The Wat Phra Kaew Temple of the Emerald Buddha in the grounds of the Royal Thai Grand Palace is regarded as the most sacred Buddist temple in Thailand.

It is compulsory to remove the shoes before entering the temple, as a sign of respect to the Buddha.

 It is rude to display the soles of your feet towards the Buddha. While offering prayers before the Buddha image, feet should be tucked in pointing backwards to avoid any offensive stretching of feet towards the deity.

The temple itself contains some of the finest examples of Buddhist sculpture, architecture and decorative craft in Thailand.

Glass mosaic tiles and the amazing elaborate high ceiling…

The guards of the steps leading up to the shrine…

Cameras are prohibited inside the worship area but tourists are allowed to take shots from a high window.

Within its walls is the highly revered Buddha sculpture, carved from a single block of jade and dating back to the 14th century AD. 

So revered is this Buddha that no one but the King himself is allowed to touch it. Three times a year, to correspond with the changing of the Thai seasons, the King changes the Buddha’s robes in an important ritual to ensure good fortune in the months ahead.

When first  I entered the temple it was to escape the heat of the sun but as soon as I got in, I was mesmerized by the beauty and details of the shrine. The Buddha was small but the shrine was magnificent. I sat down on the floor with people from all around the globe, our eyes transfixed on the altar.

Pictures won’t do justice to the sparkle, the colors, the fine meticulous ornaments and the intricate arrangement of the sanctorium.

Just to let you see how awesome it is inside, here’s a photo from another blog:

I shut my eyes in order to see. – P. Gauguin

Quoted texts from http://www.MooreTravelTips.com and http://www.viator.com