This is not actually a Buddhist temple - which are called 'Wat' in Thai (it lacks the minimum number of monks to be regarded as such). That said Thais simply call it ถ้ำพุทธโคดม Tham Phutthakhodom (Buddha Gautama Cave) . It is an amazing, tranquil and most delightfully beautiful cave and can be found just off the main Trang to Phattalung road. Phutthakhodom Cave is next to Samnaksong Tham Phutthakhodom and is located in Phatthalung Province, Southern Thailand
This big and delightful Buddha cave features stunning and
large stalagmites and stalactites, in addition to a huge natural rock formation
hall which was thronging with bats and wildlife when I visited and it's a natural
and most stunning natural rock cathedrals of beauty. The Buddha cave has two
levels with the first being on the ground
level whereas the second is much deeper underground. This cave houses many
Buddha images in several different positions and is well lit wit electric light
and most safe to visit..
Aside from its natural peaceful demeanour and its reputation
as a place of solitudinous retreat , the Buddha cave is also significant as a famous
spot for meditation practice , particularly with Southern
Thailand and Malaysian Buddhists.
The Buddha cave resident monks are renowned for eschewing
commercial activities and the trappings of some of the more commercialized Thai
temples (such as fortune tellers and amulet making and selling ) and it is
presently the place to find three monks and a location for teaching pure Dhamma ('The Truth' - the teachings from
the Buddha) to those that visit.
Although walking alone within the cave which I accessed from
behind the hill housing the temple from a seldom visited but comfortable home
stay resort I was profoundly struck by the calming tranquillity and peace the
cave offers and that I wanted to carry and share this more widely by videoing
the cave area and surroundings for a short film that I had been planning to
create around the temple, cave and grounds. This went on for maybe 20 minutes and
though I was mildly creeped out by the quietness and eerie nature of the place
I returned to my companions upbeat and refreshed by the experience.
BE AFRAID ....BE VERY AFRAID.....
But on carefully analyzing the footage after we had left the area and we were returning on the
plane from Trang to Bangkok I spotted a most unusual artefact on the video at approximately
the 1.5 minute mark for a couple of
seconds which seems to be a shadowy monk like figure fleetingly walking over
the cave entrance .
Is this truly the picture of a real ghost actually caught
live on camera or just an artefact of
the light ? I really don't know - but it should be noted that I didn't hear the sounds of another body within
the cave and also, since it features a sandy gravelly natural cave which
crunches noisily underfoot and echoes off the hard rock cave walls I'm sure I
would have heard the 'thing' had it been real and of physical substance.
I posted this on the most popular expatriate Thai hangout
Thai Visa Forum to seek out views and make more public the video I had unwittingly taken.
Maybe a job for the redoubtable Ghostbusters ... who ya
gonna call ?
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