Description
Wat Sawang Arom (วัดสว่างอารมณ์) in Hang Hong village is one of nine temples that go by this name (which is sometimes translated as The Vivid Mood Temple) in Sakon Nakhon province. It is among the most popular names for a temple in Thailand, with perhaps the most famous one being in Nakhon Pathom. Another highly revered one is in the Northeastern Thai province of Bueang Kan, which is about 3 hours north of Sakon Nakhon.
Two notable statues at Wat Sawang Arom (Hang Hong) are the male and female Naga serpents, which are taking their half human form but with split tails that have the head of a serpent. Usually the Naga guardian figure will either be half human or completely a serpent. It is rare to see a Naga with an upper human form and dual serpent heads in a split tail that wraps around both sides of the base of the statue.
Wat Sawang Arom has a beautiful Ubosot in the center of the temple grounds, which is a bit narrower and taller than many ordination halls and pavilions at village temples. The white exterior walls provide a striking contrast to the ornate gold and red roof. A Buddha figure stands in front of the Ubosot, flanked by two 5-headed Naga serpents. In front of the Buddha are 9 sacred iron balls known as "luk nimit" (also spelled look nimit), which ordinarily are buried underneath the Sema Stones (boundary stones) of an Ubosot, but very old ones are sometimes placed outside the building.
Wat Sawang Arom is located about 4 kilometers from the lakeside temple of Wat Sisa Thong, and about 20 minutes from downtown Sakon Nakhon. In addition to their religious duties, the monks here also appear to take an active interest in growing various ornamental plants and trees, including orchids.
