Sukhothai historic park

 An amazing postcard with fabulous stamps showing Sukhothai historic park filled with ancient temples dating back almost 800 years. The Buddha figure here is known by two different names. The name ‘Phra Achana‘ translates to ‘Buddha who is not afraid’ whilst the other name, ‘Phra Poot Dai’ means the ‘speaking Buddha’. It is this second name that gives an indication of the role this Buddha image and temple played in ancient Sukhothai at a time when different rulers fought for control of various parts of Siam (Thailand).
 There is a ‘secret staircase’ to the side of the Buddha which leads to a small opening where somebody could stand to make a speech without being seen by anybody else in attendance at the temple and with the acoustics it would give the impression it was the Buddha speaking.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Giant's Causeway

Image
 The Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast is a spectacular area of global geological importance on the sea coast at the edge of the Antrim plateau in Northern Ireland. The most characteristic and unique feature of the site is the exposure of some 40,000 large, regularly shaped polygonal columns of basalt in perfect horizontal sections, forming a pavement. This dramatic sight has inspired legends of giants striding over the sea to Scotland. Celebrated in the arts and in science, it has been a visitor attraction for at least 300 years and has come to be regarded as a symbol for Northern Ireland.
Read more

Skull Tower

Image
 The year was 1809 and the setting was the city of Nis, in the southeast of Serbia. At this point in history, the city was controlled by the Ottoman Empire but patriotic Serbians wanted their land back and there was a strong resistance movement. One fateful day they attacked but were no match for the Ottoman forces. When the leader of the Serbian insurgency realised the battle would be lost, he fired at his gunpowder depot, blowing it up and killing himself, his men and the advancing Turks.   It was an honourable sacrifice on the field of battle but what followed showed the morbid side of war at the time. The Turkish commander of Nis ordered that the heads of the killed Serbs be collected. Each head was then skinned and the skulls were built into a tower at the entrance of the city as a warning to anyone else who dared contemplate an attack. As a final insult, the scalps were stuffed and sent back to Constantinople to impress the Sultan.    952 skulls were used to buil
Read more

Kangaroo

Image
Kangaroos are the largest marsupial surviving on earth today. They are well known for their style of movement; hopping on their hind legs whilst using their large, muscular tail for balance. Kangaroos use their tail like an extra leg when they are manoeuvring around, or standing still. Kangaroos are one of the only animals that are not able to move backwards easily, and this is why they are used on the Australian national emblem.
Read more