Commonly known as Wat Pho, this temple is closely related to the founders of Bangkok . Formerly a small Ayutthaya temple called Wat Photharam, it was entirely renovated by Rama I (1782-1809) after the establishment of Bangkok , and later by Rama III (1824-1851).
All visitors to Wat Pho stop to pay homage to the Reclining Buddha in the image hall and have their photos taken with the ‘giant' gate-keepers. Many may miss an important image in the back niche of the eastern hall.
Phra Phuttha Lokkanat is a very beautiful image in the posture of " Urging Kaen Chan Not to Rise from His Seat ", standing 10 meters tall, The image was mentioned in a significant historical chronicle entitled " The Tastament of Khrung Khao Residents," a record of events around the 1767 fall of Ayutthaya . One of several recorded ‘bad-omen' incidents to foreshadow the fall, some believed, reads that " Phra Phuttha Patimakon Lokkanat, which was carved from timber of Buddha's bodhi tree, split into two at the chest. " The image was once kept at Wat Phra Sanphet in Ayutthaya. |
