Wat Wachira Thammaram (วัดวชิรธรรมาราม)

Thai. Name of a Buddhist temple in Ayutthaya affiliated with the Dhammayutika Nikaya and part of Phuttha Uthayaan Maharaat (fig.), a site that encompasses an area of over 200 rai and is historically associated with the military route of King Naresuan the Great, whose historical memorial, Lahn Isaraphaap 109 (fig.), is located on a plaza just behind this temple. Following the acquisition of the land, senior members of the Dhammayut monastic order, endorsed its establishment as a temple complex integrated with an educational institution. The foundation of the temple was formally granted on 18 December 2012. The temple overlooks the monumental gilded statue of Luang Poo Thuad (fig.), measuring approximately 51 metres in height with a lap width of 24 metres. Wat Wachira Thammaram features a ubosot, a wihaan, a sermon hall, meditation pavilions, and monks’ residences called kuti. In front of the ordination hall stands a bronze statue of King Mongkhut, Rama IV (fig.), who in 1833 founded the Dhammayutika as a sub-sect of the Thai Theravada school of Buddhism. The main altar inside the ordination hall features a golden Buddha statue, seated in the maravijaya pose. Below it stands a smaller statue of a crowned Buddha, a bronze replica of the principal golden Buddha statue enshrined in the temple's wihaan and named Metta Senanaht (เมตตาเสนานาถ). The temple's name is sometimes transliterated Wat Vajira Dhammaram. The temple's name is a compound of the words wachira, dhamma and araam, and translates to ‘Monastery of the Diamond Dhamma’. WATCH VIDEO. 回