A sala ( ), also known as a Sala Thai, is an open

pavilion In architecture, ''pavilion'' has several meanings; * It may be a subsidiary building that is either positioned separately or as an attachment to a main building. Often it is associated with pleasure. In palaces and traditional mansions of Asia ...

, used as a meeting place and to give people shade. With etymological roots in the Sanskrit '' sala'', the word in Thai connotes buildings for specific purposes, such as ''sala klang'' ('provincial hall'). Most are open on all four sides. They are found throughout Thailand in

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

temple areas, or

wat A wat (, ; , ; , ; ; , ) is a type of Buddhist and Hindu temple in Cambodia, Laos, East Shan State (Myanmar), Yunnan (China), the Southern Province of Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Etymology The word ''wat'' is borrowed from the Sanskrit ''v ...

s, although they can also be at other places. A person who builds a sala at a temple or in a public place gains religious merit. A sala located in a temple is called a ''salawat'' (ศาลาวัด), it's a transliteration from the Khmer word "sala wat", means a house for gathering to study, meeting in a wat. Some temples have large salas where

laity In religious organizations, the laity () — individually a layperson, layman or laywoman — consists of all Church membership, members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-Ordination, ordained members of religious orders, e ...

can hear sermons or receive religious instruction. These are called ''

sala kan parian Sala kan parian () is the highest form of a Thai temple '' sala'' (pavilion). This pavilion is traditionally built as a hall in which clerics can instruct lay people in Buddhist doctrine, and is sometimes also used as a place for monks to chant a ...

'' (ศาลาการเปรียญ), meaning 'pavilion where monks learn for the Parian examination'. The city halls or offices of the province governors are called ''sala wa kan'' (ศาลาว่าการ, literally meaning 'government pavilion') or ''sala klang

changwat The provinces of Thailand are administrative divisions of the government of Thailand.Office of the Council of State of ThailandNational Administration Act 1991 and its amendments The country is divided into 76 provinces (, , ) proper, with one add ...

'' (ศาลากลางจังหวัด, literally meaning a 'provincial main pavilion'). In Thailand, they have many purposes similar to the roadside pavilions of

Asoka Ashoka, also known as Asoka or Aśoka ( ; , ; – 232 BCE), and popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was Emperor of Magadha from until his death in 232 BCE, and the third ruler from the Mauryan dynasty. His empire covered a large p ...

. In rural areas, travelers can use them to rest and reflect. These salas are called ''sala asai''. One at the roadside is a ''sala rim thanon'' (ศาลาริมถนน) and may be used as a bus stop. If on a riverbank or canal at a landing-place for watercraft, they are called ''sala tha nam'' (ศาลาท่าน้ำ 'water pier pavilions').

Etymology

The term ''"sala"'' earliest known mention is found in

Atharvaveda The Atharvaveda or Atharva Veda (, , from ''wikt:अथर्वन्, अथर्वन्'', "priest" and ''wikt:वेद, वेद'', "knowledge") or is the "knowledge storehouse of ''wikt:अथर्वन्, atharvans'', the proced ...

, which is an Indian

Hindu text Hindu texts or Hindu scriptures are manuscripts and voluminous historical literature which are related to any of the diverse traditions within Hinduism. Some of the major Hindu texts include the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the Itihasa. Scholar ...

written in

sanskrit language Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

, which has been dated to 1200 BC to 1000 BC.Michael Witzel (2003), "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism (Editor: Gavin Flood), Blackwell, , page 68 ''"Sala"'' in Atharvaveda and later in various Indian languages denotes ''"house"'' in a broad and generic sense, with meanings such as ''"stall"'' for cattle, ''"shed"'' for corn, room or house, etc. The owner or the head of the house is called the ''"sala-pati"'' in Atharvaveda. Term "sala" is a cognate of

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

शाल, meaning hall, large room or shed.

Salas outside Thailand

* Olbrich Botanical Gardens, Madison, Wisconsin, United States *

East–West Center The East–West Center (EWC), or the Center for Cultural and Technical Interchange Between East and West, is an education and research organization established by the U.S. Congress in 1960 to strengthen relations and understanding among the peop ...

, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States * Ueno Zoological Gardens, Tokyo, Japan * Parc du Denantou, Lausanne, Switzerland * Kurpark, Bad Homburg v.d.H, Germany * Westpark, Munich, Germany

References

External links

{{commons category * East-West Center, ''A Commemorative Book by the Thai Students at the East-West Center on the Occasion of the Presentation of the Asia Pacific Community Building Award and Dedication of the Royal Sala Thai'', Honolulu, East-west Center, 2008. * Hindu architecture Architecture in Thailand Traditional Thai architecture National symbols of Thailand

Etymology

Salas outside Thailand

See also

References

External links