The Great Buddha of Thailand, also known as The Big Buddha, The Big Buddha of Thailand, Phra Buddha Maha Nawamin, and Mahaminh Sakayamunee Visejchaicharn ( th, พระพุทธมหานวมินทรศากยมุนีศรีวิเศษชัยชาญ; ), was in November 2018 the tallest statue in

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

, the second tallest statue in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...

, and the ninth-tallest in the world. Located in the Wat Muang temple in Ang Thong Province, this statue stands 92 m (300 ft) high, and is 63 m (210 ft) wide. Construction commenced in 1990, and was completed in 2008. It is painted gold and made of concrete. The Buddha is in the seated posture called

Maravijaya Attitude Māravijaya attitude or ''mara vichai'' ( th, ปางมารวิชัย, ; Khmer: ព្រះពុទ្ធផ្ចាញ់មារ, ''preah pud (buddha) p'chanh mea'') is an attitude of Buddha in Thai art of which the seated Buddha ...

. The statue was built following the order of Phra Kru Vibul Arjarakhun, the first abbot of Wat Muang temple, in order to commemorate the

King Bhumibol Bhumibol Adulyadej ( th, ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช; ; ; (Sanskrit: ''bhūmi·bala atulya·teja'' - "might of the land, unparalleled brilliance"); 5 December 192713 October 2016), conferred with the title King Bhumibol the Great ...

of Thailand. The statue was built using the donated money from faithful Buddhists considering as the act of making merit. The budget spent on the statue was roughly 104,200,000

baht The baht (; th, บาท, ; sign: ฿; code: THB) is the official currency of Thailand. It is divided into 100 ''satang'' (, ). The issuance of currency is the responsibility of the Bank of Thailand. SWIFT ranked the Thai baht as the 10th-m ...

. Not far from the statue is believed to be the Wat Muang temple. The exact origins of the temple are unknown, as the original temple was destroyed in the 17th century during the war with the Burmese - they invaded and looted the former Thai capital of Ayutthaya. The reconstruction of Wat Muang took a long time and was not completed until 1982, and 8 years later work began on the 'Big Buddha', which was completed 18 years later. Nearby are more sculptures which depict the gods, the kings of Thailand and the events of the Siamo-Burma War. Also around the Buddha is a park where lotus flowers grow.

Names

The statue's formal name, Phra Phuttha Mahanawamintra Sakayamunee Sri Visejchaicharn ( th, พระพุทธมหานวมินทรศากยมุนีศรีวิเศษชัยชาญ), was given by Phra Khru Vibul Arjarakun, and means "the Lord Buddha of Wiset Chai Chan, Built in Honor of

." The name is a blend of

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

words: Phra Phuttha (, Sanskrit ); Mahanawamintra (Bhumibol's royal title, Sanskrit ), Sakayamunee (Sanskrit ), and Visejchaicharn (Sanskrit ) The statue is also known as ''Luangpho Yai'' (หลวงพ่อใหญ่) or ''Luangpho To'' (หลวงพ่อโต); neither terms refer to any specific Buddha statue. The names literally mean Big Buddha, and are used for any colossal Buddha statue.

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Images
Outdoor sculptures in Thailand Colossal Buddha statues Concrete Buddha statues 2008 sculptures Tourist attractions in Thailand Ang Thong province Religious buildings and structures completed in 2008 Concrete sculptures Buddha statues in Thailand Statues in Thailand 2008 establishments in Thailand {{Buddhism-stub

Names

See also

References

External links