White Temple (Wat Rong Khun)

Wat Rong Khun (Wat Rong Khun) is a white Buddhist temple located near the city of Chiang Rai in Thailand. The author of the project of this unusual temple was Thai artist and designer Chalermchai Kositpipat (Chalermchai Kositpipat). Wat Rong Khun is very beautiful: it shines brightly in the sun, reminiscent of the castle of the Snow Queen or a fairy-tale sugar house. Many travelers who come to Thailand, specially go to the north of the country to see this sparkling white wonder.

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Video: White Temple in Thailand

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Highlights

The Buddhist religious building’s completely white walls and sculptures are made of alabaster and inlaid with delicate mirrored mosaics. It is believed that the best time to see the White Temple is during the pre-sunset hours or the time at morning dawn. In the soft pinkish-golden light of sunlight Wat Rong Khun looks especially spectacular. No less magical is the reflection of the Buddhist temple in the smoothness of the nearby decorative pond.

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The White Temple in Thailand is unique, which is why it has long been a Thai national landmark. Wat Rong Khun is a popular tourist attraction and many busloads of Thai and foreign travelers, schoolchildren, students and Buddhist monks approach it daily. Tourists should be prepared for the fact that the White Temple is almost always crowded and you will have to wait in line to get in.

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Construction of Wat Rong Khun Temple began in 1997 and continues to this day. Although this Buddhist temple is not permanently inhabited by monks, its construction was approved by the Buddhist Sangha of Thailand.

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In early May 2014, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the north of the kingdom. The tremors significantly damaged Wat Rong Khun. Not only the murals and sculptures, but also the roofs and load-bearing walls of the building were partially destroyed. Immediately after the earthquake, Chalermchai Kositpipat made a statement that the White Temple could not be rebuilt. Later, however, the iconic structure did undergo restoration, and the work is still ongoing.

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In addition to beautiful photos and vivid impressions, many tourists take away postcards with the seal of Wat Rong Khun as a souvenir of their visit to the White Temple. There is also a store selling various souvenirs and paintings by Chalermchai Kositpipat.

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Artist’s intentions

The author of the White Temple project, Chalermchai Kositpipat, built it with his own money and became the sole owner of the unusual architectural structure. The artist received offers from other sponsors and the Thai state, but rejected them as he did not want outside interference in the realization of his creative intentions.

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Chalermchai Kositpipat raised the funds that created the Wat Rong Khun temple over the course of two decades by selling his own paintings. As a convinced Buddhist, the artist believes that the White Temple is a guarantee of his eternal life. The artist’s dream is to build a large Buddhist center to teach meditation to all people who practice the Dharma, as well as anyone interested in Buddhism.

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Wat Rong Khun is interesting because it is a mixture of Buddhist art traditions and modern designs. Despite the numerous religious symbols and images of Buddha, the traditional Buddhist canons in the design of the White Temple are only partially observed. One can see many surrealist paintings and symbolic author’s readings of Buddhist teachings.

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Architectural complex

Wat Rong Khun is spread over an area of 3 hectares and consists of three buildings – the White Temple, an art gallery and a golden palace. According to Chalermchai Kositpipat’s plans, the Buddhist temple complex will be further expanded to nine structures. They plan to erect a chapel, a monastery, a pavilion, a museum, a pagoda, a hall where Buddhist monks can hold sermons, and a rest room.

Wat Rong Khun itself represents Nirvana, or the state of bliss that can only be reached by undergoing the suffering of earthly life and the cycle of rebirths. The white color of the temple, according to the author of the project, symbolizes the purity of the Buddha, and mirror inserts of the walls – his wisdom, which illuminates everyone in this world. On the temple roof there are stylized sculptures of four animals, which according to Buddhist traditions symbolize the main elements of the world: elephant – earth, swan – air, snake-nagi – water, and lion – fire.”

