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Culture & Lifestyle / Majestic Cultural Heritage
| Thailand's
rich cultural heritage, its wealth of arts and
crafts, and the unique ways of life have and still
attracted visitors from all over the world.
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 Thailand's
cultural heritage was influenced by ancient India when
the Indian merchants and scholars set foot and gradually
settled in Southeast Asia some 2,300 years ago.
It continued for several centuries. Buddhist religion
and popular myth are the most obvious examples.Much
of Thailand's royal tradition is also
rooted in Indian culture.
Buddhism
is thought to have first come to Thailand at Nakhon Pathom,
while Indian concepts of divine kingship first took
root in the Khmer empire. By the 6th century AD,
many independent states were flourishing in the region
we now know as Thailand. One of these was the Mon's
Dvaravati kingdom. Mon dominance over central Thailand
has been diminished by the power of an expanding Khmer
empire. Eventually, the Khmer became so powerful
that they ruled the entire area. Only the southern
isthmus where the Srivijaya civilisation had taken root
was unaffected.
Towards
the end of the 13th century, Khmer power in this area
waned and new kingdoms dominated by the Thai race
developed, including the northern Lanna kingdom.
Beginning by nibbling away at the perimeter of the Khmer
empire at Sukhothai and in Lanna some 700 years
ago, the Thai race later established the glorious
court at Ayutthaya, and eventually Bangkok. Over the past
centuries, many peoples, among them the Chinese,
Arabs, Malays and Westerners, have
contributed to Thailand's cultural heritage.
Thailand's
majestic cultural heritage inherited over the past centuries
was dominated or influenced by many kingdoms emcompassing
the area including the powerful Khmer. The remain
of their cultural heritage can still be seen in many places
throughout the kingdom.
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Khmer
kingdom
The
best example of Khmer culture is at Phimai, some
60 kilometres
northeast of Nakhon Ratchasima. The old temple stands
in the middle
of the modern town. The outlines of the old fortified
town can still be traced.
It was strictly rectangular in plan, as were all
Khmer settlements, and it was made doubtly
secure by
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it
on an artificial island. The nearby Phanom Rung
and Muang Tham sanctuaries are also two good
examples. Other outstanding Khmer treasures in Thailand
include the powerfully evocative sanctuary
at Muang Singh in Kanchanaburi, and the imposing
triple-spired shrines at Lop Buri.
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Davaravati
kingdom
Dvaravati
culture was centred on the area between Nakhon Pathom,
a little-fortified town some 50 kilometres west
of Bangkok, and U Thong to the north. Its enduring
emblem is Phra Pathom Chedi, the massive bell-shaped
Buddhist shrine with its golden spire at Nakhon
Pathom. This is where Buddhism is believed
first to have been
taught
in Thailand. The chedi, at 120.45 metres, is the
tallest Buddhist structure in the world.
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Lanna
kingdom
Founded
by King Mengrai, the northern Lanna kingdom had
an exciting mixture of cultures due to its diverse
populations and mountainous location. The main division
was between the farmers and townspeople of the valleys
and the hilltribes of the uplands. The hilltribes
themselves represent several very distinct ethnic
stocks, so that a multitude of languages, customs,beliefs,
architectures, diets, and styles of dress exist
harmoniously side by side. |
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Sukhothai
kingdom
Sukhothai,
some 480 kilometres north of Bangkok,was the capital
of the first truly Thai kingdom. Its third king,
the great Ramkhamhaeng, is credited
with devising the Thai alphabet from ancient Mon
and Khmer scripts. The kingdom is credited with
producing the most sublime religious art and sculpture
ever seen in Thailand, and |
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manufacturing the most perfect pottery and Buddha
images. Sukhothai also developed the concept of
the Thai town - set four-square on the plain and
protected by triple walls and intervening moats.
This pattern was so successful in terms of defence
(it allowed more wall forts) andflexibility to
match the terrain that it wasnever abandoned.
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Ayutthaya
kingdom
Ayutthaya's
art and architecture was a delicate blend of Dvaravati,
Khmer, Mon, Lawa and Khmer cultures. The city site
at the heart of the riverine system of the lower
Chao Phraya basin was carefully chosen to allow
a moated trapezoid plan and a water-borne way of
life. Ayutthaya's sister city, Lop Buri, was just
a short distance north. It shared in the capital's
splendour.
One
of Thailand's greatest kings, Narai, built a palace
there that can still be seen. It was these two glorious
cities that Europeans first saw.
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This
golden age of Thai culture also produced the exquisite
architecture and decoration at Bang Pa-in, a royal
summer palace on the majestic Chao Phraya River
just south of the capital, as well as the elegance
and grace of Thai classical dance and theatre. Unhappily,
all these fabulous glories were sacked by a Burmese
invasion in 1767. All that remains of 417 glorious
years are the ruins you can see today. They are
now a World Heritage site.
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Rattanakosin
Island
Present-day
Bangkok continues the cultural heritage of Ayutthaya
with Rattanakosin island as its heart containing
the Grand Palace, Pramane Ground,and many other
public symbols. The
island is surrounded by water, with the Chao Phraya
River on one curved side and the Bang Lamphu and
Ong Ang canals on the other. Among many other indications
of the same intent, the art and architecture of
temples and palaces initially followed Ayutthaya
styles quite deliberately. The great literary works
of Ayutthaya,
including the country's historical records, almost
all of which had been destroyed, had to be recreated.
The early Rattanakosin kings seized the opportunity
to revise and updatethe country's legal system. |
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