Which temple is the most beautiful in Vientiane?

dekjap · Veteran Member

Which temple is the most beautiful in Vientiane?

khonthakek · Guru

i think you should provide us the list of temples in Vientiane and photo, so that we can decide which one is the most beautiful, I am sure that many temple has been decorating and rebuilding..and many guys here cant figure out how they look.

dekjap · Veteran Member

Wat Mixay

Wat Prakeo

Wat Sisaket

Wat Chan

Wat thatluang

Wat Ong Teu

khonthakek · Guru

wow, thank a lot

Wat Prakeo is NO1 for me

fourpaws · Veteran Member

for temples in tourist area of Vientiane capital:

nicest roof structure - Wat Haysok
nicest 'hor trai', most historical value & atmosphere - Wat Sisaket
most beautiful modern murals - Wat That Luang Tai
most significant Pha Lak Pha Lam murals - the old Wat Oub Mong before it was demolished
murals of Nang Sangkan - Wat Xieng Nyeun
overall atmosphere & statues of Himmaphan forest creatures - Wat Simuang
prettiest Mae Thoranii statue - Wat That Foun (has fake eyelashes glued on :P)
most impressive 'viharn' & temple gate - Wat That Foun
'pang naak prok' statue - Wat Chan
most impressive 'that' - Pha That Luang
clean toilets - Hor Phakeo (probably cos they collect admission fees & receive so many foreign tourists) (but this is no longer a temple, just a museum)

but they can't match what's in Luang Prabang...

SeeHarHed · Guru

The one and only.... Wat ThatLuang!!!

paris_vientiane · Guru

i like a lot vat sisaket

KAONIAW · Senior Member

Wat Mixay have a lot more details. Looks really nice.

jessy_nina · Member

I m not agree beautiful temple all over laos why people put money to built temple ,look this way in the future kids go school in temple or public school why they don`t take that money to built school for future kids look all school in laos so old and dirty teacher not enough income but look temple they are so beautiful lot of monk each temple is opposite ,,,to me i am not agree to built temple why don`t built more school for kids i am sad

samakomlao · Guru

It is a place to relax your heart and mind, it is a community center, a recreation place, a school for many Lao people.

Wat That Foun, Vientiane

khonthakek · Guru

jessy_nina wrote:

I m not agree beautiful temple all over laos why people put money to built temple ,look this way in the future kids go school in temple or public school why they don`t take that money to built school for future kids look all school in laos so old and dirty teacher not enough income but look temple they are so beautiful lot of monk each temple is opposite ,,,to me i am not agree to built temple why don`t built more school for kids i am sad

my opinion is because people donate money for building the temple, people can get " BOUN" .. no one donate $$ to build the school ,because " No boun" ,this is a bilief of Lao people. you know, "we believe in Buddhist"!

KAONIAW · Senior Member

khonthakek wrote:

jessy_nina wrote:

I m not agree beautiful temple all over laos why people put money to built temple ,look this way in the future kids go school in temple or public school why they don`t take that money to built school for future kids look all school in laos so old and dirty teacher not enough income but look temple they are so beautiful lot of monk each temple is opposite ,,,to me i am not agree to built temple why don`t built more school for kids i am sad

my opinion is because people donate money for building the temple, people can get " BOUN" .. no one donate $$ to build the school ,because " No boun" ,this is a bilief of Lao people. you know, "we believe in Buddhist"!

I don't think that's the reason why. When you make good deeds you can get boun. That's what we believe.
The reason why many Lao temple are built so pretty is because there are system in place. Monks or the head of the temple sometimes would actually request help from the village or from Lao people from other countries such as USA, Australia, France and etc... for donations.

Very rarely you see that from a school teachers or the village request help to build or supply materials for school. It's about advertising your needs to the people.

So please don't criticize why some temples are pretty. Temple is part of our coulture.

khonthakek · Guru

Monks or the head of the temple sometimes would actually request help from the village or from Lao people from other countries such as USA, Australia, France and etc... for donations.

why do they donate to build the temple?

SID · Veteran Member

i think .......

-- Edited by SID at 12:35, 2009-01-08

dekjap · Veteran Member

model of Lao temple in Chiang Mai, Thailand ?

KAONIAW · Senior Member

khonthakek wrote:

Monks or the head of the temple sometimes would actually request help from the village or from Lao people from other countries such as USA, Australia, France and etc... for donations.

why do they donate to build the temple?

You can get "Boun" too for helping build the school, museum, kids, mentoring people, but for school there is no system in place to do the same thing as temple.

jessy_nina · Member

In the future kids will be doctor or lawyer etc........ they are going to temple to learn or they are going to university or college ? remember each monks income more then teacher without working local peoples treat them as a king but local teacher sometime they tell student take day off because teacher have to go fishing or farm to make some food for family now you compare between monk and teacher wich one you prefer to donate ? remember all kids in teacher hand if peoples don`t support school and teacher laos will be top 100 poor right now laos is top 10 poor country in asia now you still need (BOUN) go head donate more to temple i am not give even one penny I will give to local poor school better that i call BOUN for me . all lazy people they don`t wanna work then they come to become monk for survive I am ( khon lao like you too ) but I love to see kids go school have all equipment like another country sorry guy

LAO SPY · Senior Member

I got a feeling somebody here have purposedly tried to look down Lao people who believe on Buddhist religion which contradicts to Lao law.

