| Phra Kaeo Morakot | |
|---|---|
| Thai:พระแก้วมรกต | |
.jpg) The Emerald Buddha adorned in winter season attire | |
 | |
| Artist | Unknown |
| Year | 15th century |
| Medium | Jade orjasper |
| Dimensions | 66 cm × 48 cm (26 in × 19 in) |
| Location | Wat Phra Kaew,Grand Palace,Bangkok |
| Coordinates | 13°45′04″N100°29′33″E / 13.75111°N 100.49250°E /13.75111; 100.49250 |
TheEmerald Buddha (Thai:พระแก้วมรกตPhra Kaeo Morakot, orพระพุทธมหามณีรัตนปฏิมากรPhra Phuttha Maha Mani Rattana Patimakon,lit. 'Statue of the Great Emerald Buddha') is an image of the meditatingGautama Buddha seated in ameditative posture, made of a semi-precious green stone (jasper rather thanemerald orjade), clothed ingold,[1] and about 66 centimetres (26 in) tall.[2] The image is considered the sacredpalladium ofThailand.[3][4] It is housed in theTemple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) on the grounds of theGrand Palace inBangkok.[1]
The legend of the Emerald Buddha is related in number of sources such asJinakalamali,Amarakatabuddharupanidana, and in particularRatanabimbavamsa orThe Chronicle of the Emerald Buddha written inPali by Brahmarājaprajña in the 15th century (the oldest extant manuscript dates only to 1788).[5] The story is a mix of fact and fables with some variations to the story.[6] According to the legend, the Emerald Buddha was created in 43 BCE by a sage namedNagasena in the city ofPataliputra (today'sPatna),India. Nagasena allegedly had the help of the deities,Vishnu andIndra, 500 years after Buddha attainedNibbana. He was said to have predicted:[4]
This figure of the Buddha is assuredly going to give to religion the most brilliant importance in five lands, that is in Lankadvipa (Sri Lanka), Ramalakka,Dvaravati,Chieng Mai andLan Chang (Laos).
Historical sources indicate that the statue surfaced innorthern Thailand in theLan Na kingdom in 1434. One account of its discovery tells that lightning struck achedi inWat Pa Yia (Bamboo Forest Monastery, later renamed Wat Phra Kaew) in Chiang Rai, revealing a Buddha covered withstucco inside. The Buddha was then placed in the abbot's residence, who later noticed that stucco on the nose had flaked off, revealing a green interior. The abbot removed the stucco and found a Buddha figure carved from a green semi-precious stone, which became known asPhra Kaew Morakot or in English the Emerald Buddha. ("Emerald" refers to its "green colour" in Thai, not its composition.)[7][8] Some art historians describe the Emerald Buddha as belonging to theChiang Saen Style of the 15th century CE, which would mean that it is of Lan Na origin.
The legend reports that King Sam Fang Kaen of Lan Na wanted it in his capital ofChiang Mai, but the elephant carrying it insisted on three separate occasions on going instead toLampang. This was taken as a divine sign, and the Emerald Buddha stayed in Lampang in a specially-built temple (nowWat Phra Kaeo Don Tao) for the next 32 years. In 1468, it was moved to Chiang Mai by KingTilokaraj, where it was kept in a niche in a large stupa calledChedi Luang.[9]
The Emerald Buddha remained in Chiang Mai until 1552, when it was taken toLuang Prabang, then the capital of the Lao kingdom of Lan Xang. Some years earlier, the crown prince of Lan Xang,Setthathirath, had been invited to occupy the vacant throne of Lan Na as his mother was the daughter of the king of Chiang Mai who had died without an heir.[9] Following his coronation, King Setthathirath took possession of the Phra Kaew (Emerald Buddha), adopting it as his personal palladium.[10] After the death of his father, KingPhotisarath, Setthathirath ascended the throne of Lan Xang. He returned from Lanna to secure his claim and brought the sacred image with him. This strategic move was intended to legitimize his sovereign authority over both the Lanna and Lan Xang kingdoms, effectively establishing the Emerald Buddha the supreme palladium of his unified realm.[10]
In 1564, King Setthathirath moved it toVientiane, which he had made his new capital due to Burmese attacks and where the Buddha image was housed inHaw Phra Kaew.[11] The Buddha image would stay in Vientiane for the next 214 years.[9]
In 1779, the Siamese GeneralChao Phraya Chakriinvaded Laos, looted Vientiane and took the Emerald Buddha to Siam. It was installed in a shrine close toWat Arun inThonburi, the new capital of Siam. Chao Phra Chakri then seized the throne for himself and founded theChakri Dynasty of theRattanakosin Kingdom, where he would later be titled King Rama I. He shifted his capital acrossChao Phraya river to its present location inBangkok, and constructed the newGrand Palace includingWat Phra Kaew within its compound. Wat Phra Kaew was consecrated in 1785, and the Emerald Buddha was moved with great pomp to its current home in theubosot of the Wat Phra Kaew temple complex in February/March 1785.[4][a]
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The Buddha image is made of a semi-precious green stone,[3] described variously as jade or jasper rather than emerald,[1][15] as "emerald" here refers to its colour rather than the stone.[16] The image has not been analyzed to determine its exact composition or origin.
