A beautiful temple with three huge buildings located just opposite to the Grand Palace, across the river of Chao Phraya, is called Wat Kalayanamitr Woramahawihan or shortly called “Wat Kalaya” by the locals. On the day I visited, I was a bit surprised to see less crowded people inside the temple, which is in contrast to the huge landscape in front of the main three buildings. The last time I visited here was when I was in high school, which was more than a decade ago. At that time the temple was under a huge renovation and it closed to the public, but now it is open and I can tell that it was a good time to be back here.
Brief History of Wat Kalaya
The temple was constructed in 1825. Chao Phraya Nikonbodin (To Kalayanamitr) donated his house and nearby land plot to King Rama III to establish the royal temple. King Rama III bestowed the name of the temple “Wat Kalayanamitr Woramahawihan” as honor to his dedication and commissioned the construction of the viharn (assembly hall) and the principal Buddha statue known as Phra Buddha Trai Rattananayok. Here are highlights and what to do at this temple you should not miss.
Visit One of The Largest Sitting Buddha Statue in Bangkok
Phra Buddha Trai Rattananayok is the name of the principal buddha statue at Wat Kalaya. For local people, we call it “Luang Pho To” which refers to the name of the person who donated the land plot to the temple. It is one of the largest sitting Buddha statues in Bangkok, standing approximately 15 meters tall and 11 meters wide. This buddha statue is depicted in a Subduing Mara pose, symbolizing triumph over obstacles to achieving enlightenment. The statue is made of brick and stucco, coated with gold.
Watch Fine Murals and Decorations
The walls inside the ubosot (ordination hall), which is the building at the side, are painted with traditional Thai murals which depict scenes from the life of the Buddha.The artwork reflects the fine Thai craftsmanship and closeness of Thai culture to Buddhism. Feel free to spend some time here to appreciate the paintings. You can also find a quiet corner and meditate as well.
Ringing The Bell at Bell Tower
At Wat Kalaya, the temple also has one of the largest bells in Thailand. As per local practice, after making a wish or praying, ringing a bell is like a gimmick to focus on yourself while ringing a bell. It signifies a good starting point for your new life, with your new actions from your new attitudes. Feel free to ring a bell after making a wish.
Journeybliss tips: The correct way to ring a bell at the bell tower here is to ring a bell 3 times; one is for the remembrance of the Buddha, one for his word (Dhamma) and the last one for his disciple (monks) who preserve and spread Buddhism.
Opening Hours
The temple open daily from 8:00-16:00
Entrance Fee
Everyone can enter the temple for free. However, the temple offers donation boxes where you should donate some money for the maintenance. The rate is normally between 5-20 Baht or up to how much you would like to contribute.
How to get there?
By Car. It is possible to go by car. There is a parking lot inside the temple. However, you need to pay the parking fee of 20 THB per car.
By Boat. There will be a so-called ‘temple tour boat’ where the ticket costs 40 THB per person. You can hop-on-hop-off between 3 temples: Wat Kalayanamitr, Wat Arun and Wat Rakang. You can hop on from any temple. The boat will come every 20-30 minutes. 1 Ticket will be used for your whole trip. No need to buy a new ticket.
For the Chaophraya Express Boat or crossing ferry, unfortunately they stopped the service to Wat Kalayanamitr Pier already.
