|
he ( city ) capital of fine gold Saint ( Buddha ) currently encounters abount 25.000 inhabitants.
Built on a very ancient prehistoric site, at the confluent of the Nam Khane and of the Mekong, the city was called successively:
• Java, from the XIe c. to the XIIIe c. at the apogee of the Khmer empire.
• Xieng DongŒXieng Thong, from the XIIIe c. to the XVe c. it is the the capital of the Lane Xang kingdom, the kingdom of the million elephants.
• Then Mouang Soua for a while.
• And finally, Luang Prabang since 1491; but from 1560 to 1712 it didn’t stay anymore the capital of the kingdom, that sindeed Vientiane that is becoming it by the time.
From 1720 to 1946, Luang Prabang is only the capital of the small kingdom of Luang
Prabang, before becoming the royal capital of Laos in 1947.
Totally built in wood, the city was often the prey of flames, as in 1774 when on the Lao New years eve a fire destroyed the city downtown.
The tropical weather with its storms and rains damaged the city monuments as well as wars; that’s why on the day before the French intervention in 1887, Luang Prabang was ransacked by the “ Black Pavilions “, the Ho from Deo Van Tri.
The reconstruction of the town, its restoration as a royal and religious capital, was almost all the work of H.K.SISAVANG VONG, successively helped by his two viceŒkings: the Tiao Maha Oupahat Boun Khong and then the prince Phetsarath. From 1959, S.M.Sri Savang Vatthana, went on with the work of this dad, and made of Luang Prabang, one of the most beautiful jewel of religious architecture in the Indochina Peninsula.
The inhabitants, very proud of their town, have preserved most of the old Laotian traditions, on a religious level as well as on the artistic one; in Luang Prabang for example, there was no need of foreign experts to renew the arts and crafts, for the good reason that it has always been thriving: fro dad to son, uncle to nephew, master to student;
the tradition survived the wars and foreign invasions, while adapting itself to modern material, without losing its amazing creative force.
The Phra Bang, that is to say the Buddha Saint in fine gold, Palladium of the Kingdom which gave it name to the town, is a statue of a standing Buddha in golden bronze, in the attitude Ham Nhat, That is to stay “ calming down a family argument “ ( Abhaya Mudra );
It weights 43.4 kg and is 0.83m high.
Melt down in Ceylan between the VIIIe c. and the IXe c, the statue arrived in Cambodia around the XIe c., Probably as a royal gift. In 1358, the Pha Bang is gave by the Khmer king to the Laotian Prince FA NGOUN before it left Cambodia to go to the north to get back its kingdom. FA NGOUM set up its capital in Xieng- DongŒXieng thong ( Luang Prabang ) but let the Pha Bang in Vieng ChanŒ Vieng Kham ( Vientiane ).
 |
That’s I 1489 that the king LA NAM SENE THAY made come the Pha Bang in the capital and set up it at Vat Xieng Kang; two years later, he transferred it at Vat Manorom and took advantage of this situation of the city name into Mouang Luang Prabang.
In 1513, the king ViXUNARATH put down the Pha Bang at Vat Vixun, the statue will stay there for half a century, but in 1560,SAYASETTHATHIRAT, transferred its capital to Vientiane and brought with him the Palladium of the kingdom. That is over there that in 1779, the Siamese will take over the Phra Bang for the first time; they give it back four of reckless Chao Anou, last king of Vientiane.
When the Siamese are finally giving Phra Bang to the Laotian, the kingdom of Vientiane has disappeared, and it’s to SOUKHASEUM, king of Luang Prabang, that they give back the sacred image in 1839: this one is then solemnly set back at vat Vixun.
In 1894, the king SAKHALINE transferred the Phra Bang to Vat May where it stays until the independence of Laos in 1947.
The Phra Bang is then put down at the royal palace, in the gardens of which a special chapel Vat Ho Phra Bang is built to receive it.
 |
Very religious, Lao people, like their neighbors from Myanmar, Combodia and Thailand, practice the Buddhism Theravada. Its opponents call it Hinayana or little vehicle by opposition to Mhayana or big vehicle, which is the Buddhism of China and Vietnam, the Buddhism Theravada that seems the most conform to the original taught of the master, Gautama: thera in pali means old, ancient.
Based on the acquisition of personal merits, Boun in Laotian, during successive transmigrations, in realizing pious charity, the Buddhism Theravada presents the state of monks as an essential step on the way to total extinction or nirvana.
Monks have to follow quite strict rules, living in monastery and surviving from the faithful charity, but never pronounce forever wishes.
They can’t be compared to priests from the catholic religious: they don’t officiate. The laics don’t have to follow a strict doctrine but rather morals rules, based on the respect of life and tolerance. From all the big religious in the world indeed, The Buddhism Theravada is the only one that never sparked a holy war in the name of orthodoxy. . . .
Read more »
|
