Visiting Wat Phra That Doi Suthep Temple

First time visiting a Buddhist Temple was a success!

I have never visited a temple before especially a Buddhist temple. Well, today was my first day doing it. I had the opportunity to visit the Wat Phra That Doi Suthep Temple. Can I just say this temple is amazingly beautiful and filled with so much beautiful architecture and designs. So, this temple is located on top of a mountain called Doi Suthep  in Chiang Mai. It is a very sacred temple for many Thai people that are Buddhist. This temple has been build for over 700 years and been rebuilt twice.

To get to the temple, we took a red truck from the ISDSI office to the mountain. I would say it was a good 30 minute drive to the mountain. The roads were very curvy and had some dangerous turns on the way. As we were going,  we were able to see the view of the Chiang Mai. It was so breathtaking and beautiful. Also, I saw a waterfall and so many trees as we were going up.

Once the red truck drop us off at the front, we saw many little shop selling different Buddha souvenirs. Also, there was statues of Buddha and different beings that represented Buddhism. We had to climb a very long staircase to get to the entrance of the temple. The staircase we climb was called the Naga Serpent Staircase, which had up to 300 stair. There were four serpent head on both side of the staircase and the body served as a railing. When I enter the front gate, I saw the statue of the white elephant that help to haul the relic to the mountains. To the right, there was a mini shrine that had some statues of people and Buddha. There was even a row of bells and gong by the side of the temple. When I go behind the temple, I was greeted with beautiful view of Chiang Mai, but it was a little foggy due to the rain. 

Before I could go into the temple, I had to make sure that I removed my shoes. I think that they do this because the temple is very sacred.  Inside the temple, I immediately see a huge golden stupa. It was surrounded with different statues of Buddha. As I was there, I saw people walking around the stupa with a flower in their hands and saying prayers to Buddha. This was my first time actually seeing people perform the rites of Buddhism. Most of the things that I have heard about Buddhism were either from textbooks or hearing form people.  Some other things that were found inside the temple are little shrines that had a monk sitting inside of it. Also, there was a wall that was decorated with historical murals and shrines. 

Something that I noticed was there was a lot of Chinese tourists that was at the temple. Some of them came to look at the temple, while others came to say some prayers at the temple. There was even a huge group of elementary/ middle school students that was touring the temple. Also, you had to dress appropriately to enter into the temple. If not, they had a robe to give to people to wear. I found this very useful because it help to maintain the respect for the Buddha temples. 

Overall, this experience has help me to understand that Buddhism plays an important role in Thailand. I was able to see people practice Buddhism and learn about the difference between Buddhism in Thailand and Buddhism in other countries.  Seeing the Wat Phra That Doi Suthep Temple isn't something you can find in America, I'm glad I was able to get a glimpse of this place.