WAT KHUAN KHAH MAH

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Wat Khuan Khah Mah (วัดควรค่าม้า) is Thai for ‘Temple Worthy of a Horse’. It is the name of an ancient Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai (เชียงใหม่). Its strange but catchy name is believed to be a corruption of Wat Khun Khah Mah (วัดคุณค่าม้า), which similarly means ‘Temple of the Valuable Horse’. According to legend, it is an area where horses were once raised when they were still used as an important means of transportation. Later, when the use of horses declined and his last horses perished, the breeder gave this land away to build a temple in order to mourn and remember the horses that were once raised here. The name of the temple is today symbolized in the many statues of golden horses, both small and large in size, that decorate the temple. In one section of the temple, aligned with the northern wall of the temple, are large scale imitation models of the 12 pagodas in Thailand, i.e. eleven in the north and one in the northeast, that contain Buddha relics of various years of the Chinese zodiac, here summarized in the order of the 12 Animal Signs of the Zodiac corresponding to the 12 Earthly Branches, i.e. 1. Wat Phrathat Sri Chom Thong Wora Wihaan (วัดพระธาตุศรีจอมทองวรวิหาร) in Chiang Mai, Year of the Rat; 2. Wat Phrathat Lampang Luang ((วัดพระธาตุลำปางหลวง) in Lampang (ลำปาง), Year of the Ox; 3. the stupa of Wat Phrathat Cho Hae (วัดพระธาตุช่อแฮ) in Phrae (แพร่), Year of the Tiger; 4. Wat Phrathat Chae Haeng (วัดพระธาตุแช่แห้ง) in Nan (น่าน), Year of the Rabbit; 5. Phrathat Chedi Wat Phra Singh (พระธาตุเจดีย์วัดพระสิงห์) in Chiang Mai, Year of the Dragon; 6. Phrathat Wat Chedi Jed Yod (วัดเจดีย์เจ็ดยอด) in Chiang Mai, Year of the Snake; 7. the stupa of Wat Phra Borommathat (วัดพระบรมธาตุ) in Tak (ตาก), Year of the Horse; 8. Wat Doi Suthep (วัดดอยสุเทพ) in Chiang Mai, Year of the Goat; 9. Wat Phrathat Phanom ((วัดพระธาตุพนม) in Nakhon Phanom (นครพนม), Year of the Monkey; 10. Wat Phrathat Haripunchai (วัดพระธาตุหริภุญชัย) in Lamphun (ลำพูน), Year of the Cock; 11. whereas for Year of the Dog normally the stupa of Wat Ket Karam (วัดเกตการาม) in Chiang Mai is used, here the Golden Rock at Kyaihtiyo (ကျိုက်ထီးရိုး, ကျာ်သိယဵု) is depicted, an alternative pagoda in Myanmar associated with people born in the Year of the Dog and a such the matching equivalent abroad; and 12. Wat Phrathat Doi Tung (วัดพระธาตุดอยตุง) in Chiang Rai (เชียงราย), Year of the Pig.