Thian Fah Foundation Hospital, shortened to Thian Fah Foundation (;

traditional Chinese A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examp ...

: 天華醫院;

simplified Chinese Simplification, Simplify, or Simplified may refer to: Mathematics Simplification is the process of replacing a mathematical expression by an equivalent one that is simpler (usually shorter), according to a well-founded ordering. Examples include: ...

: 天华医院;

pinyin Hanyu Pinyin, or simply pinyin, officially the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet, is the most common romanization system for Standard Chinese. ''Hanyu'' () literally means 'Han Chinese, Han language'—that is, the Chinese language—while ''pinyin' ...

: ''Tiān huá yī yuàn''), is the first foundation and

private hospital A private hospital is a hospital not owned by the government, including for-profit and non-profit hospitals. Funding is by patients themselves ("self-pay"), by insurers, or by foreign embassies. Private hospitals are commonly part, albeit in var ...

in Thailand, including shrine. Located at 606

Yaowarat Road Yaowarat Road (, , ; ) in Samphanthawong District is the main artery of Bangkok's Chinatown. Modern Chinatown now covers a large area around Yaowarat and Charoen Krung Road. It has been the main centre for trading by the Chinese community si ...

, Samphanthawong Subdistrict,

Samphanthawong Samphanthawong (, )) is one of the 50 districts (khet) of Bangkok, Thailand. Regarded as Bangkok's Chinatown, it is the smallest district by area in Thailand. Neighbouring districts are (from north clockwise) Pom Prap Sattru Phai, Bang Rak, ...

District, Bangkok near

Wat Traimit Wat Traimit Witthayaram Worawihan () is a Theravada Buddhist temple (wat) in Samphanthawong district, the Chinatown area of the Thai capital Bangkok. Probably dating to the early Rattanakosin period, it was previously known as Wat Sam Chin () an ...

Odeon Circle Odeon Circle and Chinese gate., 300px Odeon Circle or Wongwian Odeon (, , ; zh, 崇聖牌樓; pinyin: ''Chóng shèng páilóu'') is a roundabout in Bangkok. It is the intersection of Yaowarat, Charoen Krung, and Tri Mit or Mittaphap Thai-China ...

and Chaloem Buri Intersection. left, Golden Guanyin statue It was established during the reign of King

Chulalongkorn Chulalongkorn (20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910), posthumously honoured as King Chulalongkorn the Great, was the fifth king of Siam from the Chakri dynasty, titled Rama V. Chulalongkorn's reign from 1868 until his death in 1910 was cha ...

(Rama V) in 1903 and completed in 1905. This was due to the merge of five Chinese dialect groups with the intention of helping the poor who could not afford medication at that time. They have both modern and traditional Chinese treatments and the foundation is preserved till today. There is a beauty statue of

Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a person who has attained, or is striving towards, '' bodhi'' ('awakening', 'enlightenment') or Buddhahood. Often, the term specifically refers to a person who forgoes or delays personal nirvana or ''bodhi'' in ...

Guanyin Guanyin () is a common Chinese name of the bodhisattva associated with Karuṇā, compassion known as Avalokiteśvara (). Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means " he One WhoPerceives the Sounds of the World". Originally regarded as m ...

estimated to be about 800–900 years old since the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

. The statue was carved with the

sandalwood Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus ''Santalum''. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods. Sanda ...

and painted in gold. In 1958, it was invited from China and enshrined until today. This shrine open 24 hours and so popular among people both Thai and Chinese to pray for good health especially during

Chinese New Year Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also #Names, § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Chinese calendar. It is one of the most important holi ...

and some of them are teenagers to pray for the university entrance exam.

References

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External links

* category:Buildings and structures in Bangkok Religious buildings and structures completed in 1905 category:1903 establishments in Siam Religious buildings and structures in Bangkok category:Hospitals in Bangkok Samphanthawong district category:Guanyin temples category:Chinese-Thai culture category:Chinese architecture in Thailand {{Thailand-geo-stub