The Phra Phuttha Sihing images

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) today (April 12th) arranges a procession of Pra Phuttha Sihing for an auspicious future of people celebrating the Songkran festival.

Bangkok Governor M.R.Sukhumbhand Paribatra presided over a ceremony to bring the Phra Phuttha Sihing Buddha image from the National Museum in the procession to celebrate Songkran. The procession will pass many roads in Bangkok and stop at three locations to allow people to pour water onto the Buddha image. The first place the procession will stop is near the Wong Wien Yai roundabout at 10.30hrs. The other two places include the Santi Chai Prakarn park and Khao San road at 13.15hrs and 14.00hrs respectively. The procession will end at BMA’s main Songkran ceremony site at Sanam Luang before the Buddha image is placed there.

The procession to bring Phra Phuttha Sihing to Sanam Luang has become a tradition since 1934 when Phraya Phahon Phayuhasena was prime minister. It is believed among Thais that to pay respect to Phra Phuttha Sihing, one of the national Buddha images, and pour water onto it will bring fortune to their life throughout the year.

The traditional Thai New Year is an occasion for merriment all over the city, but most notably at Sanam Luang, near the Grand Palace, where the revered Phra Phuttha Sihing image is displayed and bathed by devotees. In the Wisutkasat area, a Miss Songkran beauty contest is held and accompanied by merit-making and entertainment. Khao San Road, Bang Lamphu area is also one of the high-spots in the city to experience the water-throwing activities between locals and tourists.

Phra Phuttha Sihing is housed in the Phra Phuttha Sihing hall near the Provincial Hall. This sacred image was believed to have been ordered by the king of Lanka in 157 AD and was brought to Thailand during the reign of King Ramkhamhaeng the Great. There are currently 3 similar images in Thailand which are at the National Museum in Bangkok, Wat Phra Sing in Chiang Mai and this image in Nakhon Si Thammarat.