清邁銀寺(1), Wat Sri Suphen (The Silver Temple-1), Chiang Mai

泰北行脚之一: 清邁銀寺(1) Northern Thailand: Part 1

拜電腦之賜, 找到不少泰國佛寺的資料和照片。原來清邁和佛羅倫斯有相似的地方, 那就是到處都是廟(教堂)。清邁廟裡的壁画、雕刻和建築在藝術價值上看, 也許比不上佛羅倫斯的響噹噹, 不過對我來說, 他們的用色和圖案都是很有看頭的 (看官莫笑, 雷老師、周老師莫笑, 在下的藝術素養就那麼一丁點)。無獨有偶, 跟去年一樣, 首先要介紹的並不是最著名的大廟, 而是一非常獨特的小廟。那就是清邁舊城南面銀器街(Wua Lai Road)上的銀寺。這一輯, 我會寫(抄)較多的資料, 給自己日後忘記時用的。嫌囉唆的朋友看看照片就好了。

Temple “hopping” in Chiang Mai: Last years, we had a good time hopping between churches (not church hopping) in Florence and Rome. This year, we headed to Thailand to check out Theravada monasteries. I searched a lot of pictures of Thai temples online and was delightfully surprised to find that they are so photogenic, the architecture, the use of color and the ethnic artistic expression are so beautiful. In this post, I am going to put down more technical info that I have collected for future reference.

這裡先說幾個名稱的問題。在下不是學建築的, 也不是佛教徒, 對南傳佛教更是不大了了, 這裡所說的都是東抄面抄的資料。泰國佛寺的名稱多緣自巴利文(Pali)或梵文, 所以英文名稱會有多種拼法; 中文名稱都是在網上找的, 找不到的只好根據常理譯之, 那些譯無可譯的泰文就只好原文照錄了。所以看官見怪莫怪。我常說看廟, 朋友聽了不舒服, 說是寺院才對啊。當然寺院才是正確, 不過在南傳佛教的世界裡, 泛稱廟有時反而不完全是錯的。譬如泰北Tha Ton 寺的Kaew塔內供奉着各方神佛, 就連印度教的毗濕奴, 象頭神, 中國的呂祖, 関公和濟顛都在其列, 真的是滿天神佛共聚一堂。其實這正是南傳佛教的特點之一, 能和地方/民間信仰結合。再說, synagogue 不也叫猶太廟嗎? 最後說一下 Wat Sri Suphen 的讀音, 我以英語發音, 當地人聽不懂的。原來唸成 wat si (see, r 不發音) su pen (ph 不讀 f 音, h不發音) , 他們就懂了。

The first temple I want to show you is Wat Sri Suphen (pronounced wat-see-su-pen), which is situated in the heart of the Wua Lai silver-making community, south of the moat of the old city of Chiang Mai. A new ubosot was built in 2004 with silver, nickel and aluminum (for obvious reasons). The renovation has been ongoing for the last 7 years and is said to be finished in 7 more years. The artwork in the ubosot is in both the Wau Lai (local) and Rattanakosin (Bangkok) styles.

泰國與緬甸、寮國和柬埔寨等國皆屬南傳(小乘)佛教一脉, 佛寺的伽藍布局與北傳(大乘)的中國和日夲大異其趣。清邁是比較特別的地方, 它不單是不同民族的大溶爐, 同時亦因為曾為蘭納(Lanna)王廟的首都, 且曾受緬甸統治ニ百多年, 寺院的建築因而多樣化, 可以說是多采多姿。一般來說, 一所泰國寺院最少有三重要的建築物, 分別是塔、講堂和戒堂。講堂(或佛堂 Viharn 或Wiharn), 是大家都可以入內拜佛的地方; 戒堂(或戒壇, Ubosot 或 Bot), 是和尚受戒的地方, 一般人不得入內, 有些寺院則容許男信徒進入(銀寺就是)。塔是供奉佛陀舍利(Sarira), 高僧舍利或皇室骨灰的地方。古時候, 無論是在印度, 緬甸, 中國或日夲, 塔在寺院中應該是最重要的建築物, 整個佛寺就是繞着塔而布置的。後來伽藍布局隨着時代演變, 跟原來的己大不相同, 這是後話。下面先介紹銀寺的戒堂。

