Great Temples With Bewildering History At A Glance

The Wat Rong Khun temple in Chiang Rai, Thailand is unique as compared to any Buddhist temple in the world. The whole temple looks as if coming straight from the Narnia fairy tales. The Wat Rong Khun temple is a highly ornate gilded structure with strategically placed mosaic mirrors aligned so beautifully that one remains awestruck gazing the bewildering beauty of the monument. The Wat Rong Khun temple was born out of the idea by Thai artist Chalermchai Kositpipat. The Temple is yet under construction but after completion it is expected to astonish human imagination.

The construction of the Shwedagon Pagoda is shrouded in mystery since its inception. Legend has it that, it was built some 2500 years ago but archaeologists conclude that it was built between the 6th and the 10th century. An interesting story looms behind the existence of this piece of architecture. It is said that in the 15th century a queen donated gold equivalent of her weight to the temple. The tradition continues till today and the Shwedagon Pagoda is covered by sheets of pure gold. Even if this is not enough pilgrims donate small packets of gold leafs and stick them to the walls of the temple. One would also be astonished to find the dome of the Shwedagon Pagoda, glitters with the shine of 7,000 diamonds and over 5,000 rubies. Shwedagon Pagoda also houses the holiest relics of Buddhism that is eight strands of Buddha's hair.

The Golden Temple is situated in Amritsar in India. This temple is otherwise famed as the Harmandir Sahib and is considered the most sacred shrine of Sikhism. As per legend the site of the temple was apt enough for meditation and solace. Therefore, Lord Buddha is presumed to have meditated here. Guru Nanak is also believed to have lived and meditated by this lake. Construction of the Golden Temple is said to have started in the 1500's and the lake was named Amritsar or the pool of the nectar. This Golden temple in Amritsar is completely covered with gilded gold and precious stones.

The Temple of Heaven is a Taoist temple in Beijing, China. This temple is said to have been constructed in the 14th century by Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty with a purpose that his kingdom be bestowed with good harvest. This temple attracts visitors basically for its architecture. What is unique about this temple is that everything inside the temple represents that, heaven is circular in shape and the ground levels that represent the Earth is square in shape. Astonishing right, but it is true!

The Borobudur Temple is a mystery which is shrouded till date. Do you know it was all in the 19th century when some Dutch people got lost in the deep forest of Java in Indonesia and they found this massive ancient ruin completely intact. The discovery left the whole archaeological community startled. The complex of Borobudur is a mammoth artifact which is a true miracle of civil engineering of that era. What astonishes most is that, it is built with nearly 2 million cubic feet of stones. The temple consists of 504 Buddha statues. Till date no one is aware of the reason why the complex would have been built and the reason of its complete abandonment hundreds of years ago. Such is the glamour quotient of these temples that one would really want to capture the magnificence of these temples.