The figure is 48 centimetres (19 in) wide at the lap, and 66 centimetres (26 in) high.[2] The Buddha is in a seated position, with the right leg resting on the left one, a style that suggest it might have been carved in the late Chiang Saen or Chiang Mai school, not much earlier than the fifteenth century CE. However, themeditation attitude of the statue was not popular in Thailand but looks very much like some of the Buddha images of southern India and Sri Lanka, which led some to suggest an origin in India or Sri Lanka.[9]
The Emerald Buddha is adorned with three sets of gold seasonal decorations: two were made by Rama I, one for the summer and one for the rainy season, and a third made byRama III for the winter or cool season.[9] To celebrate the Golden Jubilee of KingBhumibol Adulyadej in 1996, theBureau of the Royal Household commissioned a replica set of the seasonal decorations to be made of the same materials, funded entirely by donations. The original set were retired and are on display at the Museum of the Emerald Buddha Temple, in the Middle Court of the Grand Palace.[17]
The decorations are changed by theKing of Thailand, or a senior member of theThai royal family in his stead,[18] in a ceremony held at the changing of the seasons in the first Waning of the fourth, eighth, and twelfthlunar months (around March, August, and November).[19]
For each of the three seasons, there is a specific set decorations for the Emerald Buddha:[3][19]
The two sets of gold clothing not in use at any given time are kept on display in the nearby Pavilion of Regalia, Royal Decorations, and Thai Coins on the grounds of the Grand Palace, where the public may view them.
Early in the Bangkok period, the Emerald Buddha was occasionally taken out and paraded through the streets to relieve the city and countryside of various calamities (such asplague andcholera). This practice was discontinued during KingRama IV's reign as it was feared that the image could be damaged during the procession and the king's belief that; "Diseases are caused by germs, not by evil spirits or the displeasure of the Buddha".[4]
The Emerald Buddha also marks the changing of the seasons in Thailand, with the king presiding over seasonal ceremonies. In a ritual held at the temple three times a year, the decoration of the statue is changed at the start of each of the three seasons. The astrological dates for the ritual ceremonies, at the changing of the seasons, followed are in the firstwaning moon of thelunar calendar, months 4, 8 and 12 (around March, July, and November). Rama I initiated this ritual for the hot season and the rainy season; Rama III introduced the ritual for the winter season.[4][16] The decoration which adorn the image, represent those of monks and the king, depending on the season, an indication of its symbolic role "as Buddha and the King", which role is also enjoined on the king who formally dresses the Emerald Buddha himself.[1] The costume change ritual is performed by the king who is the most elevated master of ceremonies for all Buddhist rites. During the ceremony, the king first climbs up to the pedestal, cleans the image by wiping away any dust with a wet cloth, and changes the gold headress of the Emerald Buddha. The king then worships nearby while an attendant performs the elaborate ritual of changing the rest of the decorative garments.[19] The king also sprays holy water, which is mixed with the water rinsed from the wet cloth used to wipe the dust of the image, upon his subjects waiting outside the ordination hall. Previously this was a privilege afforded only to the princes and officials who were attending the ceremony (uposatha) inside the ubosot.[9]
Ceremonies are also performed at the Emerald Buddha temple at other occasions such as Chakri Day (6 April 1782), a national holiday to honour the founding of theChakri dynasty. The king and queen, an entourage of the royal family, as well as the prime minister, officials of the Ministry of Defence and other government departments, offer prayers at the temple.[4]
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