Prathat Phanom
Known as Prathat Phanom, this jedi in the town of Nakhorn Phanom contains sacred relics,
including the breast bone of the Buddha.
The chapel next to Prathat Phanom
Local residents of Prathat Phanom
Prathat Renu Nakhorn
Another famous prathat is in Renu Nakhorn which is not far from Nakorn Phanom.
Wat Doithammajedi
Wat Doithammajedi is a beautiful forest style temple located on a hilltop near Sakon
Nakhorn. A large stone sign marks the entrance.
Just inside the temple grounds is a beautiful well-tended garden area.
The abbot of the temple is Ajarn Baen, famous because the queen supports
him and visits often. Normally the casual visitor (like us) never sees Ajarn Baen
because he is traveling or secluded in his kuti. But this day he was standing on the
side of the road as we drove in. We all piled out of the van and sat in the road
right there and listened to Ajarn Baen 'thet' (give a dhamma talk). It was surreal
for some reason, the surroundings were extremely bright and colorful. And it was
apparent that Ajarn Baen is extremely "clear", meaning his mind is extrememly
lucid and he can see straight into you. He looked at us for a moment and then gave a
talk on a subject that went straight to the heart of an issue that was bothering one of
our group. Nobody had said a word, he just knew. It made the hair on the back
of my neck stand up. If you don't believe the masters can read your mind go sit in
front of one of them.
Sorry, no photo. It just didn't seem important at that moment.
Atop the hill is a large white jedi that houses sacred relics.
In traditional forest style temples the monks live alone in very simple dwellings called
'kuti'. This kuti is reserved for the famous Luang Taa Maha Bua when he visits.
Also at Wat Doithammajedi is a large sleeping Buddha statue or 'Phra Nawn'.
Ajarn Man, Ajarn Fan, Ajarn Wan
These three ajarn (great teachers) of the Isarn area are very famous in
Thailand. They were highly accomplished and highly respected masters. Many
temples and museums have been built in their honor. We visited a few when we were in
Sakon Nakhorn.
We arrived at the museum of Ajarn Fan just before sunset and found the mae chii (nuns)
scurrying around trying to arrange flowers for a celebration the next day. Raila and
her sisters had the good fortune to be able to assist. Anumotanaboon! (Pali for
rejoice in your merit). Afterwards we went to the 'sala' (Thai for an open air hall
next to the temple where dhamma talks and meditation occur) where we helped decorate.
The mae chii were delighted and brought us some snacks. As we were leaving
the abbot, a very highly respected monk in the region, came to see us (no photo).
Here is the group outside one of the museums of Ajarn Man.
Here we are about to enter the museum of Ajarn Wan.
Around Sakon Nakorn
We visited a small temple near Sakon Nakorn and made a donation. Here we are with
the abbot in front of an unusual style jedi that integrates the creature
"payanak" in its structure. Pictured from right to left are Tong, me,
Luang Paw, Tam and Maow.
One evening we visited another forest temple where many people come for meditation.
The abbot came to talk with us about people's ideas about celebrating each New Year, and
why we fool ourselves with notions that it is a special day when every day is the same, or
special, depending on what you make of it.
The big temple in the middle of the town of Sakon Nakhorn had a festival for several days.
We visited at night. It was very pretty all lit up with lights.
A popular tradition is called 'Pha Pa' which letrally translated means forest cloth.
It is a tree that everyone attaches money to for donating to the temple. Here is a
rather large 'pha pa' on its way to the temple.
Here is a smaller 'pha pa' that my brother-in-law Tam had in his shop. My
brother-in-law Khun (right) is making a contribution. We later took all the money to
the small temple with the unusual jedi with the payanak.
At another huge temple grounds that is supported by the royal family there is a man-made
lake. Many people visit the temple and feed the fish in the lake. As a result
the fish are huge and churn the water to get at the food.
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