Home » Images » 0060 Pictures From History » CPA0029667

Thailand: The Giant Swing (Sao Ching Chaa), near Wat Suthat, Bangkok

It must rate as one of Bangkok’s most curious sights - the so-called Giant Swing, a 25 m high, blood-red, wooden structure, which stands in front of Wat (Temple) Suthat. The Giant Swing, in Thai Sao-Ching-Cha ('Swinging Pillars'), consists of two solid pillars which are connected at their tops with a wooden beam. From this beam, in days gone by, worshippers of Lord Shiva used to swing in a kind of gondola for the entertainment of their god. They could also earn themselves some cash: a bag of money was tied to one of the pillars and the participants had to grab this with their teeth. Predictably, many fell to their doom, and the festivities, usually conducted in December or January when Shiva was supposed to visit the earth, were discontinued in 1935. The 'Swinging Festival' was one of the numerous Thai rites which had its origins in ancient India.