The Museum and library of Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara Rajavaravihara (Final part)

Front side of the Museum and library of Wat Bowon

The fourth room displays the belongings and works of His Royal Holiness the Supreme Patriarch Krom Luang Vashirayanawongse, the fourth abbot. His Royal Holiness was the preceptor of His Majesty King Bhumipol while His Majesty was ordinating. Same as other room, there is a bronze sculpture of His Royal Holiness inside the room. I saw some Thai elders prostrated themselves on the floor in front of the sculpture to pay respect to His Royal Holiness. The information kiosk in the room plays the short presentation of 'Royal Ordination Ceremony of  King Bhumipol (Prabatsomdej Prachao Yu Hua)' and also a stand of digital photo frame showing the short documentary of His Holiness's duties as 'The monk, the developer'. In this room, there is a big wooden bookcase full with small Dharma books. What I like about this bookcase is the hidden wood lock at the bottom drawers. Due to restless habit of mine (again), I was trying to open the drawers just to see how they are like inside but at first I couldn't open them although I saw no lock, no hook anywhere. I pulled the drawer out a bit harder but it was still closed.

The wooden bookcase with hidden wood lock

Then I realized that the drawer seemed to stuck with something thick and hard. On both side of bottom drawers, there are wooden bars on both side of the bookcase. And they are simply the lock of these drawers. Imagining how to use these drawers and their lock seems convenient. You don't need to keep a single key but still can lock not super secret things away.

Locked drawers

On each side bar, it has a wooden square bolt which perfectly fit into a carved square hole on the fourth drawer of the row.

After almost a minute attempt, I finally pulled out the drawer

In one of the showcases in this room, there is a set of royal items of Bhumipolo Bhiku, the alias of His Majesty King Bhumipol during his monkhood life. The set includes a tray with pedestal (holding betel envelope, clove and borneol case, raw betel case, lipwax case and tobacco case), an ewer with tray underneath, a spittoon for mouth rinse and a spittoon with trumpet-shape mouth.

The set of royal items

Another interesting thing is a bed on the right of the room. Our ancestor used this style of bed for sleeping and use large wooden stool as a relaxation seat but nowadays we also use this kind of bed as a relax stool as well especially in a luxury spa. what else this kind of bed can be used for ?? - another model of smallest hotel ??? I don't know.

A simple structure bed

What is shown inside the small showcase in front of the bed is a set of Thai traditional medicine such as cathartic and mortars pestles.

Tradition medicine and mortars pestles

Next, the fifth room of the fifth abbot, Phra Phrom Muni (Pinh Suwajo Dharmaprateep), doesn't have personal belonging as many as other rooms. There are a set of altar tables, a simple working desk and a human skeleton - whole body!! The skeleton was donated by a lady long time ago and Phra Phrom Muni used her for meditation using one of the meditation techniques that concentrate and consider on dead body to understand the truth of life - Impermanent (Anatta), Suffering and Anatman (No-self, nothing) and entering Nirvana path.

The lady's skeleton is in the corner of the room. I didn't take her picture.

Then the last room shows bibliography of the present His Holiness the Supreme Patriarch (Charoen Kashawatra) who will be 100 years old on the 3rd of October, 2013. Wat Bowon will have a celebration of 100th anniversary for His Holiness on that day. His Holiness was the trainer of His Majesty King Bhumipol when he was staying at Wat Bowon and learning Dharma there. Inside the room, there is a biography board showing on the wall as well as some meaningful Buddhist doctrines are written there.

The first one near the sculpture of His Holiness said 'All states of mind relates to our perception, how we think or which angle we see things, Buddhist teaches us to see and think of thing as it naturally is whether it is appropriate or inappropriate, good or bad'. Another one near working desk with a broadcasting radio said 'Thought, no matter is a good or bad thought, once it occurred, it is very difficult to be erased from our mind. Attempting to control the thought to right direction is what everyone should do'. The one at the corner of the room said 'A road of success that does not exploit anyone is the third step of virtue, a success that can also help other people is the second one but the first class and the greatest virtue is to win an evilness of our self'.