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戒堂外觀-下面這張照片是戒堂側面。左邊的建築物被鐵皮和鷹架包著, 未知是另一間佛堂抑或是藏經閣。圖中央下方奉有象頭神, 是印度教主神之一, 在南傳佛教的國度中,多有供奉(清邁的孟族寺院則沒有)。戒堂屋脊中央建有大型之多層傘架(parasol, 護法之用), 據說此為老撾式(寮國式 Laotian-style) 的造法, 多見於蘭納式(Lanna)的舊寺院中。戒堂自2004重建至今, 主持希望保存當地的傳統的銀器手藝, 並借此機會薪火傳承。附近的Wat Muen San 寺是銀寺的姊妹寺, 亦有大面積的浮雕可看, 只可惜時間不夠, 失之交臂。

戒堂(或戒壇 )The ubosot (or bot) of Wat Sri Suphen.

Ubosot, exterior- The ubosot (also known as bot, or in Pali uposatha) is the ordination hall of a temple. In general, women are not allowed to enter the hall. A lot of them only allow monks to enter. The building on the left is wrapped by corrugated metal sheets and scaffolding, it could be another viharn or a library. Sitting comfortably under a parasol is The Ganesha (or Ganesh), a Hindu deity widely worshiped in countries practicing Theravada Buddhism. In the middle of the top roof ridge, there is a metal finial in the form of a multi-tiered umbrella of state. This architectural accent is said to be Laotian and found mainly in old Lanna temples.

象頭神乃印度教主神之一, 藏佛以之為財神爺。有関他的神話很多, 有興趣的朋可google 一下Ganesh 或 Ganesha。象頭神的形象通常是象頭人身, 長四臂。造像多盤膝而坐, 手持四物。右前手拿着其右邊的斷牙, 右後臂手持义戟(鎚矛); 左前手托着一砵,內藏美食, 左後臂手握套索。從放置在神像上的花環數量來看, 不難知道他受歡迎的程度。

象頭神 Ganesha

A statue of Ganesha (or Ganesh) is enshrined outside the silver ubosot under a beautiful parasol. Ganesha is a popular Indian deity. Ganesha has a head of an elephant and a big-bellied human body. He has four arms. The right lower arm is holding his broken right tusk, his upper arm is holding a weapon, a mace or a goad; his left lower arm is holding a delicacy and his left upper arm is holding a noose. This suggests that Theravada Buddhism allows integration with local beliefs. The flower garlands placed around the statue show his great popularity.

戒堂正面– 通常泰式寺院的入口處的梯級两旁, 多塑有”龍” (天龍八部之一, Naga), 作為護法之用。銀寺的龍相當獨特, 並不見龍首, 而作龍身人首的設計。

Naga guarding the entrant of Wat Phra Singh.

這裡首先要借左圖稍為要解釋一下傳統龍的形式: 這是 Wat Phra Singh寺大佛殿入口處的”龍”。留神看的話, 可見”龍”頭其實是出自另一大嘴。據說波浪形的龍身在泰文稱為 nak sadung, 下面的怪獸稱為makara。這種設計亦用於屋簷上(下面會介紹)。不過同時亦見有naga 而沒有makara的設計。

The facade of the silver ubosot– First, please allow me to explain a bit, using the above photo from another temple, about the structure of a naga. The entrance to an ubosot or viharn is normally guarded by two undulating creatures in the form of naga. It is said that the Thai name for the undulating part is nag sadung. The upper part of the “naga” is actually coming out of the mouth of a water beast called makara. This design can also be seen on the bargeboard of the roof. The design of the undulating creatures of the silver ubosot is very unique, it has a dragon body with an upper body and head of a human (renovation not yet finished).

戒堂正面. The facade of the ubosot.

大門上方的三角楣飾, 在两天龍之間, 只是一繪圖, 真的楣飾應該還未準備好。 The Pediment above the entrance. In between the two undulating nagas there is only a “drawing”, obviously the pediment is not yet ready for display.

大門上方的三角楣飾. The Pediment.

One of the "naga" guarding the front door. This is obviously a different design from most of the traditional naga. Only the head of the statue is covered with silver (probably aluminum).

非常獨特的設計。Naga with a human body.

龍的麟片是用膠黏在水泥上。Scales are glued with epoxy resin to the cement body of the naga.

