The Thai Temple

      

       Many times we have heard of the famous Thai Temples, like Wat Arun, Wat Pho, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, etc. These beautiful temples are wonderful to see and visit, but there are many outstanding temples in Thailand that are almost completely unknown to most tourists. Some of the most interesting temples are outside Bangkok, and there are many styles and types of temples in all parts of Thailand. What I am talking about in this blog is the Thai Wat or Buddhist Temple.

                                         

        The wat is the center or focal point of almost every village. When I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in the 1960’s in the northeast (Isaan) part of Thailand, my counterpart and I would always go the home of the village head man and the temple on each visit. In most cases these were very small monasteries and not the ornate temples that one sees in Bangkok or other large cities. Every wat that I remember had a least a sermon hall, but most are a collection of buildings, shrines and monuments and the courtyard is many times enclosed by a wall. Not all wats are used for religious ceremonies, as some are only used as monasteries.

                                                       

  
        In Thailand, there are over 31,000 Buddhist temples. All temples are divided into two main categories: Royal Temples and Common Temples. There are about 200 Royal Temples, which means that they were either built by members of the royalty or as the case of Wat Arun, or they have come under the sponsorship of the royalty.