'All states of mind relates to our perception, how we think or which angle we see things, Buddhist teaches us to see and think of thing as it naturally is whether it is appropriate or inappropriate, good or bad'

'Thought, no matter is a good or bad thought, once it occurred, it is very difficult to be erased from our mind. Attempting to control the thought to right direction is what everyone should do'

'A road of success that does not exploit anyone is the third step of virtue, a success that also help other people is the second level but the first class virtue is to win an evilness of our own'

For me, the third philosophy is the least abstract and practical which suits me best because what I always want to do is to understand and beat the dark side of mine.

In short, The Museum and library of Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara Rajavaravihara indicates how Buddhist is important to Thais as part of culture, believe and the nation. Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara Rajavaravihara is the monastery where 5 kings of Chakri dynasty, gentlemen from royal family and gentlemen throughout the country ordinated and learned Dharma. The museum shows how the great abbots sacrificed their lives to develop Buddhism in the country and to develop good spirits for the nation. If you do not have any special plan for Sunday, this peaceful and spiritual value place is available and worth for your visit. 

The Museum and library of Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara Rajavaravihara Part II

The exhibition in the second room shows His Royal Holiness the Supreme Patriarch Krom Phraya Pavares Variyalankarana's monastic life and his works. He was the second abbot of Wat Bowon. The composition of room is similar to King Rama IV's room including a bronze sculpture of  His Royal Holiness inside.

A jolly little boy was happily running around the second room

Krom Phraya Pavares Variyalankarana was esteemed as the sage of the era in linguistics and poetry, architecture, scientist and astronomy and also the inheritor and detective of Siam history, archaeology and architectural science. His hand writing is very beautiful and rarely found nowadays. Ministry of Education of Thailand should have copied his writing as a writing copybook to teach Thai students. It is neat, beautiful and an art.

A poetry about himself and other religious writing works

Bhaksa Kanana Text - a text of astrology and calculation method of lunar calendar

Not just all those poetries and text books that Krom Phraya Pavares Variyalankarana was indited, he also recorded the volume of rainfall in each season and date. I am not sure how these records would be used in his era but whatever materials that was used to write and be written on remain his hand writing very clear and sharp to read.

The third room displaying the story of His Royal Holiness the Supreme Patriarch Krom Phraya Vajirananvarorasa, the third abbot, composes of a bronze sculpture of His Holiness and his belongings while he lived in monkhood.

       

A board shows His Holiness's biography

     

From outside of the third room

In the showcase on the side of the room, I saw a nice picture frame box made of leather decorating with golden vine of flowers. This is similar to a 3D design of an expensive, classic, leather book covers.

    

            A clock that stopped dead at 11.20

  

  A picture frame box

A Thai cat book indited by His Holiness describing the appearance and
characteristic of each cat breed

The Museum and library of Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara Rajavaravihara Part I

Address: Pra Sumen Road, near Bang Lamphu and Khao Sarn Road, Bangkok Thailand.

Tel: 0-2281-5052, 0-2629-5284

http://www.watbowon.com

Opening Hours: Sunday from 9 AM - 4 PM

No entrance fee

Available for walk-in and group visitors. Group visitor is recommended to call the museum in advance for proper arrangement.

How to go: 

1. From Khao Sarn Road, walk pass all the pubs&hotels toward Ta-Now Road then turn left and walk straight to the roundabout. Wat Bowon Niwet is on the opposite side of the roundabout. (5-10 minutes walk)

2. From Pra Athit pier, walk straight along Pra Sumen road until reach the first intersection, carry on straight until see a branch of Kasikorn Bank (green bank), walk pass it for another 10 meters then cross the road to enter Wat Bowon Niwet's gate. (10-15 minutes walk)

