Wat Phra Phutthabat, Saraburi
The temple of the Holy Footprint - the most important Buddha footprint shrine in Thailand.
Wat Phra Phutthabat, Saraburi
Wat Phra Phutthabat holds the footprint of the Buddha that has been the object of national pilgrimage since the seventeenth century. It was found, according to the traditional account, during the reign of King Song Tham of Ayutthaya, when a hunter discovered a water-filled hollow in the rock; the king declared it authentic and had a shrine built over it.
The mondop covering the footprint is the reason to go - a square, steeply-tiered pavilion sheathed in gold, its doors inlaid with mother-of-pearl, standing on a terrace at the top of a naga staircase. The impression itself is about a metre and a half long, in a rock basin, and pilgrims drop coins into it.
The site is busiest during the two annual pilgrimage festivals, when the surrounding grounds fill with a fair. It is north-east of Saraburi town on the road towards Lopburi.
- Wat Phra Phutthachai, Saraburi — The temple of the Buddha's Shadow, built against a cliff bearing a faint image in the rock.
- Muak Lek Waterfall, Saraburi — A broad, low waterfall in a shaded arboretum on the road up to Khao Yai.
