Wat Kaew Korawarahm (วัดแก้วโกรวาราม),
also transliterated Wat Kaeo Korawaram, is a third class royal
temple in Krabi (กระบี่), situated on a hill in the heart of this
coastal town. This Theravada Buddhist monastery is also a provincial
Dhamma (ธรรม) study center, where monks can study the Pali language
and the teachings of the Buddha as found in the Tripitaka (ไตรปิฎก),
officially known as the Buddhism Dharma Education Center, Dharma-Pali
Division and General Discipleship Division of the Sangha of Krabi
Province. Whereas it initially started with teaching the Dharma and
Pali, it since 1912 AD also expanded into various other fields of
study. The construction of the temple happened at the same time as
the settlement of some 200 Buddhist households at Ban Pahk Nahm (บ้านปากน้ำ)
in 1887 AD, when the local villagers built a monastic residence to
be used as a gathering place for religious activities and which they
called Phannak Song Pahk Nahm (พำนักสงฆ์ปากน้ำ), i.e. the ‘Monks'
Lodge at the Estuary’. When more monks came to stay during the
Buddhist Lent, more sala (ศาลา) pavilions and kuti (กุฏิ, กุฎี),
i.e. ‘monk's cubicles’, were built. On 22 March 2000, on the
occasion of the 6th Cycle Birthday Anniversary of King Rama IX, the
temple was upgraded to become a royal temple of the third class,
ordinary type, and renamed Wat Kaew Korawarahm. The stairway to this
royal temple is flanked by naak (นาค) or naga-style balustrades that
initially were painted a rusty red, but over time were made much
more colourful and attractive. The staircase is also lined by
lanterns in the form of kanok (กนก) or kranok (กระหนก)-shaped
kreuang soong (เครื่องสูง), i.e. ceremonial fans with an elongated
handle, usually with the outline of a lotus bud. Towards the end of
the footage, a number of Scaly-breasted Munia (Lonchura punctulata)
can been seen playing in the long grasses at the small park adjacent
to the temple, presumably searching for nest materials or food.
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