A Lesson of Gratitude in the Ancient Kingdom of Sukhothai Thailand

Two things we did in Sukhothai that reminded us to be grateful

It’s pouring down with rain as we drive towards the place we are staying tonight in Sukhothai Thailand.

It is monsoon season after all.

The light is fading fast and as we stop at some traffic lights I see a youngish Thai man at the side of the center strip. He is trying to sell something to people in their cars.

This is normal in Thailand.

Often they sell flower garlands that Thai people will use as homage when they go to the temple.

As he makes his way toward our car I see he is soaking wet and wearing only a T-shirt, jeans, and thongs. Nobody has bought anything from him.

He is selling small bottles of cultured yogurt.

I open the window. The rain is lashing down. The poor bloke is shivering as the temperature has dropped a bit now too.

He asks my wife in Thai how many bottles we want.

With my limited understanding of Thai, I figured that’s what he said. My wife and I were intuitively on the same wavelength straight away.

Smiling, she says we will buy them all.

There was a look of relief and gratitude on his face. This would be his last sale and now he could go home. Wherever that might be!

That was the start.

Sukhothai

The next day we visited the Sukhothai Historical park.

This was the ancient Kingdom of Siam in the 13th and 14th centuries. It was the political and administrative hub of Thailand at that time.

It is a magical place.

Si Satchanalai was the spiritual center of the kingdom and the site of numerous temples and Buddhist monasteries. You can just feel the history and energy oozing out of the stone and meandering through the ruins.

Huge statues of Buddha still remain amongst the ancient architecture. They are so awe-inspiring. They tell a story of a magnificent bygone era.

The kingdom was spread out over vast grounds and you can see the old entrances where people would come and go in ancient times.

It is so large we hired a tuk-tuk to drive us around the park. It was too hot to walk all that way and we wanted to see as much as we could.

Workers were constructing wood and straw shelters in preparation for the coming Loi Krathong festival. The festival to worship and ask for forgiveness from the Goddess of water.

Sadly we would not be here for that but we vowed to come here next time.

A Reminder of Privilege

As I stood in awe of the wonderful architecture and breathtaking power the giant Buddha statues seemed to exude it reminded me of the night before.

The young guy who rather than steal would stand on the side of the road in the pouring rain to sell a few bottles to make some money to live.

I felt privileged to be able to travel to this beautiful country and be connected with such kind culture.

Gratitude

Earlier that morning we had also caught the Buddhist monks doing their alms. My wife joined the locals in the traditional custom of giving the monks food and offerings for their good work.

Buddhist monks of the Theravada tradition keep only a few possessions and eat only what is offered in their bowls each morning on the alms rounds.

This is the compassion that the Buddha and other great teachers like Jesus taught.

To help others whenever we can and be grateful for what we have. Nothing is permanent and each day is a gift of life.

It also reminded me that despite all the difficulties I had endured in my own life, I was in this amazing place able to take time to enjoy another special moment. Others are not always so fortunate.

Thank you for reading and supporting independent writers on medium and this wonderful publication, it is much appreciated.

If you would like to read more of my travels in Thailand ‘ An introverts guide to life, personal growth and Thailand’ there is more at my profile here on Medium and my blog DJ Hopkins