好像就是屋脊上的波濤(或雲)。I am not sure if this is the cloud on the roof top.

看來龍身將會蓋滿彩色的玻璃。It appears that glass mosaics will be placed on the body of the naga.

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屋頂 – 泰式建築其中一大特就是層叠式的屋項。這種設計以前只限於用在皇宮, 廟宇和政府辦事處, 民宅不能用之。除了層叠式的特式外, 寺院的屋頂還有下面幾項特色: 1. Cho fa, 喙突(?), 屋的頂尖處通常有一鳥喙形的尖物(象徵金翅大鵬), 上掛小銅鈴。2. Nag sadung, 龍身(?)屋頂邊緣的蓋板(bargeboard)上加有一波浪形的nag sadung, 跟前面介紹戒堂入口的龍一樣。3. Hang kong 龍頭(?), nag sadung 的末端彎向上的部份, 多作龍頭狀。

上面介紹的是普通寺院的情况, 銀寺戒堂的設計更勝一籌。1. Cho fa, 不光是鳥喙突, 而是整隻有翅膀的龐然大鳥。屋脊上還有波浪(或雲?)的設計。2. Nag sadung, 不單是波浪形的龍身, 還有背鰭, 華麗奪目。3. Hang kong 部份更是精釆萬分, 或作有翅的龍首(還有makara 的大嘴呢!), 或作有翅的象形, 頭上更另出龍首(見下面幾張照片), 實在太妙了。

屋脊上的"大鳥"(喙突, cho fah)。 The tiered roofs and the cho fa. Note the Bodhi leaves at the upper corners.

The Roof – In the old days, the use of multi-tiered roof was reserved for temples, palaces, government offices and monuments. The edges of the roof are protected by bargeboard which is usually turned into a decorative structure, called the lamyong. In most cases, the lamyong is sculptured into an undulating serpent/naga, called nag sadung. The dorsal projections suggest the dorsal fins of the naga. The lower finial is sculptured into the head of a bird (Garuda) or an elephant. In one of the design below, the bird like structure is actually coming out from a mouth of a makara (please refer to the previous photo of naga).

For the silver ubosot, the cho fa at the apex of the roof is not just a beak-like curving ornament but a full-bodied “bird” with wings. The lower finial, hang kong, of the undulating body has predominant fins which may represent that the Garuda (the bird with feathers) is in his mythical struggle with the Naga (the reptile with scales and fins) as the two deities entwine in battle.

Hang kong 部份更是精釆萬分, 作有翅的龍首, 下面還有 makara 的大嘴呢! The lower end of the "bargeboard" called hang kong.

留意大鵬出自makara 的口。 Note the mouth of the makara below the hang kong.

To be able to see the design better, I have copied the following two diagrams from their retail shop webpage – http://wualaicluster.org/new-product/. BTW, there are no description of these products nor the price tags. I like them a lot, I wish they were on sale. 為了讓大家看清楚上面的設計, 我自他們官網上找到這两圖 (應該是產品的圖樣, 可惜沒有價錢及資料, 真想買一對小型的)。

金翅大鵬, 出自makara之口。 Garuda, coming out from the mouth of a makara.

有翅的大象, 頭上另有一頭(見下圖)。 Elephant with feathered wings.

大象形的 hang hong,下有makara。 Hang kong in the form of a winged elephant, and note that there is the Garuda on top of the elephant's head.

戒堂門外靠着两塊浮雕, 非常精美, 相信以後會嵌在戒堂內適當的地方。第一塊是帝釋天(因陀羅, Indra, 梵文:Sakro), 原為印度教神明, 後為佛教吸收, 為天眾(Deva, 亦稱提婆, 即天龍八部的天)之首。

帝釋天在座騎上。 Indra on his mount, a three-headed white elephant.

Two five-foot plaques with beautiful bas reliefs were placed next to the entrance. I believe they are meant to be placed inside the ubosot in the future. The first one depicts Indra on his mount, a three-headed white elephant, left hand with Karana Mudra(?), gesture with which demons are expelled.

