City Pillar Shrine

There is a Thai tradition, which commemorates the foundation of an old, historical city. The city pillar is the equivalent to the foundation stone.
It is often associated with a phallic emblem, like the Egyptian obelisk.
Symbolically, it plays the role of the axis, linking the low with the above, the Earth to the Sky. Therefore, it is a connection with the two halves of the original egg, a symbol of harmony.
In Thailand, a Buddhist Theravada land, the city pillar is consecrated into a shrine.
But due to the historical background, the Thai spiritual belief is a mix of paganism, Brahmanism, and Buddhism.
The layout of the monument is highly symbolical using a mix of geometry (the square and the circle) as well as odd numbers such as 5 and 9 in particular.
The city pillar is standing inside this Hindu prang surrounded by four smaller ones, forming a square, and pointing to the number 5, symbolizing Man's spiritual aspiration. 
Within the garden-like compound, the central prang is also surrounded by four smaller prangs.