Buddha Park

Coordinates: 17°54′44″N 102°45′55″E / 17.91229°N 102.765397°E / 17.91229; 102.765397

Buddha Park

Buddha Park, also known as Xieng Khuan (as well as other variations of the spelling), is a sculpture park located 25 km southeast from Vientiane, Laos in a meadow by the Mekong River.[1][2] Although it is not a temple (Wat), the park may be referred to as Wat Xieng Khuan (Lao: ວັດຊຽງຄວນ;Thai: วัดเซียงควน), since it contains numerous religious images.[3] The name Xieng Khuan means Spirit City.[2] The park contains over 200 Hindu and Buddhist statues.[4] The socialist government operates Buddha Park as a tourist attraction and public park.[3]

Overview

The top of the `pumpkin' tower in Buddha Park, seen through the trees from the Thai side of Mekong.

The park was started in 1958 by Luang Pu (Venerable Grandfather) Bunleua Sulilat.[2] Luang Pu Bunleua Sulilat was a priest-shaman who integrated Hinduism and Buddhism.[2] His unique perspective was influenced by a Hindu rishi under whom he studied in Vietnam.[5] After the revolution in 1975, anxious about the repercussions of the rule of Pathet Lao, he fled from Laos to Thailand where he built another sculpture park, Sala Keoku in Nong Khai.[1][5] Both parks are located right next to the Thai-Lao border (Mekong river), only a few kilometers apart from each other, and the tallest structures of the Buddha Park can actually be seen from the Thai side of Mekong.

The statues are made of reinforced concrete and are ornate, and sometimes bizarre, in design.[5] The statues appear to be centuries old, though they are not. There are sculptures of humans, gods, animals, and demons.[4] There are numerous sculptures of Buddha, characters of Buddhist beliefs like Avalokiteśvara, and characters of Hindu lore, including Shiva, Vishnu, and Arjuna.[2] These sculptures were presumably cast by unskilled workers under the supervision of Luang Pu Bunleua Sulilat.[2] One notable sculpture resembles a giant pumpkin.[1] It has three stories representing three levels - Hell, Earth and Heaven.[1] Visitors can enter through an opening which is a mouth of a 3-metre-tall demon head (9.8 ft) and climb staircases from hell to heaven.[4] Each story contains sculptures depicting the level. At the top, there is a vantage point where the entire park is visible.[4] Another sculpture, an enormous 40-metre-long (130 ft) reclining Buddha, is also a park attraction.[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Jeff Cranmer; Steven Martin; Kirby Coxon (November 2002). Rough guide to Laos. Rough Guides. pp. 111–112. ISBN 978-1-85828-905-2. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Nick Ray; Thomas Huhti (2007). Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos & the Greater Mekong. Lonely Planet. p. 271. ISBN 978-1-74104-761-5. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  3. 1 2 Let's Go, Inc. Staff (18 November 2004). Southeast Asia. Macmillan. p. 106. ISBN 978-0-312-33567-0. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Vientiane Attractions - What to See in Vientiane". Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 Jock O'Tailan (17 June 2008). Footprint Laos. Footprint Travel Guides. p. 82. ISBN 978-1-906098-18-6. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  6. ↑ "Buddha Park, a photo from Vientiane, North". trekearth.com. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
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