Nirat Hariphunchai

I am currently working on a new poem inspired by my recent visit to North Thailand and reading the 500 year old Thai poem Nirat Hariphunchai .

A classic Thai poem of love, loss and landscape.

Wat Jedi Luang, Chiang Mai, February 7 2025.

Great monastery, a fine and sacred place,

the Conqueror’s image famed as world’s supreme,

Amarakata, one city’s worth, my love.

I raise clasped hands and bow my head for your content alone.

— from the poem Nirat Hariphunchai.

Translated by Chris Baker and Pasuk Phongpaichit.