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To get to Wat Rong Khun, one must pass over a graceful bridge, which signifies the transition to Paradise from ordinary life. At the beginning of the bridge, a circle is outlined with large fangs facing the sky. This is the symbolic mouth of the mythological demon Rahu, who swallowed the celestial luminaries during eclipses.

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The road to Paradise or Buddha’s abode lies through Hell or Purgatory, so visitors are greeted by the symbolic hands of the sinners, the Narakas, before entering the bridge. There are many of them, and some of the hands hold alms bowls as if asking for help and salvation. This sculpture of several hundred hands makes a very strong impression.

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In addition to the snow-white temple, a beautiful golden palace is built on the territory of the complex, the walls of which are decorated with intricate bas-reliefs and ornaments. This is a real work of art, in front of which bright flowerbeds with flowers. However, the luxurious golden building is designed for… toilets and is no less popular with tourists. Before its entrance you need to change into special shoes. It is not easy to get through the eternal queue inside this toilet palace – so many tourists want to take photos here! Therefore, for “special needs” behind the White Temple they built regular toilets.

The whole area around Wat Rong Khun is very beautifully decorated. Neat paved paths are continued around the buildings, benches are placed under the trees and ornamental plants are planted. In the vicinity of the White Temple is pleasant to walk leisurely and rest from the heat of the day in the dense shade of trees.

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On the green lawns you can see several unusual sculptures depicting Buddhist mythological characters, as well as the Buddha himself. The plumeria trees planted near the temple have colorful laughing masks hanging from them. And around the White Temple there is a small pond where ornamental goldfish are raised and visitors are happy to feed them.

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On the territory of Wat Rong Khun is also a beautiful “golden” well, which is not bypassed by any tourist who came to see Wat Rong Khun. According to the tradition, who threw a coin and hit the center of the well, can count on the fulfillment of a wish. Many travelers also leave special leaves with words of prayer on the temple trees. There are several such trees near the White Temple.

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Interiors of the White Temple

Before entering Wat Rong Khun, according to Buddhist tradition, you must remove your shoes. No photography is allowed inside. The room is half-empty. There is a sculpture of a Buddhist monk in the middle of the temple. Many Thai temples have similar images. They are made very believable, and visitors get the impression that a living person is sitting in front of them. Many people think that such “living” sculptures are mummies. However, they are actually made of wax and other materials.

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The walls of the White Temple are painted by the artist himself and his assistants in golden colors. The main theme of the White Temple murals is this eternal struggle against evil. In Buddhism, evil is usually personified by the demon Mara, who is credited with trying to lead the Buddha himself off the path of enlightenment.

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Curiously, the surrealist paintings include characters from the feature films Star Wars, Avatar, and The Matrix. The murals also feature views of modern Bangkok, scenes of Buddhist life, Spider-Man, Jack Sparrow, a panda, Michael Jackson, space shuttles, planet Earth and the terrorist attack in New York City on September 11, 2001. The author’s murals were severely damaged in the earthquake and restoration is ongoing.

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One of the walls is occupied as an altar. It depicts the Buddha sitting in the lotus posture. And in front of him are sculpted images of Buddha.

How to get there

The White Temple is located in the northern part of Thailand, near the city of Chiang Rai. By car from Chiang Rai you need to drive 13 kilometers south – towards the city of Chiang Mai. From the old Chiang Rai bus station to the White Temple, tourists are taken by shuttle bus (20 THB). In addition, shuttle buses linking Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai can also be taken to Wat Rong Khun.

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To visit the Buddhist temple, according to local tradition, you must have clothes covering your arms and legs. During the low tourist season, the entrance to the White Temple is open from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm. And from November to February, the temple closes for visitors an hour later – at 18.00. You can admire the White Temple from the outside at any convenient time. Near Wat Rong Khun are open shops for tourists and a cafe where you can have a snack.

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No money is charged for touring the White Temple and its grounds. However, if you wish, you can leave donations for the development of the project – the restoration of buildings destroyed by the earthquake and the construction of new structures of the temple complex.

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