Tiny town in the middle of Thailand with a grand history - Historic Town of Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns 574; Nuad Thai, traditional Thai massage 01384
What and Why
Ancient Sukhothai (Thai: สุโขทัย) was the capital of the Sukhothai Kingdom (สุโขทัย), a massive and powerful state that ran through what is today's Laos, and western and southern Thailand. The kingdom was established in 1238 CE by Si Intharathit (ศรีอินทราทิตย์) and became the state that almost defined the culture of Thailand.
The city itself was established by the third king Ram Khamhaeng (รามคำแหง, né รามคำแหง พระร่วง, Ram Khamhaeng Phra Ruang), who is also venerated as being the inventor of the Thai (ภาษาไทย) alphabet and an all-round role model for Thailand's politics, monarchy, and religion. Ram Khamhaeng was also credited to start Buddhism in Thailand as it was during his reign that Theravāda (Pali: school of the elders), the current Buddhist sect, as the nation's religion. Ram Khamhaeng requested the monks in the region to propagate the Theravāda in Sukhothai. The state slowly declined until after it was taken over by Ayutthaya (อยุธยา) in the mid-14th century CE. In some sense in terms of architecture, art and culture, there are lots of commonalities between this and the Khmer Empire (Khmer: ចក្រភពខ្មែរ, Chakrphup Khmer) and Champa (Cham: Campa).
Toponymy
The name Sukhothai derives from Sanskrit सुख (sukha), meaning happiness + उदय (udaya), meaning rise, combining to mean 'dawn of happiness'.
See
There are at least two main historic parks of Sukhothai and they are around 2 km apart. We went to the northern zone first and on our return journey the following day, we visited the main zone. In a way, the architecture, construction method and colours do show various degrees of resemblance to Mỹ Sơn.
Northern zone (โซนภาคเหนือ)
The most prominent construction in this site is probably the Wat Phra Phai Luang (โบราณสถานวัดพระพายหลวง). Somewhere amongst the stupas one will find a big reclining Buddha (né Siddhattha Gotama (Pali)).
The reclining Buddha that symbolises Buddha's last days.
The other important part of this zone is Wat Si Chum (วัดศรีชุม). It is known for its giant Buddha statue known as Phra Achana (พระอาจารย์, Buddha who is not afraid).
Main central zone (โซนกลาง)
The main central zone of the Sukhothai Historical Park contains about 22 monuments enclosed inside a rectangular walled complex surrounded by a moat, as above. The site is massive and the best way to navigate around the place is to rent a bicycle and ride around the area.
Wat Maha That (วัดมหาธาตุ) is the most important temple of the park, as the main picture above. The temple's name translates to temple of the great relic. The temple was founded between the late 13th and early 14th century CE as the main temple of the city as well as the Sukhothai Kingdom. The design is based on a maṇḍala (Sanskrit: मण्डल), meaning circle, representing the universe, surrounded by smaller stupas in all eight directions. The main stupa has the shape of a lotus bud, which characterises Sukhothai architectural arts. Its base is adorned with stuccoed sculptings of Buddhist disciples walking with their hands clasped together in salutation.
Wat Si Sawai (วัดศรีสวาย) is one of the oldest temples in Sukhothai and probably the most gorgeous and easily recognised. The temple was founded in the late-12th or early-13th century as a Hindu Shrine for Vishnu (Sanskrit: विष्णु, Viṣṇu). The temple has three well-preserved prang (Khmer: ប្រាង្គ), representing the Hindu trinity, enclosed by a double rampart and a moat. The lower parts of prangs are apparently Khmer, while the upper have been expanded or renovated by Thais in brick and stucco. The central prang is held in Hindu-style. Each prang contains a cella, possibly a podium for lingam and crypt.
White Buddha.
Wat Sa Si (วัดสระศรี) is situated at the centre of the central complex on an island surrounded by a man made lake. It includes a huge white sitting Buddha with a bell shaped stupa, also known as chedi, in the background.
Wat Traphang Ngoen (วัดตระพังเงิน): Built in 14th century CE the name literally translates into Silver Lake Temple, it consists of a giant lotus bud stupa along with a smaller stupa and an assembly hall. There is a giant statue of Buddha in sitting position along with a standing statue of Buddha, popularly known as the walking Buddha. Wat Traphang Ngoen is located west of Wat Maha Tat and is separated by a lake, The lake houses an island with the ruins of an assembly hall. This temple is highly revered.
Near Wat Traphang Ngoen.
