page_title: Wat Ong Teu Mahawihan
section_title: Entry gate
hierarchical_section_title: Wat Ong Teu Mahawihan / Exterior of the ordination hall / Entry gate
caption_attribution_description: English: Ong Tu Temple, Vientiane
context_page_description: Wat Ong Teu Mahawihan is one of many Buddhist monasteries in the city of Vientiane in Laos. This name is given to the temple due to the large, bronze Phra Ong Teu Buddha image that is in the temple: the largest Buddha in Vientiane. This temple was initially constructed by King Setthathirath I in the 16th century when Laos was being bombarded by the Burmese, but was later demolished during a foreign invasion. Thus, it may have gone through many reconstructions during the 19th or 20th century to attain the appearance it has today.
  Though this temple is created in Vientiane, it has the basic shape for what is known as the ‘Luang Prabang I style’ with its scarce use of brickwork and rectangular-like body.
  Wat Ong Teu is said to have been placed along a cardinal point in accordance with three other temples but that may just be coincidental.
context_section_description: A multi-tiered archway serves as the entrance into the complex. It is miniature compared to that of Pha That Luang. The functionality of this seemingly simple archway is similar to that of the torana, or gateway, of Indian culture. The torana served as the passageway from secular ground to sacred ground. The difference is that this archway does not have any images for which a person can meditate and it doesn’t involve circumambulating a stupa. This characteristic may be present in all the temples and stupas that in Laos, especially at King Setthathirat’s more famous architectural creation, Pha That Luang.
caption: One of the entry gates
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