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| tripitok |
In the late
morning light, the Lamar Para temple grounds seem exceptionally still. A large wooden building, painted black and adorned with ornate wooden carvings, hovers on stilts above the
temple grounds. The sun illuminates a path to two other
buildings, each a large wooden structure with complex cupolas and
detailed wooden carvings. (One contains a placid-faced golden Buddha statue over three meters in height.) In the courtyard, a monk in maroon robes greets visitors with a bemused look. Lamar Para Buddho Bihar, a small temple and monastery in Ramu,
Chittagong Division, has been on this spot since the year 1800. Walking
through the placid grounds, it is possible to feel as though these 213 years have not elapsed at all.
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| Old buddist temple of shima bihar | | | |
- The same is not true elsewhere in Ramu. In the past year, new temples have popped up to replace the ones destroyed in 2012’s arson attack. These reconstructions have bolstered a traumatised community and made a statement about religious coexistence in Bangladesh. But the support comes at a cost of historicity. The community values traditions so much that in the Ramu Shima Kendriyo Bihar they have piled burned begging bowls and spiritual texts on a special spot on the altar. Yet the new buildings reflect little of that love of tradition. They are built in concrete, a material that resists fire but cannot replicate the fine details of the old wooden structures. They reflect the skills of architects in Bangladesh today, who know little of the classic Raikhine style. The new mondirs and bihars feel ahistorical and anonymous, like a mid-range hotel just off the highway in no particular town. They capture little of placid atmosphere that Lamar Para offers.
- Lamar Para had the fortune not to burn on September 30, 2012. (Its luck hinged on its isolated location outside of town. A high wall surrounding the grounds also may have helped.) Before the fire, the bihar was an excellent example of traditional Burmese architecture. After the fire, it may be the best one Bangladesh has left. The unique buildings deserve preservation now more than ever.