King Ramkhamhaeng Monument (พระบรมราชานุสาวรีย์พ่อขุนรามคำแหงมหาราช, Phrabrm rāchā nu s̄āw rīy̒ ph̀xk̄hun Rāmkhảh̄æng mh̄ārāch). The giant statue of King Ramkhamhaeng stands almost at the centre of the Sukhothai Historical Park. King Ramkamhaeng ruled Sukhothai during the late 13th century CE and was the third king of the Phra Ruang Dynasty. Built in early 1970s CE, the astute bronze statue is about twice life size, and depicts the king sitting on the throne.
In addition to being the place of pioneering achievements in architecture and art, language and writing, religion and law, Sukhothai Kingdom was home to accomplished innovators in hydraulic engineering. They modified the landscape of the kingdom in such a way that water was dammed; reservoirs, ponds and canals were constructed; flooding controlled; and water was brought to serve a variety of agricultural, economic and ritual functions as well as to provide the towns’ inhabitants with water for their daily lives, avenues of communication, and protection in the form of city moats.
Buy and Do
Buddha figurine (พระพุทธรูป)
Rather than telling you what to buy, it is important to tell you what NOT to buy, and that is any Buddha figurine or statuette. It is illegal to export a Buddha figurine out of Thailand, although this law is often ignored and infringed.
Thai massage (นวดไทย)
One of the must-do's in Thailand is of course to get a proper Thai massage (นวดไทย, nuad thai). Being a very ticklish person, I tried my best to refrain from doing one, until I was compelled to do one to accompany my wife. There is a so-called Thai massage parlour in every corner of Bangkok (กรุงเทพฯ, Krung Thep) where we started our journey, although technically less than 5,000 of them are actually government-certified to be practising the authentic massage, which is protected by law.
Traditional Thai massages use no oils or lotions. The recipient remains clothed during the session and the massage features more stretching, compression and rocking rather than rubbing and nudging. This actually looks closer to 'forced haṭha yoga (Sanskrit: हठयोग)' from the masseuse than the massages that we generally associate, see also my blogged Delhi (दिल्ली). This is the easiest way to differentiate Thai massage against other massages. Authentic and well-known masseurs also emphasise meditation and serenity as part of the ritual and usually integrate it with some Buddhist practices. Thai massage is inscribed as one of the ICHs.
As I said I was forced to give a try in one of those certified parlours, but in the time of writing, this shop is already closed. I embarrassed myself by my non-stop yelling of tickle, rather than pain, with the masseuse laughing non-stop at me...
Eat and Drink
Sukhothai houses a very famous city night market where they serves all sorts of delicious street food. One of the 'delicacies' they serve is fried insects (แมลงทอด, mælng thxd). Sukhothai has its very own specialty noodle dish simply called Sukhothai noodles.
Stay
We stayed in a cheap place called Sukhothai Gardenhouse (การ์เด้นเฮาส์ สุโขทัย) which offers bungalows and individual houses. The place is very basic, but serves good purpose. Good and affordable choice.
Getting There and Around
While Sukhothai is not a massive city, and is accessible by bus and train from Bangkok, the monuments are really far apart. The best bet is to rent a bicycle or charter an auto-rickshaw (tuk-tuk) from the hotel. Each zone charges its own entrance fee of THB 100฿. Recommend to spend two to three days there.
UNESCO Inscriptions
Sukhothai was the capital of the first Kingdom of Siam in the 13th and 14th centuries. It has a number of fine monuments, illustrating the beginnings of Thai architecture. The great civilization which evolved in the Kingdom of Sukhothai absorbed numerous influences and ancient local traditions; the rapid assimilation of all these elements forged what is known as the 'Sukhothai style'.
Nuad Thai, traditional Thai massage is regarded as part of the art, science and culture of traditional Thai healthcare. As a non-medicinal remedy and manual therapy, it involves bodily manipulation in which the practitioner helps rebalance the patient’s body, energy and structure to treat illnesses believed to be caused by the obstruction of energy flow along ‘sen’, lines understood to crisscross the human body. This manipulation is intended to normalize the four body elements: earth, water, wind and fire. To open up blocked routes, Nuad Thai therapists perform a combination of manipulations using their hands, elbows, knees and feet, together with herbal hot compresses to reduce inflammation. Presently, Nuad Thai is classified into two main types: Nuad Thai therapy and Nuad Thai for health promotion. Nuad Thai has its roots in self-care in Thai peasant society of the past; every village had massage healers whom villagers would turn to when they had muscle aches from working in the field. Over time, these experiences have evolved into a formal system of knowledge, and Nuad Thai is now an income-generating occupation. In 1985, the Project for the Revitalization of Thai Massage was launched to revitalize and maximize knowledge of Nuad Thai, and an initiative has also been taken to form an alliance of Nuad Thai practitioners who come together annually.
References
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