Un pèlerinage bouddhique au Lanna entre le XVIe et le XVIIe siècle d'après le Khlong Nirat Hariphunchai

The Khlong Nirat Hariphunchai (KNH) is one the oldest poems known in Thai literature. Its 180 stanzas tell us about the physical and moral journey of an unknown poet who leaves Chiang Mai and his beloved one to make a pilgrimage to Lamphun (the former Hariphunchai). Eventhough the poet is mainly concerned with his personal sufferings, he gives a detailed account of his religious practices (mainly Buddhist) providing us with a very instructive account of the religious situation in the heart of the Lanna kingdom in its natural and human environment. Most scholars agree on dating this poem from the year 1517 CE. But this date seems problematic since it does not match with several facts mentionned by the text itself. For instance KNH evokes the desertion and ruin of an important number of monasteries - something which, considering what we know about the problems in the Community of monks at this time, points towards a later period. Therefore we think that KNH should be regarded as a work of fiction weaving together real elements which do not necessarily belong to the same historical period and that a later date (the end of the 16th century ?) should be considered for the composition of the poem

Aesthetics · Ancient history · Art · Buddhism · Humanities · Literature · Pilgrimage · Poetry · Theology · Cambodian History and Society · History · Philosophy · Southeast Asian Sociopolitical Studies · Vietnamese History and Culture Studies

• Notes sur la fondation politique et religieuse du Lanna dans le mythe de Suvanna Khamdaeng

  François Lagirarde•Aséanie•2002

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