第二塊浮雕是毗濕奴(Vishnu)坐在其坐騎金翅大鵬(Garuda)上。毗濕奴是印度教三大主神之一(其餘為梵天和濕婆)。最容易辨別就是他的坐騎金翅大鵬。根據印度教,毗濕奴是慈悲之神。毗濕奴有四臂, 前左臂拿着鎚矛, 鎚矛代表能量; 右前臂拿着蓮花, 向信徒施福。左後臂手持海螺, 吹响海螺提醒信眾以慈悲愛心對待眾生; 右後臂所持的鐵餅代表他會用此作武器保護眾生。

毗濕奴。 Vishnu mounted on Garuda

The second one depicts Vishnu sitting on his mount, the Garuda. Lord Vishnu is generally symbolized by a human body with four arms. He is holding a conch, a chakra, a mace and a lotus.

結界石 (Bai Sema)- 顧名思義, 結界石就是界定戒壇的石塊。初建戒壇時, 首先在界的八方及中央埋入九顆圓形的的戒壇限石(Luk Nimit), 因為是埋在土中, 無法看見, 地面上就放有八塊結界石。結界石型式多樣, 一般結界石多作菩提葉狀。這裡的結界石製成法輪狀, 它不是安在地上的, 而是吊在漂亮的銀架上的,十分特別和華麗。

戒堂的結界石。 Sema stone (Bai sema)

How to tell a viharn from an ubosot? By the Sema Stones, or boundary markers, that demarcate the ubosot. Sema stones can take many forms, usually a tablet shaped like a Bodhi leaf. It is not uncommon to see them enclosed in small shrines. The Sema Stones of the Silver Ubosot is very unique and fancy. The tablet is shaped like the Wheel of Dharma and is hung from a fancy silver rack. Again, it is protected by two nagas.

戒堂的後壁- 戒堂的後壁已裝有三塊浮雕壁画, 大底都是描繪佛陀的一生。我放大幾個部份讓大家看看。The back wall of the Silver Ubosot– Three panels of bas reliefs have been partially installed. The works are magnificent, most of them depict the life of the Lord Buddha. I have shown a few close-up here for your viewing pleasure.

戒堂的後壁。 The back of the Silver Ubosot.

佛陀悟道後回鹿園首轉法輪。 This part depicts that the Lord Buddha is delivering his First Sermon at the Deer Park.

看了半天才猜到這就是戒堂正面重建完成後的樣子。The is the facade of the ubosot after the renovation is finished.

佛陀說法。 Lord Buddha is giving a speech to his followers.

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屋簷托座(托架): 在戒堂的两側可見有華麗的屋簷托座。據說自大城(Ayutthaya)王朝中期開始, 戒堂或講堂的面積变小, 外圍的支柱無存在的必要而改用托座。托座通常都是精雕細喙, 設計多是纏繞的天龍。此處作傳統設計, 唯頭則作象形。

Eaves Brackets: Now we turn to the side of the silver ubosot, there are some interesting pieces you may be interested. The following photo shows the Hu Chang, or “elephant ear”, which is the eaves-bracket along the outer wall of the ubosot (or viharn). This particular design is in the form of intertwining naga. Note that the nagas are with elephant heads. The mouths of makara, marked by rows of teeth, can also be seen.

屋簷托座。 Eave Brackets

簷下飾板和通氣窗 Fasicia (?) and ventilation windows

簷下飾板。 Fascia (?)- decorative pieces hanging outside the eaves overhang.

屋簷下的通氣窗(?) I believe these are ventilation windows below the eaves overhang.

其他 Others

牆上的蓮花浮雕。A decorative piece, in the form of lotus flower, outside the ubosot.

戒堂外矮牆上的生肖浮雕。Monkey, one of the 12 zodiac animals.

十二生肖的雞。Rooster, one of the 12 zodiac animals.

龍 The Naga

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戒堂內觀- 銀寺戒堂門前和樓梯的地面鋪上水泥, 作內旋圓形, 十分特別,看樣子以後還會有進一步的裝飾。戒堂內的裝修工程仍在進行中, 己打好的大小銀飾就靠着牆邊放着, 等待裝嵌的樣子, 地面頗多小雜物, 怱怱拍幾張就退了出來。

戒堂門前地板。 Fancy floor design in front of the entrance.

The interior of the ubosot: I was so happy that men were allowed to enter. Inside the ubosot, finished pieces of artwork were placed leaning against the side walls, obviously waiting to be positioned. Debris, little objects like screws were here and there. The lighting inside the ubosot was on the warm side, that’s why there is a dramatic golden sheen on the silver/aluminum artwork.