{"id":3248,"date":"2017-08-15T19:47:48","date_gmt":"2017-08-15T19:47:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/?p=3248"},"modified":"2017-08-15T19:47:48","modified_gmt":"2017-08-15T19:47:48","slug":"the-white-temple","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/the-white-temple\/","title":{"rendered":"The White Temple"},"content":{"rendered":"

While you may be \u201ctempled out\u201d from your travels in Thailand or other SE Asian countries, make sure you don\u2019t skip out on\u00a0Wat Rong Khun<\/strong>\u00a0(\u0e27\u0e31\u0e14\u0e23\u0e48\u0e2d\u0e07\u0e02\u0e38\u0e48\u0e19<\/span>). It’s commonly\u00a0referred to as the White Temple, and it’s unlike any temple you’ve ever seen. Here’s a brief introduction to this dreamlike complex, starting with the artist and his purpose.<\/p>\n

The Artist<\/h2>\n
\"The<\/a>

The amazing White Temple.<\/p><\/div>\n

The White Temple is the\u00a0brainchild of famous Thai artist\u00a0Chalermchai Kositpipat<\/b>\u00a0(\u0e40\u0e09\u0e25\u0e34\u0e21\u0e0a\u0e31\u0e22 \u0e42\u0e06\u0e29\u0e34\u0e15\u0e1e\u0e34\u0e1e\u0e31\u0e12\u0e19\u0e4c<\/span>). This unconventional Buddhist\/Hindu temple has to be seen to be believed, and you\u2019d be forgiven for wondering whether or not it was dropped from the heavens. As for the choice of color,\u00a0white stands for Buddha\u2019s purity, while white glass and the reflection it gives off stands for Buddha\u2019s wisdom that \u201cshines brightly all over the Earth and the Universe.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The Temple Complex<\/h2>\n
\"\"<\/a>

It gets a bit creepy at first.<\/p><\/div>\n

When your eyes adjust to the sheer brightness of the temple and you get over your initial sense of awe, take a few minutes to look a bit closer at the surroundings. You\u2019ll find some creepy skulls hanging from the tree, evil looking shrines to booze and tobacco, and even a few alien creatures coming out of the water.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Not sure how Alien fits here…<\/p><\/div>\n

Just before the bridge crossing over to the temple, you\u2019ll find hands reaching up from the ground, some holding skulls. The hands symbolize those things that distract people from the path to Heaven, while the skulls represent those who have faltered on their path by succumbing to such evils. Oh yeah, and there\u2019s a character from the movie \u201cAlien\u201d here as well.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Cross the bridge to Heaven.<\/p><\/div>\n

Manage to cross the bridge, though, and you\u2019ve made it to Heaven. As the nice man with the loudspeaker reminds you \u2013 \u201cOnce you\u2019ve crossed the bridge into Heaven, you cannot come back.\u201d If Heaven is anything like the inside of this temple, that\u2019s a good thing \u2013 you won\u2019t want to leave once you set your eyes on the stunning murals that adorn the walls inside.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

You’ll have to see inside to believe it.<\/p><\/div>\n

Photography is not allowed, so you\u2019ll just have to go see it for yourself. If you want to know how Spiderman, Hello Kitty, Neo from the Matrix, and George W. Bush somehow fit into the murals of a Buddhist temple, you\u2019d better get here and check it out.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Might be the nicest bathroom ever.<\/p><\/div>\n

As if visiting this temple wasn\u2019t great enough, they probably have the coolest bathrooms you\u2019ve ever seen.<\/p>\n

Future Plans<\/h2>\n
\"\"<\/a>

Work is ongoing at the White Temple.<\/p><\/div>\n

There\u2019s more to this complex than just the original temple. The artist plans for the project to take nearly 90 years to finish, and he has plenty of apprentices around to ensure that work will continue even after he\u2019s gone.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, an earthquake struck the temple a few years ago. Although the initial reaction was all doom and gloom, it turns out that it wasn\u2019t damaged beyond repair and the artist and his team are pushing forward with this incredible project. If you’re traveling in Northern Thailand, make sure a visit to the White Temple is high atop your list.<\/p>\n

Travel Info<\/h2>\n
\"\"<\/a>

It’s free and open every day!<\/p><\/div>\n

The White Temple is located about 13 kilometers south of Chiang Rai. There are quite a few options for getting there – simply hail a cab, join a tour, or rent your own wheels and get yourself there. It’s open daily from 6:30AM-6PM and is free to visit. There’s also a museum of the artist’s paintings, which is open Monday-Friday from 8AM-5:30PM. As with visiting other temples in Thailand, you should dress properly and be respectful. You can take photos all over the complex, but not inside of the temple.<\/p>\n

There are thousands of temples across Thailand, but there’s nothing quite like the White Temple. Be sure to add it to your Northern Thailand<\/a> itinerary and don’t miss out!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"The

While you may be \u201ctempled out\u201d from your travels in Thailand or other SE Asian countries, make sure you don\u2019t skip out on\u00a0Wat Rong Khun\u00a0(\u0e27\u0e31\u0e14\u0e23\u0e48\u0e2d\u0e07\u0e02\u0e38\u0e48\u0e19). It’s commonly\u00a0referred to as the White Temple, and it’s unlike any temple you’ve ever seen. Here’s a brief introduction to this dreamlike complex, starting with the artist and his purpose…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":3249,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3,161],"tags":[9830,480040,10656,94561,94549,275435,373833,275458,480038,94551,94554],"class_list":["post-3248","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-travel","tag-architecture","tag-best-temples-in-thailand","tag-buddhism","tag-buddhist-temple","tag-chiang-rai","tag-northern-thailand","tag-thai-buddhism","tag-thai-temples","tag-thailand-white-temple","tag-wat-rong-khun","tag-white-temple"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3248","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/55"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3248"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3248\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3257,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3248\/revisions\/3257"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3249"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3248"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3248"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/thai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3248"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}