Chinese Art Museum – Anik Kusala Sala, Pattaya

Thai-Chinese Friendship Museum Anik Kusala Sala – Viharnra Sien Temple.

At our visit, there was rain, but soon the clouds scattered away, and the sun went to greet us. 

Historically, China and Thailand are connected by thousands of economic threads, a common religion, Confucian ethics, and relations between people. Not everything has always been well between the two nations, but there seems to be no war between them.

By character, nations are different. The Chinese are more dynamic, enterprising, not satisfied with what has been achieved. In addition, the migration took place, and in order to survive in a foreign land, visitors from the north had to show wonders of resourcefulness. 

This led to the fact that they occupied a dominant position in the economy of Thailand. The Chinese diaspora began to determine the rules of the game. This led to excesses, harassment of “those who came in large numbers”, which caused discontent of the mighty neighbor.

The recently deceased King Rama IX put a lot of energy into solving this problem. Bad or good he succeeded, but he had acceptable solutions that would satisfy both nations. This mainly concerned the fine regulation of the list of activities allowed for foreigners. The Chinese government, as a token of gratitude, presented a gift that is truly worthy of the royal majesty of the Thais beloved monarch. The government of China government donated a museum of Chinese-Thai friendship Anek Kusala Sala.

A visit to the museum is part of a comprehensive tour of the environs of Pattaya, but the wealth of the exhibits, their incomparable artistic value, the significance of the museum for the spiritual life of the nation is obliged to tell more and devote a separate review to it.

Suffice it to say that a museum, like a temple, cannot be entered in shoes. It must be left in front of the entrance. Entrance to the territory runs through the gate, built into the magnificent arch, decorated with dragons. 

The building itself is three-story, surrounded by a spacious territory. On the ground floor, there are many sculptures, figurines, paintings, characters associated with Buddhism. The Chinese were not greedy on the exhibits for the museum. On the first floor,  there are pictures of fabulous value. They are decorated with threads with interlaced precious stones. But the main treasure – copies of figures of the Terracotta Army.

On the second floor, the ceremonial hall draws attention, where the signing of documents and ceremonial events on the occasion of the opening took place. From there is access to the site, where there is a huge number of sculptures. There are commanders and Chinese wise men, in the background is a group of Shaolin monks.

The third floor is completely dedicated to the Buddha. The focus is on composition, in the center of which is the Great Teacher. The walls are decorated with paintings detailing the biography of the holy ascetic.

In the temple-museum, there is a very calm atmosphere. When you come here, you forget about the bustle, you want to learn more and more about the mysterious land that will be for us for a long time   Terra Incognito.