Stupas in Wat Phabat
A photo taken in another Theravada Buddhist temple in Pakse.
Wat Phabat is older and has a larger temple precinct than Wat Luang in the city centre. Some parts of the precinct was a bit dilapidated but a woodland with many uniquely designed stupas had its own charm.
The first stupa was an earth mound built on the ashes of Gautama Siddhartha, the Buddha. Emperor Ashok excavated and distributed them all over his huge territory by constructing stupas. The stupas were excavated by someone else and the ashes were further divided into pieces for redistribution.
Stupas are often attached to Buddhist temples, and the temples claim their stupas contain a relic of Buddha, at least, officially.
Hindus and some Buddhists, notably Thais, do not build graves since the deceased are believed to reincarnate; there is no need for them to keep the corpse.
But here in Laos and other countries in Southeast Asia, stupas are donated to Buddhist temples for a merit-making of the supporters, but they seem to function actually as the graves of the supporters' family members. Some stupas in Wat Phabat even had photographs of the deceased.
Their passion to construct stupas may have something to do with the pre-Buddhism tradition of ancestral worship.
Stupas in Wat Phabat
A photo taken in another Theravada Buddhist temple in Pakse.
Wat Phabat is older and has a larger temple precinct than Wat Luang in the city centre. Some parts of the precinct was a bit dilapidated but a woodland with many uniquely designed stupas had its own charm.
The first stupa was an earth mound built on the ashes of Gautama Siddhartha, the Buddha. Emperor Ashok excavated and distributed them all over his huge territory by constructing stupas. The stupas were excavated by someone else and the ashes were further divided into pieces for redistribution.
Stupas are often attached to Buddhist temples, and the temples claim their stupas contain a relic of Buddha, at least, officially.
Hindus and some Buddhists, notably Thais, do not build graves since the deceased are believed to reincarnate; there is no need for them to keep the corpse.
But here in Laos and other countries in Southeast Asia, stupas are donated to Buddhist temples for a merit-making of the supporters, but they seem to function actually as the graves of the supporters' family members. Some stupas in Wat Phabat even had photographs of the deceased.
Their passion to construct stupas may have something to do with the pre-Buddhism tradition of ancestral worship.