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Wat Pho

46-meter Long Golden Reclining Buddha

Wat Pho in Bangkok is located south of the Grand Palace, and is named after the 46-meter-long reclining Buddha inside the temple. It is a royal temple of Thailand, with a massive Golden Buddha Hall and four 42-meter-high pagodas commemorating kings Rama I-IV.

Wat Pho is known as the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, and its predecessor, the Temple Wat Photaram, has been in existence since 1767 when Taksin the Great founded the capital at Thonburi. After King Rama I founded the Bangkok dynasty, The Grand Palace of Bangkok was built just north to the Wat Pho Temple.

The temple was named after a 46m Long Reclining Buddha, which was built in 1832 when King Rama III spent 16 years expanding the temple. This 15-meter-high giant Buddha has 5-Meter-Long Buddha Feet, with 108 auspicious Buddhist patterns inlaid with pearl shells.

Small reclining Buddha covered in gold foil

This Temple of Reclining Buddha is centered around a Massive Phra Ubosot, the Ordination Hall, with a Golden Buddha inside, at the foot of the Buddha altar with another ten statues of Arhats.

There are four smaller Buddhist halls to the four directions of the Ordination Hall, each of which houses the statues of Maravichai, Chinnasri, and other Buddhas, there are called the Four Phra Viharas. In the double cloister Phra Rabiang that connects the four Phra Viharas, 394 Gold-Leafed Buddhas are lined up, each coming from a different region of Thailand and built during different stages of history such as Sukhothai and Ayutthaya.

From the time King Rama I came to power, he attached great importance to the renovation and expansion of the Wat Pho temple. The four 42m High Pagodas of the Four Kings, that can be seen in the temple today, were built to commemorate King Rama I-IV.

Chinese Stone Guardian Figure beside the Gate

There’s much more to see and do in the Temple of Reclining Buddha, as you’ll encounter 91 colorful chedis, which are small pagodas, as you walk, and sixteen entrances and exits of Arches and Chinese Stone Guardians, which are also major icons of the temple. If you’re tired of walking, enjoy an authentic Thai massage at the traditional massage school in Wat Pho, which is said to be the birthplace of Thai massage.