Phra Ruang ( th, พระร่วง) is a legendary figure from Thai history, usually described as the founder of the first Thai kingdom who freed the people from the rule of the ancient Khmer Empire. It is also found as a title that may have referred to one or more kings of Sukhothai, and is referred to in the title of many works of literature, including the '' Trai Phum Phra Ruang'', a Sukhothai-era religious text describing the

Buddhist cosmology Buddhist cosmology describes the planes and realms in which beings can be reborn. The spatial cosmology consists of a vertical cosmology, the various planes of beings, into which beings are reborn due to their merits and development; and a hori ...

. A common version of the Phra Ruang legend is that he was a Thai chieftain of Lavo (

Lopburi Lopburi ( th, ลพบุรี, , ) is the capital city of Lopburi Province in Thailand. It is about northeast of Bangkok. It has a population of 58,000. The town (''thesaban mueang'') covers the whole ''tambon'' Tha Hin and parts of Th ...

) with supernatural powers of speech. The Thais had to deliver water to the Khom (Khmer) capital as tax, and Phra Ruang used his powers to make bamboo baskets waterproof so that they could be used to carry the water instead of heavy clay jars. When the Khom king wanted him dead, Phra Ruang escaped and ordained as a monk at Sukhothai. A Khom spy, "diving underground", was sent to find him, but not knowing Phra Ruang's face, inadvertently asked him when they met. Phra Ruang told the spy to stay there, and his powers turned him into stone. There have been many modern adaptations of the legend. One of the best known is a 1917 play by King

Vajiravudh Vajiravudh ( th, วชิราวุธ, , 1 January 188126 November 1925) was the sixth monarch of Siam under the Chakri dynasty as Rama VI. He ruled from 23 October 1910 until his death in 1925. King Vajiravudh is best known for his efforts ...

(Rama VI), who explained the supernatural powers as acts of Phra Ruang's great wit.

References

* {{cite web , title=ตำนานพระร่วง , url=http://www.thaistudies.chula.ac.th/2018/09/29/%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%87/ , website=www.thaistudies.chula.ac.th , publisher=Institute of Thai Studies, Chulalongkorn University , accessdate=25 November 2019 , date=29 September 2018, orig-year=7 October 2012, language=th

References

See also