Day: April 29, 2006

The mountain that reminds Chang Mai that it’s in a mountainous region is Doi Suthep. The local legend goes that many centuries ago the local Buddhist temple was given a tiny portion of “the” Buddha’s ashes after he was cremated. This was then placed around the neck of a white elephant. It was released and promptly proceeded to
climb Doi Suthep. Upon reaching the top (or close to), it made several circuits around the area, laid down and died. The king at the time, decided this omen was very significant, buried they elephant there and built Wat Phra That Doi Suthep on that very spot. As such, this has become a very sacred shrine.
Here is a picture of the gilded stupa.

Buddha has many poses. In fact, there is one for each day of the week that roughly mirrors his progression through:
Sunday: Seven Days Looking — after he gained enlightenment
through meditation
Monday: Pacifying the Relatives — he mediated a dispute between
feuding family members
Tuesday: Realizing Nirvana
Wednesday: Holding an Alms Bowl — asking for food
Thursday: Meditating Buddha
Friday: Contemplating Buddha
Saturday: Protected by the Naga King — the large coiled serpent
he is sitting on protected him from a raging storm.
The two Buddhas on the right are not associated with specific days of the week. The one on the far right is known as Victory over Mara and symbolizes Buddha victory over evil or death.

There were several monks who were offering to bless those who desired it.

Here is another example of the alms. The day of the week on which you were born determined how many Baht you needed to give. For reference, right now in 2006, it’s about 38 Thai Baht to 1 US dollar.

On the interior walls, there was a massive mural that depicted the Buddha’s life. This image is of his birth. After he left his mother’s womb, he straight away took 7 steps and the ground he touched became lotus flowers.

For those who aren’t familiar with Buddha’s life let me give a brief historical synopsis: he was born as an Indian to Brahman parents (the highest caste in India) known as Siddhartha Gautama. Growing up, his parents tried to shelter him from the outside world (by literally keeping him confined to the family complex), but eventually, he was allowed out. It was here that he first saw the suffering in the world and could not reconcile what he saw with his Hindu upbringing. So, he began a very ascetic quest to gain a better understanding of the world. He discovered that the ultimate goal in life was enlightenment and the best way to garner that understanding was through meditation. From there, he went on to refine and preach his understanding to others. Today, there are many sects of Buddhism and something like 150 million people in the world are adherents to the faith. Thais consider themselves a pure form of Buddhists (as I am sure the others do as well). The particular form 95% of Thais follow is called Theravada Buddhism.
Here is a woman deep in prayer.

Another monk offering benedictions to all.

Here we are in front of the stupa.

Novice monks as part of their training were required to make three circuits around the stupa.

At the end they offered their thanks.

The bells were also very symbolic. When you ring a bell, you are offering a blessing to those souls in a quasi-purgatory (for lack of a better way to explain it), as they are unable to receive blessings themselves.

Here is Anna offering her share of blessings.

The elephant is a very sacred animal as well. They are used for everything from religious purposes, to working the fields to carrying tourists.

Unfortunately, the city was somewhat obscured by haze, but it was still a pretty view from the top.

Another view of the temple.

Trumpet flowers:

A young novice monk. His robes are a darker color, indicating that he is from a more strict school than the monks with bright orange.

The path leading to the wat is 306 steps.

On the way home, we thought this was a cute way to transport your best friend.

–Jim

Perhaps the most famous refugees in Thailand are the long neck woman of the Padaung tribe. Their tribe is a sect of the much larger Karen Tribe. They are native to Myanmar (AKA Burma), but several villages have fled persecution there to find a better life in Thailand. While they are not Thai citizens yet, the few that we talked to appeared and said they had a better life in Thailand as a refugee, than back in Myanmar.
To visit them was one of the highlights of the trip. In fact, it was the first stop on the itinerary when we arrived in Chang Mai. We hired a driver and guide to take us to the nearest Padaung refugee camp, about an hour and a half to the north in Chiang Dao.
Here is a girl of 19 years. She along with her 2 younger sisters (15 and 9 years old) came to this village a year ago without any Thai language skill. However, they have readily adapted and are now quite conversational … once you get them going.

In all there were only about 10 families in this small village. They rely entirely on tourists to sustain them.
While their handicrafts are quite nice, it is the admission charged to enter the village that pays for the food.
Here are a few more images of these fascinating women and girls.


While most were Padaung, there were a couple women who were from another tribe. You can see that it’s the large earrings that are distinctive.


We were also invited in to see what the bamboo huts looked like. It was rather spartan, but seemed to meet their need.


Here’s a close up on the coils:

The view from the village was quite beautiful.


Now that you have seen the pictures, and since there are many myths associated with these women, let me dispel a few from what we learned in our research and discovered when visiting and talking to them:
1. The brass coils are traditionally only worn by girls and
women born on Wednesday. However, now that that the tourist
potential has been realized, more woman are allowed to wear
them.
2. The coils don’t “elongate” the neck, per se. It’s a slow
process that gradually displaces the collar bone and rib
cage, thereby making their necks appear longer.
3. Additional coils are added each year. You can get an
approximation of their age by the number of coils worn.
4. When the coils are removed, there is no health danger (e.g.
it won’t kill them). The only concern is that the neck
muscles are atrophied, and are understandably weaker than
the rest of the body. However, there is no proven medical
concern for the removal of the coils.
5. The coils are VERY heavy. Some sets are up to 40 pounds or
more, although they average around 10.
Hopefully, that helps you understand these fascinating people at little better.
–Jim