All over the country today, Thai Buddhists have been going to their local temples to make merit, chant, listen to sermons and to take part in a procession around the main temple building. For tourists, there were two events in particular today which were of interest. These were the Candle Festival in Ubon Ratchathani and the Tak Bat Dok Mai Festival at Wat Phra Phutthabat Ratchaworamaha Wihan in Saraburi Province. I want to share with you today the pictures I took at the temple in Saraburi.
This temple in Saraburi Province is famous for the Buddha’s footprint which I will talk about another time. In the hills surrounding this temple there is a flower called hong hern which only flowers at this time of year. People believe that if they go and pick this flower themselves and then present it to the monks they will then make great merit.
In my pictures you can see just a small proportion of over one hundred monks that walked down both sides of the road to the foot of the steps leading up to the temple. Along the way people were lined up to give the monks flowers. The monks ascended the steps to the top where they paid homage to the Buddha’s footprint.
The monks then descended the hill on the other side where more laypeople were waiting to wash their feet as an act of cleansing of the mind and soul.
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