Wat Ket Karam (วัดเกตการาม)

Thai. Name of a Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai, of which the main stupa houses a hair relic of the Buddha, which is known as Phrathat Ket Kaew Chulamanie. The temple is dedicated to people who were born in the Year of the Dog, according to the Chinese zodiac. Thus, at the base of the chedi are some statues of dogs and local people born in this zodiac year are expected to visit this temple at least once in their lifetime in order to make merit. In 2018, i.e. a Year of the Dog, this temple was publicized on a set of Thai postage stamps to celebrate Visakha Bucha, together with three other temples in northern Thailand that house Buddha relics and relate to other years of the zodiac. Besides this, the main stupa has four staircases, one for each of the cardinal points and flanked with a pair of nagamakara (fig.), whose elongated bodies meet at each of the main corners of the stupa, where the end of their tails is held by a Garuda (fig.). It is unknown when this temple was built but records show that ordination ceremonies were already held here in the reign of Phaya Meuang Ket Klao (AD 1526-1538 and 1543-1545), while the stupa was renovated after it had collapsed in 1578. According to legend, ancient ceremonies were performed at this temple to protect Chiang Mai's ruling princes from harm. The temple is located on the east bank of the Ping River, in the centre of the Chinese community in Chiang Mai. See also POSTAGE STAMP and MAP. 回