A riveboat taxi in Bangkok, Thailand.

Journal and photo by Todd Borgie

After traipsing all over Bangkok for the last week or so, still working on paperwork, permits and visas, today I thought I would change gears. While exploring Bangkok, I have been seeing stupas, temples, and Buddha’s and have been wondering what all these things mean.

Chanda and I got up early enough to catch the morning ferry up river. Unfortunately, we were a little late to meet a 9:30 am tour at the National Museum, so the ferry seemed extra slow this morning. I have to say I have been really enjoying starting my day boarding a morning open-air ferry. The weather is warm, but a breeze slides though the boat, and I get to read the morning paper. Anyway, back to the present morning. Bangkok traffic moves slower than the boats on the river, so after our ferry shuttle took us to the main terminal, we needed to catch another boat the rest of the way up the river.

The boat we took was long and sleek. It could have held about 12 people, but there were only four of us. The boat was colorful and it was complete with a canopy and splashguard so we wouldn’t have to deal with the muddy water of the river or the strong tropical sun thundering down upon us.

One of the coolest things about these boats is how the engine is situated. The engine and transmission are bolted together and mounted on a pivot. Connected to the transmission is a long shaft that is about 10-feet long. This shaft is connected to the propeller, the speed and the heading of the boat altered by swiveling or pivoting the engine, which in turn alters the depth or direction of the prop in the water. The engines look like standard four-cylinder jobbies, so they can make tracks. If it wasn’t for the long propeller shafts and their movement, you could easily ski behind one of these babies.

We raced up the river and got to the museum, but we had to catch up with the tour, which was not too much of an effort. Volunteer tours are given in English on Wednesdays and Thursdays; today’s topic was Buddhism.

The National museum was now held in one of the crown princes’ former palaces; the buildings were beautiful. The first building we entered was a temple. We were required to take off our shoes as we entered. Shoe removal is just an excellent way to keep dirt levels down anywhere. We had to step over a large threshold (about six inches high), and we were in the temple! We were told that it was bad luck to step directly upon the threshold, so now I won’t do that anymore, but sometimes I forget!

In the temple we learned the story of Buddha. In Thailand we are not able to take pictures of sacred Buddhist things, so I wasn’t able to take pictures. Anyway, the story of Buddha was depicted in a series of colorful murals on the walls.

Buddha was born in around 500 BC to a king and queen who lived in what is now known as Northeast India. His name was not Buddha, but Siddharta. Apparently, Siddharta’s mother did not have a normal pregnancy, as she was entered by a deity and then became pregnant.

Siddharta lived in his father’s court for 29 years and even married, but when he was 29, he managed to slip out of the walls that protected him in his father’s court and got a glimpse of what life was like without privilege; this is when he began his wanderings. Siddharta could not resolve the problem that some had privilege and others didn’t; therefore, through his wanderings he was able to separate the material and the spiritual, freeing himself of earthly desires. As a result of being free from desire, he was also free of fear. Through his efforts he became enlightened (free of fear or desire, having only love for everything and everyone).

The teachings of Buddha are a method of obtaining enlightenment. Buddhist monks spend their life studying his peaceful teachings, as Buddhism is the major religion of Southeast Asia, China and Tibet.

After leaving the temple, we viewed all kinds of artifacts from royal Thailand. We saw cremation urns, glassware, and clothing styles from many different eras. It’s all pretty interesting, as you see certain objects, characters and symbols over and over again, but people have spent their entire lives writing about that stuff, so I won’t.

After leaving the museum, I went to the Grand Palace. This is not the royal residence anymore, but the place where the king of Thailand goes to practice Buddhism. Just a side note here about the king: the King of Thailand is a highly revered person here. You do not make jokes about him or the royal family, not because of a mandate, but out of respect. One thing we have all been startled with is a brief royal ceremony before movies. Before the movie, but after the previews, the king appears on the screen. There are images of him doing various things around Thailand, but what you have to do is stand up when he comes on the screen. I didn’t know this during the first movie I saw, but I quickly learned. I must confess it is kind of a strange concept for me to show profound respect to a person who possesses a hereditary title, but I guess there are always concepts and ideas, some of which we challenge, and others which we don’t.

Anyway, back to the day. The Grand Palace was an amazing place. One of the most notable items there was the Emerald Buddha. The Emerald Buddha was placed in a glass box on top of a large altar. Apparently, it was discovered in about 1434 in Chiang Rai. Although it was confused for being made from an emerald, it was really carved from jade. Only sitting a couple feet tall, this is one of the most venerated Buddha images in Thailand. In the last 500 years, this statue has been traded back and forth between Thailand and Laos. Unfortunately, the trading has been done with armies rather than amongst friends. In any case, the Emerald Buddha is now living in Thailand.

It was amazing to walk through the royal grounds, seeing the former residence of the Thai kings and queens. It does not look like a high-walled fortress of Europe, although it most certainly has a high wall around the perimeter. It’s just inspiring to see what human creativity is capable of. With that kind of capability, shouldn’t it be easy to find a cure for Parkinson’s Disease?

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