Description
Book SynopsisThe mountains of northern Thailand constitute part of northern Thai identity. They inspire fear and awe, respect and love, curiosity and creative imagination. They define both the physical and mental landscape of northern Thailand.
Drawing on the legendary histories of three mountains in the region—Doi Ang Salung Chiang Dao, Doi Suthep, and Doi Kham—coauthor Donald Swearer explores the various ways that mountains in northern Thailand are seen as sacred space, and therefore as an environment to be respected rather than exploited.
The volume presents, in English translation, the stories associated with these sacred sites as recorded in the legendary chronicles, or tamnan, of the story of the Chiang Dao mountain and cave, the account of the enshrining of the Buddha relic on Doi Suthep, and the interwoven legends of the hermit Wasuthep, the demons Pu Sae and Ya Sae, the chief Wilangkha, and the queen Chamathewi.
In preserving the fascinating folklore of these sacred mountains, the authors contribute to the preservation of the mountains themselves.
Table of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments
1. Buddhism, Nature and Culture
-Religion and the Global Environment Crisis
-Buddhist Environmentalism
-Buddhism and an Ecology of Human Flourishing
2. Mountains and Sacred Space
-Introduction
-Narratives of Place: Doi (Mountain) Ang Salung
-Sacred Mountains and Their Stories Past and Present: Doi Suthep and Doi Kham
3. Doi Ang Salung: Water Basin Mountain
-Introduction
-The Legend of Water Basin Mountain
-The Buddha's Journey among the Lawa, Tai, and Burmese
-An Apocalyptic Vision of the Kala Yuga
-The Story of the Buddha's Journey Resumes
-A Golden Deer and a White Rabbit Discuss the Future. The Apocalyptic Vision Continues
-Doi Ang Salung Chiang Dao
-The Legend of Chao Luang Kham Daeng
--Lord Burnished Gold
4. Doi Suthep: Wasuthep Mountain and the Legend of Doi Kham
-Introduction
-Tamnan Phra That Doi Suthep
-The Buddha
-The Buddha Visits Northern Thailand
-Sumana Thera and the Discovery of the Relic
-The Buddha Relic Enshrined on Doi Suthep
-Kings of Chiang Mai and Wat Phra That Doi Suthep
-The Temple on Suthep Mountain and Its Veneration
-Concluding Summary
-The Legend of Doi Kham, The Golden Mountain
-Phra That Doi Kham in the Time of the Buddha
-Phra That Doi Kham during the Time of Chamathewi
Postscript: Recovering the Past to Gain a Future
Notes
