Noticed for kilometers, the 79 meter tall Guan Yin statue sits on a hill overlooking the entire universe, or at least Chiang Rai.
The statue is the largest representation of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion and mercy in Thailand.
Buddha lesson of the day: A Boddhisattva is a being who could have gone to nirvana but instead returned to hang out among mortals.
Guan Yin is the Chinese name for Avalokiteshvara. Kuan Im and Quan Am are other names. It all gets very confusing so as a general rule, I go with the spelling on the signs.
Whatever you want to call it, Guan Yin represents compassion and mercy, which is fitting since the complex is known as the “Temple of Mercy.” It is the hub of social welfare in the area, featuring programs for orphans, elderly and in 2022 a hospital built entirely from donations was added. The hospital offers free healthcare to the disadvantaged and stands at the base of the Temple complex.
There is also a well known kitchen on the property that serves good food for only 20 THB. That is about 60 cents in America. Chai, or driver headed directly to the ‘good food’ area instead of touring the sites with us. It is well known and very well attended by the Thai people.
Huay Pla Kang Temple was established in 2001 by Phra Ajahn Phop Chok Tissawaso. He was a monk who took an old temple that was found on this location, and founded a new temple dedicated to Kuan, The Goddess of Mercy.
People building massive new temples on old run down temples seems to be a theme in Chiang Rai.
The construction began as a small office for the monks and over several years grew to several buildings constructed in the Lanna and Chinese architectural styles.
In 2009, it received recognition as a temple from the National Buddhism Office and was named “Wat Huai Pla Kang.” Phra Achan Phopchok Tissawaso was named as its inaugural abbot.
The first building to be finished in 2007 was the 49 meter high, 9 story Phop Chok Dhamma Chedi.
You can go up to the top of the pagoda (we did not. Probably because of the stairs, but I do not remember our reasoning at the time), where on each level features wooden Buddha statues inside and balcony views on the outside if you choose to use them.
Again, we stayed on the ground. At the top there is a a bell-shaped chedi.
Lesson 2: A chedi is a Buddhist stupa.
That did not help.
A stupa is a Buddhist shrine that is usually bell shaped and contains relics.
Better.
The term “chedi” is mainly used in Thailand. So, bell shaped relic museum. In Thailand. Got it.
Between the giant statue of Guan Yin and the Phop Chok Dhamma Chedi is the white viharn.
This place is just full of learning opportunities.
A Viharn is a hall in a Buddhist temple that houses Buddha images and is used for worship, meditation and preaching. Lay people can go in a viharn, where an Ubosot is usually reserved for monks only.
Not sure what happened at the White Temple because I am not a monk and I went inside what they described as a ubosot, but here we are.
The viharn is usually the largest and most important building on a temple site, where the ubosot is the most sacred.
In summary, the viharn is the church building in the Christian faith. I think.
The viharn and the Guan Yin statue have grand Naga staircases leading up to them. The interior of the Guan Yin and the exterior of the viharn are plastered with ornate, intricately crafted stucco designs I would hate to dust, but they are nice to look at in someone else’s house.
Inside the viharn, (and at several other locations on the temple grounds) is a massive white Buddha.
Where the other buildings are impressive, and very well done, we came here specifically to see the Guan Yin at sunset.
We walked around the base and found a lot – not kidding – a lot of statues to look at. Go to the photo page to see them if you want.
We took the elevator to the top of the Guan Yin statue and looked out over the city through her ‘third eye’ and her eyes.
Everything on the upper floors was ornate and white.
Floor to ceiling and even some ceiling and floor were covered in detailed naga and representations of the Buddha. Oddly, there was also what appeared to be a sea lion wearing a hat, and a bear sitting in a bamboo tree, but I do not claim I have knowledge of all the symbols of Buddhism.
Again, go to the photos page. I took a lot of photos.
We did wander the sites and killed time waiting for the sun to set. I particularly liked the Naga leading up to the Guan Yin statue. Huge, impressive, colorful eyes that stood out because everything else was white.
This temple is impressive because of the size and scope of the project, but what is more impressive is the fact it really does cater to its mission.
The white temple is impressive to look at, and there may be a lot of things going on behind the scenes they do not publicize or tourists are too taken by the modern themes of the temple to notice.
But that is the point. I have no idea what they do for the people at the white temple.
Here, at the entrance is a hospital. Built for the people. At the entrance is essentially a soup kitchen that all the locals know about and even though our driver was not from town, he was more excited about going to get the good food for a reasonable price than seeing any part of the temple.
There were kids running up and down the hill, which was annoying from a photographer standpoint, but the fact was they were probably some of the orphans the temple supports.
I commented earlier in the day about how there are as many hospitals in Chiang Rai as there are temples, because it sure seemed like we passed a hospital on every corner. I was shocked, but not surprised that one would be right here, at the base. Again, not a great photo op, but at the time I did not understand what it was.
This temple is out there to bring in people to help people. Yes, it is a tourist destination, but they are blatant and obvious about their purpose. To show mercy and grace to the people of the area. And that was refreshing.
Plus, there were dogs. Any temple with dogs is a good place in my book.
