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Thailand: Prince Siddhartha and a demon play chess, accompanied by a betel set in a 19th century mural at Wat Buak Khrok Luang, Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand

Siddhartha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from ancient India who founded Buddhism. The time of his birth and death are uncertain: most early 20th-century historians dated his lifetime as c. 563 BCE to 483 BCE, but more recent opinion dates his death to between to between 486 and 483 BCE or, according to some, between 411 and 400 BCE.

Wat Buak Khrok Luang, located in Ban Buak Khrok Luang Moo 1, Chiang Mai – Sankamphaeng Road, Chiang Mai, is a small and typically northern Thai Buddhist temple. It is believed to have been founded in the 15th century during the time of the independent Lan Na Kingdom (1292-1558), and was extensively restored during the reign of Chao Kaew Naowarat (r.1911-1939), the last King of Chiang Mai.

The temple is chiefly noteworthy for its main viharn, which is purely Lan Na in inspiration, with a four-tiered roof and elegant naga balustrade entrance. The most remarkable aspect of the viharn is its extensive mural paintings, dating from around 1835 during the reign of Chao Phuttawong (r.1826-1846), the fourth ruler of the Chiang Mai Thipchang Dynasty. The murals, which are northern Thai in style with clear elements of Shan State and Konbaung Dynasty Burmese influence, are among the best in northern Thailand. They feature the jataka stories, past lives of the Buddha, and are interspersed with vernacular scenes from everyday early 19th century northern Thai life.