- Wat Bowonniwet
Wat Bowonniwet Vihara ( _th. วัดบวรนิเวศวิหาร) is a major Buddhist
temple (wat ) inPhra Nakhon district,Bangkok ,Thailand . The temple is a center of theThammayut Nikaya school of ThaiTheravada Buddhism and has been a major temple of patronage for theChakri dynasty . It is the shrine-hall ofPhra Phutthachinasri (พระพุทธชินสีห์) which was moulded in about 1357.Royal patronage
Prince Bhikkhu Mongkut arrived at the temple in 1836 (ordination name: "Vajirañāṇo") and became the first abbot. He later acceeded to the throne of
Siam as KingRama IV . His great grandson, KingBhumibol Adulyadej ordained at the Grand Palace (Wat Phra Kheo) and resided here for a short period after he became King. Bhumibol's mentor, Somdet PhraYanasangworn , eventually became abbot of the temple, and later, the Supreme Patriarch of Thai Buddhism. Exiled dictatorThanom Kittikachorn returned to Thailand as a novice monk to join Wat Bowonniwet leading to large public demonstrations and a bloody crackdown in October 1976. King Bhumibol Adulyadej's son, PrinceVajiralongkorn was ordained and spent a short period at this temple, as well as several of the Prince's own sons.References
* DhammaThai.org [http://www.dhammathai.org/e/meditation/page7.php A Guide to Meditation Centres in Thailand: Wat Bovornives Vihara] , last retrieved 15 September 2006
External links
*http://www.watbowon.org Website of the temple
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