To celebrate the 70th anniversary of HM the King's accession to the throne and the 84th birthday of HM the Queen this year, the Fine Arts Department is hosting an exhibition called "Reverence For The Buddha Relics On Auspicious Occasion Of The 70th Anniversary Of The Enthronement Of HM The King" until Oct 30 in the Phutthaisawan Throne Hall, National Museum Bangkok, near Sanam Luang.
Displayed relics were excavated from nine major historic sites of the Dvaravati, Sukhothai, Lanna, Ayutthaya and Rattanakosin periods, and are kept in the Ratchaburi National Museum in Ratchaburi, the Ramkhamhaeng National Museum in Sukhothai, the Chiang Mai National Museum, the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum in Ayutthaya and the National Museum Bangkok.
The Lord Buddha's relics are the Buddha's bones which were found after his body was cremated in India's Kushinagar City about 2,600 years ago. According to Buddhist legend, the bones were classified into two kinds -- big bones numbering seven and fragments of bones numbering about 16 thanan (an ancient way of measurement), equal to 16 litres.
Those fragments are the size of a split bean, a lettuce seed and a broken rice grain. The major bones were taken to stupas in the World of Brahma, heaven, the World of Naga, Gandhara City in India and Sri Lanka. The fragments were divided and given by Brahmin priest Dhona of Kushinagar to kings and priests of eight cities in Bharatavarsa, present-day South Asia. Later, around 200 BC, King Ashoka the Great gathered and distributed the Buddha's relics all over India and foreign cities, including Suvarnabhumi (Southeast Asia), where Buddhism spread. Some 84,000 stupas were built in these cities to enshrine the relics.
Among the exhibition's highlights are seven fragments of the Buddha's bones, the size of a cabbage seed and broken rice grain, enshrined in a gold round casket dating to the Dvaravati Period (8th-9th centuries), two pieces of the Buddha's bone -- in the round shape and off-white and brown -- kept in a triple-layer covered round casket, and a gem-studded gold miniature stupa that dates to the Ayutthaya Period (15th century) and was believed to have enshrined the Buddha's relics before.
"Relics of the Lord Buddha are considered the most sacred objects for Buddhist worship. Over the centuries, relics of the Buddha have been placed in stupas at important temples throughout Thailand," said Fine Arts Department director-general Anandha Chuchoti. "Having such a sacred Buddhist relic in the centre of a city is viewed as having the Lord Buddha himself watching benevolently over the city. It also ensures that the ruling monarch is virtuous and devout. Indeed, there is a special term for such a monarch, 'Dhammaraja' -- the king who follows dharma [the Buddha's teachings] to govern the city."
The exhibition is from 9am-4pm on Wed to Sun until Oct 30 at the National Museum Bangkok. Call 02-224-1333.
From left, a gem-studded gold miniature stupa found at Wat Ratchaburana, Ayutthaya, and the Lord Buddha's relics in a glass miniature stupa found at Sri Suriyothai Pagoda, Ayutthaya. photos: Pichaya Svasti
