A Long Weekend at Ayuthaya Ruins

Ayuthaya Historical Park was a recent long weekend trip. We decided to hop on the night train, and after four lovely hours as the center of entertainment for the workers in the food cart, we were off to our bunks and woke up in the morning at our destination. The old city is actually a natural island formed by the convergence of two rivers, so a short short tuk tuk ride over the main bridge and we were at our hotel, and in no time off to explore ruins. Ayuthaya was the capital of the largest and strongest kingdoms prior to modern day Thailand, from 1350 to 1767 before being taken over by the Burmese. It is not as manicured nor as aesthetically pleasing as Sukhothai (way to much garbage, way too many mangy dogs, and more crowded as the city spills into the ruins), but it is still quite impressive, and is more important in terms of Thai royal history. An interesting anecdote from the locals is that the the current Queen Sirikit had a vision that she was the incarnation of queen Suriyothai of Ayuthaya, and what emerged from her initial vision is a well-produced movie trilogy which includes The Legend of Suriyothai (Francis Ford Coppola), King Naresuan, and a third movie now in production. But we didn't spend too much time with the royal history, preferring instead to explore the ruins, temples, and Buddha images. The picture above is from a Wat Phra Si Sanphet, the most distinctive Ayuthaya style architecture, since most other structures borrow heavily from others in the region, especially Sukhothai and the Khmer. The reclined Buddha is one of the most visited of the old city.

We went during the most important two days for Buddhists to visit temples: the end of the Rain Retreat, or Buddhist Lent as it is commonly known to foreigners. Thais come from all over to visit some of the more important temples and monasteries, like the one here, Wat Mongkhon Bophit. This houses one of the largest bronze cast Buddha images in Thailand. Since this is the most auspicious two days to visit temple, in Buddhist terms, we made a ton of merit. There was no organized service, so everyone going to the temple were doing his or her own thing. It was interesting to try to get my head around how many things were going on at once. First, a whole service sector of food and refreshments cropped up, and well as an entire market selling all kinds of items and products, some religious - like candles, incense and Buddha amulets - some not. Then there were people praying, lighting incense, getting blessings from monks, and some buying and selling of lottery tickets (!?).

Like many other major city states, Ayuthaya prides itself in acquiring important Buddha images from around the region as a testament to fortune, power, and prestige. Wat Phra Mehn (Meru) is home to one of the most beautiful images I've seen in Thailand (apart from my all-time favorites of the Sukhothai period, which I hope to write about next month). Below is thought to be a 1300 year old sitting image in Dvaravati style originating in Ceylon (Sri Lanka).
Two distinct aspects are the facial features, particularly the nose and lips, and the sitting posture, very rare among Siamese Buddha images.

I don't include very much of Ayuthaya Buddha images because many of them were destroyed. When the Burmese took over, they sometimes cut off the heads of Buddhas or melt them down for the gold. Others just deteriorated with time. Left is what remains of a Buddha image after the tree roots get the best of it at Wat Phra Mahathat (this temple built by King Naresuan 14th Century).

We had a pleasant time riding around parts of the old city on bicycles, until we had to cave in to the heat, at which point we took respite in the lovely coffee shop and pool of one of the nicest little boutique hotels I've ever stayed in, The Iudia. Yes, feast your eyes below on our wonderful view, right on the river and facing the ruins!