Wat Tham Suea (Tiger Cave Temple)

Why it matters

Wat Tham Suea, the Tiger Cave Temple, is a major southern Thai forest temple. It is famous for its 1,237-step staircase to the mountaintop chedi (เจดีย์), the stupa that crowns the hill, and for its meditation center.

Its most prominent monk is LP Jamnian Silasettho, born in 1936, who studied under Phor Than Klai and so carries the Klai corridor of southern lineage. His signature production is a sacred earth amulet, nuea din (เนื้อดิน), the clay or earthen material, made from din jet pa cha (ดินเจ็ดป่าช้า), earth gathered from seven cremation grounds, with embedded phet na thang (เพชรหน้าทั่ง) crystals. Because Krabi has an international airport, the temple is accessible to tourists and is one of the most visited forest temples in the south.

What to see

The cave complex gives the temple its name, and the meditation center is central to its life as a practice site.

The climb to the mountaintop chedi runs 1,237 steps. The temple counter makes LP Jamnian's sacred earth pieces and temple cloths available on site.

Access

Wat Tham Suea is in Krabi province. Krabi's international airport makes it one of the more accessible forest temples in southern Thailand.