This is a sensitive issue which probably people, including Lao people who believe on other religion, would not be able to understand.

I guess, these people who made the earlier comments are Christian or other religion believers.

So please stop commenting on such sensitive issue. Don't be arrogant, Lao people know what they need to do.

Thank you very much.



-- Edited by LAO SPY at 13:29, 2009-01-10

fourpaws · Veteran Member

Am a non-Lao non-Thai Buddhist. Observed Thailand for ~24 years & Laos for ~3 years, & noticed the same thing - beautiful temples covered with gold, but rural schools lacking books, proper walls, teachers, etc. Discussed with Thai & Lao friends who are Buddhist monks. & they said the same thing as khonthakek:
______________________________________
my opinion is because people donate money for building the temple, people can get " BOUN" .. no one donate $$ to build the school ,because " No boun" ,this is a bilief of Lao people.
______________________________________

Some of them try to change people's thinking, but it's really hard because such beliefs are too deeply entrenched:

(source: http://www.thaibuddhist.com/making_merit.html)
The result of making merit depends on the qualifications of the three components. These are the receiver, the alms and the donor.
We will gain more merit if the receiver observes the 5 precepts...We would then gain even more merit if they observed 8 or 10 precepts. And of course even more if it was a monk who observes his 227 precepts completely.
...what Thai people believe will happen to them if they offer certain kinds of things to the monks: If you donate money and materials for constructing buildings in the monastery, you will have a big and beautiful house in your next life

The above is written about Thailand, but the Lao monks said many Lao people have the same belief, that you gain more 'boun' by helping a monk than by helping a layman. Both Lao & Thai monks said that such thinking will change only when people start to study & seek a deeper understanding of Dhamma, but many laymen think that studying Dhamma is not their business, it's the monks' job.

There are Burmese, Khmer & Thai monks who have started getting involved in 'social development work' & organised projects to improve schools, rural public health centres, build wells & roads for villages, treat drug addicts, etc. Think there are a few younger Lao monks who are getting exposed to such ideas while studying in Buddhist universities & living overseas, maybe one day they'll lead such projects too. There's already one about helping families affected by HIV. Maybe one day both Lao nai & Lao nok will give such projects their support.

-- Edited by fourpaws at 14:53, 2009-01-10

KAONIAW · Senior Member

I AGREED WITH LAO SPY.
WHAT I AM SAYING HERE IS NOT ABOUT YOU SHOULD EITHER DONATE TO THE TEMPLE OR SCHOOL. I AM JUST SAYING THAT IT'S THE SYSTEM THAT WE HAVE.
IF THIS IS THE CASE, WHY ARE WE EVEN RELY UPON PEOPLE TO DONATE MONEY TO BUILD SHOOL OR TEMPLE. THIS SHOULD BE HANDLE BY GOVERNMENT. IT IS A PERSONAL JUDGEMENT AND IT IS VERY SENSITIVE ISSUE TO MAKE ANY ARGUEMENT ABOUT THIS.
DON'T GIVE ME WRONG, MONKS ARE JUST HUMAN LIKE US BUT NO WAY OF CRITICIZING THEM BEING LAZY OR BAD PEOPLE. MONKS WAKE UP BEFORE EARLY AND DO MANY CHORES AROUND TEMPLE. IF YOU THINK MONKS HAVE EASY LIFE THAN I WOULD LIKE SOMEONE TO TRY FOR A FEW MONTHS AND SEE IF THEY CAN LAST.

JESSY, YOU ARE ALSO RIGHT THAT KIDS NEED TO HAVE BRIGHT FUTURE, BUT IT'S TOTALLY DIFFERENT SUBJECT. IF YOU MEANT WHAT YOU SAID THAN HERE IS THE WEBSITE IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO DONATE ANYTHING FOR SCHOOL. PLEASE GET ALL YOUR FRIENDS AND HELP OUT.

http://laovoices.com/

KAONIAW · Senior Member

http://laovoices.com/

They are legit organization.
Please help if you can.

KAONIAW · Senior Member

KAONIAW wrote:

http://laovoices.com/

They are legit organization.
Please help if you can.

Sorry, check them out first(not really an organiztion) and ask questions.
There are many more organiztion out there. So, do something and help.

Destined · Senior Member

all these lao temples are beutiful it shows such great architecture and culture we have.

jessy_nina · Member

Right now I am working in northern of laos as teacher just public school seem to be peoples here interested temple then school ,if they want to get boun ok go head try to donate more when you die you will have everything in hell or veaven we don`t know yet ok bye all this last comment i m not coming back again

boonhome_lao · Member

Dude,
How long have Laos accepted Buddhism as their Religion for more than thousand years since we were in NAN JAO kingdom in some where southwestern part of China. Buddism and Loas cultures are co-existed for thousand years. So you blamed Buddhist monks and novices are lazy is fair for them. Since their belief system is like that and they work to develope their knowldge and help with counseling to the poor villagers with no financial support from the government like you. You are not rihgt to compare material things to non-material things since you yourself did study Buddhism deeply before and just make stupid comment is fair, ok.

Boonhome