Kham Chanot Wang Nakhin (The forest temple)
Table of Contents
Entering Kham Chanot Wang Nakhin #
I didn’t do a lot of research before visiting this temple, and I did not know what to expect once I got there.
Kham Chanot Wang Nakhin is about a 90-minute drive North-East of Udon Thani town and is a pretty unique experience. Even before you arrive at the temple, the roads are lined with markets selling offerings to take to the temple. These appeared to be handmade snake statuettes, made of some type of plant or paper material. There would have been thousands of these symbols lining the roads on the way in.
Once you arrive there, it appears much more like a small market than a temple. Being a ’lucky place’, it was packed with various lotto vendors screaming for your money attention as you walk in. Inside the ground, there were even more handmade offerings being sold, and a little food and drink vendors too.
I made the foolish mistake of following the crowd, before realising I needed a ticket number before being allowed in. I made the long (long!) walk back to the start of the path in, and was given the free slip containing a number. Returning to the serpent entrance, I was ‘misted’ down with water (?) and allowed through this time
Follow the serpent-lined road #
It wouldn’t be much of a serpent forest temple, without a few large serpents! These brightly coloured concrete statues, start at the gates, and cover 100 to 200 meters, as you walk over a bridge and towards the temple area.
Along the way (and throughout the entire experience) you’ll see a plethora of real life animals. Most impressive, on my visit, was a 1-meter + monitor lizard lounging in a tree uncomfortably close to the crowded bridge we were walking over.
Immediately after making it over the river, the impressiveness of the location really stood out. Large, extremely tall trees towered over me, and everywhere I looked. Having spent so long driving through desolate farming lands, it was novel to once again see not just trees, but trees at this scale.
The temple #
Making it to the small temple was a struggle. It was quite busy here, with thousands of people in the market area, and hundreds in the very limited space around the temple. There was a person reciting something in Thai on a loudspeaker, with the followers nodding, wai’ing and speaking in unison. Each person/group had one of the serpent offerings and attached letters, money and other knickknacks to it before setting them down on a table.
I watched for as long as I could, before moving on to provide the space to someone else to use.
The forest #
The path, which continued on behind the temple and changed into a wooden-boardwalk. As everyone was still at the temple and completing their prayers and offerings, I had this section of the temple to myself. The feeling of smooth hardwood timber underneath my bare feet, the soft sounds of the music and chanting just audible from the temple and the sounds of gently rustling leaves was a surreal moment of peace, on what had been a very hectic trip.
I stopped here for a bit to appreciate the moment. Feeling, listening and just watching everything I could. As if on cue, I started noticing the way the sunlight came in waves and danced around the forest floor, as the forest canopy gently waved in the wind. Hundreds of bright green/yellow butterflies flew in and out of the sun’s rays, appearing to flash with colour. It was just a very peaceful and enjoyable moment in nature.
The walk #
I quickly came back to reality as the service(?) had finished and now hundreds of families took the opportunity to explore the boardwalk loop of the forest area. I joined the slow stampede, as we all took the crisscrossing route deeper into the forest, before looping back to the temple where we started.
There was no singular path to take, with multiple boardwalks crossing over like strands of DNA. I meandered through the forest and enjoyed the short walk back to the temple we started at.
Just before arriving at the temple, there was an empty pool, with more serpent paraphernalia resting2 on it. The small section of the pool was lined with 20 baht notes, carefully folded to standup. Many people were there to offer their money and a pray before returning to the market area.
Reflections #
This was unlike any temple I had been to previously. There was no big, grand building to gaze at, instead it very much focused on connecting you with the forest. My moment of peace was an unexpected highlight of the journey, and not one I would have expected to have beforehand. Overall, I enjoyed this unique take on temples (and the food back in the market, before making the journey back to UD).
📷 Photos #
