Buddhism during the Sukhothai period
TLent,T o commemorate the on-going Buddhist
which stretches until mid October, the Ramhamhaeng National Museum in Sukhothai is hosting the “Buddhist Traditions from Sukhothai Inscriptions” exhibition, which will be held until the end of this year.
This exhibition goes into details of religious practices during the Sukhothai period (1238-1583) as stated by various inscription stones, especially the First Inscription. The First Inscription was commissioned in 1292 by King Ramkhamhaeng the Great who reigned during 1279-1298 and created Thai characters. It was founded in 1833 by King Rama IV when he was a monk and on pilgrimage to Sukhothai. Later, 72 other inscription stones were discovered there. All of them were studied by ancient language experts, revealing the history of Sukhothai.
Stepping into the exhibition room, you will see a model of the First Inscription. It says that people in Sukhothai City regularly made merit at temples, observed the Buddhist precepts and made donations during Buddhist Lent. City ruler King Ramkhamhaeng, his consort, royals and all of his subjects had strong faith in Buddhism.
As evidenced by this inscription, literature, historic places and objects in Sukhothai, Buddhism was brought from elsewhere to this area like Brahmanism and Hinduism were and blended with people’s original beliefs in spirits.
The inscriptions of Sukhothai mostly record information about persons and religious activities that reflect traditions, norms and practices of Sukhothai people. Those beliefs were forwarded and modified by local people, leading to diversity over time.
The traditions included religious activities of the kings, priests, merchants and other people, such as following Buddhist teachings, making donation,
kalapana (a way of devotion) and joining religious festivals. For instance, they observed the precepts and listened to sermons on Buddhist days, listened to sermons on the Buddha’s last previous life and made donations on the first day of the Lent. They presented saffron robes to monks after Lent.
The First Inscription confirms the arrival of the original Lankavongse sect of Buddhism to Sukhothai via Nakhon Si Thammarat in the reign of King Ramkhamhaeng. That monarch selected Buddhist teachings from the Pali version of the
Tripitaka (Buddhist Canon) about morality for his people to study and follow to ensure peace in the society. These were the “wisdom leading faith” and “knowledge and morals” principles.
Later when the newly modified Lankavongse sect of Buddhism and religious beliefs from Lanna Kingdom spread to Sukhothai, the period of “faith leading wisdom” came. The focus was on consequences of good and bad deeds (karma), clearly reflected by Buddhist literature Traiphum Phra Ruang, penned in the reign of King Lithai (1347-1368). Another highlight of this exhibition concerns
kalapana — the way Buddhists announced their wishes to devote merits such as by building temples, stupas or serving monks and specific people. This concept was mentioned in the Wat Maha That inscription of 1374 and the inscription on the base of the Buddha image called Phra Pha Khao Thong. Many merit makers in Sukhothai wished to be reborn at the time of Phra Sri Ariyametrai. Another section of the exhibition depicts Buddhist festivals, including the start and end of the Lent.
Must-sees are the stucco statue of one of the Lord Buddha’s disciples, another statue depicting Buddhist celebrations and various old objects, such as jars, kettles and bowls, statues, presented by Buddhists in Sukhothai to monks and temples.