HOME | POLITICS | SPORTS | LIFE | SCI/TECH | OPEDS | HELPFUL TIPS
|
July 30, 2005 Sukhothai is a new town and province of Thailand, butthe Sukhothai that brings the tourists flocking inevery year, refers to the first capital of Thailandthat flourished between the 13th and 15th centuries A.D. This extensive old city is now a World Heritagesite and situated in the Sukhothai National Park, about 20 km. from the new town of Sukhothai. I set out from my hotel at 10 a.m. in an old "tuk-tuk", or motor cycle converted to carry passengers in a large box. It is not a bad way to doSukhothai, as stops are frequent and the tuk-tuk canpark anywhere. Sukhothai was the first capital of Thailand, established in the north of the country, from people fleeing the powerful Khmer armies: perhaps theyoriginally came from China, but no one is really sure.In any case, by the middle of the 14th century a greatKingdom had been established with Sukhothai as its capital. Parts of this Kingdom stretched right down toMalaysia in the south! During this golden age, thefirst Thai alphabet was developed and Therevadabuddhism was imported as the official state religion. In the late 14th and 15th centuries the Kingdom ofSukhothai declined; largely due to a long line of poorand indifferent rulers. Finally, it became a provinceof Ayutthaya, the second Thai capital, which was established not far from modern Bangkok. Subsequently, a series of succesful invasions by the Burmese,eventually made the Thais abandon Ayutthaya andretreat to the site of the modern capital. How is Sukhothai for the interested visitor? It is a truly beautiful park something over a mile squared, full of the ruins of "wats" or temples and serene, exquisitely carved, buddhas. Ouside the city walls, there are many other wonderful temples to be discovered by the interested and engaged traveler. Oneof the things I appreciated the most, was the silence: a welcome invitation to reflection on the ultimatefate of important cities and men--and also on our own present need to make restitution for our spiritual andpractical inadequacies in this life. If, like me, you should pause (at some future time) in front of one ofthe giant buddha statues and mutter a heart-felt prayer concerning your hopes and fears, do not utterthe Judeo-Christian word "forgive". In buddhism, menare deluded by desire for wealth, power, importance, wealth, etc. Finally, however, the depth of their own sufferings will put them on the right path to eventualenlightenment. "Forgiveness" is really a foreignconcvept. Forgive what? Nobody suffers more than theone who offends--and even the most obdurate offender will eventually be pushed forward, by the misery hecreates, to the next level of knowledge. Sukhothai is a beautiful and thought provoking place. Try to see it at least once in your short life. ------------ About the author Jon Aristides: Read, 'The Black Scarab of Amun-Ra'. Visit www.jon-aristides.com Email: aristidesjon2001@yahoo.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
