Sukhotai, Birthplace of Thailand

It all started in 1278 with King Rama who defended Sukhotai from the king of Mai Sot (now a province of Thailand.) He defeated the king in hand-to-hand combat and was given the name Ramakamheng, or "Rama the Bold." Ironically however, what made Ramakamheng great was not his prowess in battle, but his diplomatic ability and amazingly enlightened rule. He believed that the Khmer system of all-powerful god-kings should be replaced with what was know as "dhammaraja," a benign king who rules according to Buddhist precepts and acquires the love of his people rather than using his status as a god to justify his rule. He formed alliances with the small, independent Thai kingdoms that had been created out of the ashes of the Khmer empire. Without fighting a single battle, he created a kingdom that encompassed Thailand's current borders, minus the far north Lanna kingdom. He invented the current Thai alphabet by modifying the Khmer alphabet, introduced Buddhism to the largely Hindu land and abolished slavery (though it returned during the following period). That last point is an important one to remember. It should show the folly of thinking of a culture or a people as "primitive" or "advanced." Think about it: Sure, Thai people will tell you about ghosts in banana groves, but they also abolished slavery 580 years before the USA did! A country might be ahead or behind in technology (or some aspects of it), but looking at people as primitive or advanced is foolish. Sure, fewer Americans believe in ghosts, but we were 580 years behind in abolishing the barbaric practice of slavery. Ramakamheng is highly revered, almost god-like, by the Thai people who see him as the father of the nation. In addition to all his other achievements, he also was a great patron of the arts. He brought in artists from Sri Lanka, China, and elsewhere to make contributions to Thai art. Like the culture of every other people on the face of the earth, Thai art and culture is a blending of concepts from other cultures with indigenous Thai art and culture. Thai art began to take shape during the Sukhotai era, blending Khmer and native Thai artistic concepts with those of Sri Lanka, China, and Cambodia, to name a few.

Sukhotai went into decline when a separate branch of the royal family started a dynasty at Ayuthaya around 1350. Within a couple of decades Ayutthaya had taken control of Thailand, including Sukhotai. Thus began the Ayuthaya kingdom. Sukhotai was abandoned in 1438. It remained deserted until 1783 when a new dynasty took power and moved the capitol, launching the Bangkok period that continues to this day. The new king began excavating the site. Restoration in part of the city began with the help of UNESCO in 1977. Stone and brick were only used for temples; all other buildings were made of wood and long since decayed. Inside the walls of the old city one is immediately struck by the number of temples. Many have huge statues of the Buddha and Sri Lankan style chedies. (A chedi is a bell-shaped building with a square base, common in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Indonesia.) Others blend Thai style prayer halls with Sri Lankan chedies, though all but the pillars decayed long ago. Many chedies have huge niches in the side with statues of walking Buddhas, while others have elephants all along the base. Still others have scenes of dancing angels carved into the base. One mixes Buddha statues with bas reliefs of Hindu myths. Another looks like a miniature of Angkor Wat in Cambodia with its three elaborately carved cone-shaped buildings. The temples are still considered sacred. I saw several Thai people praying at them. Thais also pay respects to King Ramkamheng, who has a recently built statue and reflecting pool. The air near the statue is perfumed with the incense offered by Ramkamheng's devotees.

Ruined prayer hall, a Buddha statue and a chedi behind it.

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