3. No air-cond. bus route 56, 68

4. Air-cond. bus route 68

The Museum and library of Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara Rajavaravihara (or Wat Bowon or Wat Bowon Niwet) is located in the same area of Wat Bowon, near Pra Sumen road. An objective of the museum is to praise the present supreme patriarch - His Holiness Supreme Patriarch Suwattana Mahadhera Charoen Kashawatra, the current abbot, and the former abbots of Wat Bowon for their tremendously contributions and heartily hard works that had been sacrificed to develop Buddhism and the nation. The museum houses in the 2-storey heritage yellow building which was renovated on April 21, 2006 to celebrate King Rama IV's 200th anniversary birthday and to celebrate the 60th anniversary of His Majesty the King Rama IX's accession to the throne.

7 years later, on April 21, 2013 H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn inaugurated the Museum and library of Wat Bowon Niwet at Manusaya Naga Viddhayatan building.

The museum exhibits the history of Wat Bawon Niwet, biography, prestige, works, accomplishments and displays eight necessary items for Buddhist monk of His Holiness Supreme Patriarch Suwattana Mahadhera Charoen Kashawatra and former abbots.

The theater hall on the first floor

The first floor of the museum is a theater hall that shows the 7 minutes movie of history of Wat Bowon Niwet. The movie is currently available in Thai only but the exhibition upstairs describes in both Thai and English. Wat Bawon was established in King Rama III era in year 1826 and originally named Wat Mai. By the year 1923, King Rama VI integrated Wat Bowon and Wat Rangsri into one. The temple is the headquarter of  Thammayut monastic sect that King Rama IV brought the sect into the country in year 1851. King Rama IV, V, VI, VII and His Majesty King Rama IX ordinated at this temple and studied Dharma here for a while before went back to the throne. The atmosphere inside the museum is cool and quiet which is good for learning, enjoying the history and escape from the heat outside.

Going up the second floor, it is partitioned into a central hall and 6 rooms which each displays biography and works of each great abbots of the temple. The hall shows pictures of King Rama IV, V, VI, VII and His Majesty King Rama IX while ordinating and staying at Wat Bowon. A multimedia kiosk locating at the center of the hall is where visitors can learn the past of Wat Bowon. The information boards on both side of the second floor hall presents how Wat Bowon is known as "The Blueprint of Thammayut monastic sect" temple and how it also known as "The educational monastery of the king and royal family".

The kiosk is at the center of the hall and the pictures of the 4 kings in monkhood on the wall

The corridor in front of exhibition rooms

The first room displays the biography, remarkable talents, prestige and works of His Majesty King Mongkut, Rama IV who ruled the country from April 1851 to October 1868 while he was ordinating. The exhibition consists of a bronze sculpture of the king at the center of the room and a short movie called "The great Bodhi tree of Bhuddism Dharma" that illustrates the king's biography and how he brought Thammayut sect into Siam. King Rama IV devoted his life into religion. While he was a monk, he traveled around the country and met Bhuddhawongso, a monk who strictly followed Bhuddha's canon, who impressed the royal monk and inspired King Monkut the religious reform later when he arrived back in town. His majesty also master liberal arts. His hand writing is an old cursive classic style shown in a showcase at the center of the room. Unfortunately, I can't read anything.

King Rama IV was a great scientist and an expert of astronomy. With his astronomy skill, the king predicted the natural phenomenon of eclipse in year 1868. He went to see the eclipse at Wah Kor, a swampy, rural (at the time) area in Prachuab Khirikhan province with a large entourage. He had malaria fever from the local mosquitoes and died later in the same year in Bangkok. I know nothing about astronomy but can feel that astronomical tools are pretty cool. The tools look complex and not easy to understand .. really wondered how to use these tools, anyway, if you want to know how to measure latitude and longitude by the sun, you can consult here.

Left, a sextant used to measure the height of the sun for calculating latitude and longitude
Right, star chart of leather and paper used to identifying and locating stars, constellations and
galaxies to set standard time table

                 

Traditional piston lighter

Air pressure experiment tool