts from the wall on the left of the principle Buddha image and ends at the wall on the right of the principle Buddha image. The Mahajanaka is the story of king of the city Mithila who was deposed by his brother, Polajanaka. The queen, who was pregnant, took a refuge to the city of Kalachampaka and gave birth to a son. The queen gave him the name Mahajanaka. When Mahajanaka was a young, he was always teased as a fatherless child. Later, after he had found out who he was, Mahajanaka decided to go to Suvarnabhumi to trade, and if possible, to get back his father’s throne. He sold some valuable assets that his mother had brought with her. During the trip, there was a storm that sank the ship. Every other passenger dies as they could not swim so long, but Mahajanaka swam in the ocean for seven days and seven nights. A goddess of the sea named Mani Mekhala helped him and brought him to the garden of King Polajanaka of the city of Mithila.
The king had just passed away so his daughter and the nobles sent out a grand chariot to bring back the new king. This grand chariot stopped near Mahakanaka. So, Mahajanaka was then made king of Mithila and married to King Polajanaka’s daughter. One day he became bored with the throne and retired to the forest. The mural ends here, but the one composed by King Rama IX continues that after the king became a priest, a university was established to teach arts and crafts, music and other subjects. This university was called “Pudalay” in memory of the goodness of a giant crab that save Mahajanaka from drowning.
Moreover, the gilded lacquer designs on the door panels of the new ordination hall of Wat Thasutthawat differ from traditional ones in that they depict historical events, biography, and Buddhist doctrine. The work can be separated into three parts.
The upper portion depicts a seated Buddha image protected by the seven headed naga, which is believed to be the Buddha image for a person who was born on Saturday, such as H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. There are also a pair of hongsa, or swans, a mythical animal of the Himavanta Forest, which signifies highest honor.
The middle portion feature the Princess’s initial in a circle formed as a coil of rope.
This represents unity, harmony and loyalty to the Monarchy, and the royal justice and goodness that radiates towards every direction. A pair of goats signifies the Princess’s sign of zodiac, Aries.
The background to the initials is a wickerware design, showing the Princess’s interest in folk art and determination to preserve traditional Thai arts. Moreover, presenting this wickerware on the door panels because it is a well-known handicraft of Ang Thong Province.
The lower portion depicts the royal emblem of the Chakri Dynastry. On one side of the emblem is a lion and the other, a mythical animal having a lion’s body and an elephant’s trunk, called “Kajasi”. These represent government officers, civilians and the royal entourage.
The white elephant is another important symbol of Chakri Dynasty and is the Princess’s favourite animal. On the lowest part is depicted a Buddhist parable concerning four kinds of lotus, which represent four kinds of people who hear the teaching of the Lord Buddha.
Furthermore, the gilded lacquer designs on the window panels of the ordination hall depict “Ten Lives of the Lord Buddha”, in clockwise order:
Temi Jataka Chanaka Jataka Sama Jataka Nemi Jataka Mahosodha Jataka Phumi Jataka Chandra Jataka Brahma Jataka Vitura Jataka Vessantara Jataka
In the lower portion of each window panel is depicted the main theme of one jataka.
In the upper portion appear flame-like designs and in the central portion is another image relevant to the theme pictured in the lower portion. The window frames are decorated with foliage designs like those of the door panels.
Stone boundary markers
The boundary markers of Wat Thasutthawat are housed in the palanquin-shaped structure which have lotus bud finials. The sandstone boundary markers are placed around the ordination hall at eight points of the compass. These eight sandstone boundary markers belong to the U Thong period. The design of an U Thong boundary marker seldom varies. At the bottom of the part of the boundary marker that stands above ground there is a rectangular base panel.
Decorative carved ornament is invariably applied to three parts: the base panel, a spandrel panel at the foot, and a spandrel-like lozenge panel in the counter position at the top. There is also a curvilinear rim band around the edge of the boundary marker’s face.
Figure 34 The stone boundary marker at Wat Thasutthawat (Panot Asawachai, 2014.)
Social Value
According to Wat Thasutthawat is a temple that is important for Thai history because this temple was on the route that Thai armies took to fight with the Burmese. In particular, in 1592, King Naresuan encamped his army at this temple before crossing the Chao Phraya River to encamp for the night at Wat Pamok Worawihan. From there, King Naresuan went forth on a campaign, during which he fought on elephant back at Don Chedi battlefield in which he gained victory. Thus, Wat Thasutthawat is taken a place in Thai history. The statues of King Naresuan the Great and Prince Ekatosarot are erected at this temple for reminding his encamping at this
temple and people of Ang Thong always come to pay their respect to this monument. Moreover, The mural inside the new ordination hall also depicts the historic event when King Naresuan the Great and Prince Ekatosarot encamped at this temple before moving on to the batterfield in Suphanburi as a historical evidence.
Furthermore, the mural at the ordination hall of Wat Thasutthawat is connected with the Princess in that it was executed in ordination hall dedicated to the Princess and by the students of arts under the royal patronage, who though poor and with little education or skill, are full of faith and willingness to do their best to become great artist. The mural here is an important sign of the attempt to preserve mural Thai painting and encourage and teach Thai youth to appreciate and conserve Thai art.
Having granted the walls of the new ordination hall of Wat Thasutthawat for fieldwork by students of the Design Section of the Foundation for Handicraft Promotion under the patronage of Queen Sirikit. The Princess visited them on October 15, 1993. It was on this occasion that the talented Princess painted a mango on the mural; this contribution by the “Royal Patron of Thai Cultural Heritage” turned ordinary schoolwork into a remarkable mural.
Nowadays, the temple is the community’s center for worship, community’s meetings, education, cremations and enshrining ashes of the deceased and it is also one of the nine temples in Ang Thong that are well-known for Thai Buddhist pilgrimage.