Temple of Hell and Heaven (Wat Saen Suk) in the resort town of Bang Saen. Temple of Hell and Heaven, a strange place in Thailand. Photo story Temple of Heaven and Hell in Thailand
I had already planned to go to the Temple of Hell and Heaven near Pattaya several times, three times I was firmly convinced that tomorrow morning for sure! What kind of a tourist am I who has not yet visited all the sights of Pattaya and its surroundings? And something always protected me from this. Basically, something was, of course, my laziness and desire to lie around a little more, or bad weather, which automatically became good as soon as I decided to postpone the trip.
And once again I decided that Sunday was made for travel, and set the alarm for 7.00. Got up at 10 and went!
How to get to the city of Bang Saen on your own and where the Temple of Hell and Heaven is located
You need to travel from Pattaya to another city, whose name is Bang Saen. It is located approximately 40 km from Pattaya towards Bangkok. You need to drive along Sukhumvit, straight and straight. Without turning anywhere, stopping at traffic lights, passing the city of Siracha, and, following the signs, turn into Bang Saen.
I went by bike, the travel time was about 50 minutes. From Pattaya you can also take a taxi or try to catch a local bus going in that direction. But the bus will most likely drop you off at Sukhumvit, and you will need to think on the spot how to get to the Temple of Hell and Heaven.
If you are traveling on your own, it is better to take care in advance to find the coordinates of the place and enter them into the navigator. Or, if you have a photographic memory, look at the map below and remember the location. The fact is that Google may return a different location when searching for Wat Saen Suk.
Coordinates of the Temple of Hell and Heaven: 13.298984, 100.916908.
In other words, you will need to go along the second street (Sai 2 Road) and turn into Soi 19, at the entrance to this jay there is an arch, this is where you need to go. Then you drive a little along the alley and come to the entrance to the territory of the Temple of Hell and Heaven. Here he is:
Of course, I couldn’t humanly get there and, without betraying traditions, I got lost! In general, nothing bad will happen if you drive along Khao Lam Road and take the first big turn. You will drive along the back streets, suspecting that something is wrong here, then in some monastery a kind aunt will show you the way, then along the gravel road, and after driving another 100 meters - voila! – you will arrive at the Temple from the other side))
In addition, a visit to this place is included in various excursion programs. So for most tourists, buying an excursion here is the best option.
On the grounds of the Temple of Hell and Heaven
In fact, this, of course, is not a temple at all. Wat Saen Suk is more of a park. I would even say an abandoned park. When describing this place on the Internet, they like to bend the description, embellishing it with words like “terrifying” or “breathtaking.” In fact, even the impressionable can come here. Or maybe I’m so seasoned already that I didn’t really get into it.
The temple territory is divided into two zones: hell and heaven. There is, of course, more hell... It is unlikely that any visitor comes here to look at the Garden of Eden. The main visitors are Thais themselves, moreover, with children. They come to teach their children sense, telling them what happens to those who do not respect the laws of morality. The child is afraid, looks, cries.
There are quite a lot of figures depicting sins. But they are already so in need of restoration that peeling paint or a nest in the mouth slightly dulls the effect of horror that they should produce.
For example, at the entrance there are large sinners, they are like the calling card of this place. The mouth of the sinner man has been chosen by birds, and I think this is not the first generation of residents in his mouth. Everything is for the benefit of Mother Nature! He also has cute little armpit hairs.
Around them, the rest of the sinners are boiling in a cauldron, and people with animal heads, fashionable at the present time, are placed in a circle. Hipsters would probably love it here! Only here everything carries a slightly different message: for a certain sin, a person will receive the appearance of a certain animal. The inscriptions are duplicated in English, so you can read them. Here, for example, is what awaits those who get involved with drugs.
The main theme of the figures is the depiction of what is in store for those who, during their lifetime, stole or used drugs, were transvestites, or engaged in philandering.
Let the thieves get ready 
What awaits transvestites? 
What awaits the women who did the wraps?
Heaven in the Temple
Everything is a little duller in paradise. Everyone is happy there, sitting and rejoicing. Of course, there are no little angels and clouds in the Thais’ vision of paradise. And pancakes!
But if you are Thai or know what to say, you can buy frogs, fish and, if my eyesight serves me right, snakes, say something and release them into the little pond of paradise.
When these things are done, you will see a small dirty and smelly lake. Go to it, go down and look at healthy turtles and huge catfish, turtles happily gobble up grass, fish eat bread and popcorn. All this can be purchased inexpensively locally.
The spectacle, in fact, hurts the eyes (and nose), because... everything is in an extremely neglected state, even the turtles, whose shells are overgrown with mud.
And only the good cat was in perfect health, awake and savoring the roots of some plants. God knows what it is, but it was very tasty for the cat.
Entrance to the Temple of Hell and Heaven is free, it’s nice that you can visit the sights of Pattaya without leaving your wallet intact) But you can make a bunch of donations for your own good on a voluntary basis. For example, in boxes near images of various sins. They threw in some money and they were cleared.
Or in boxes near the figures symbolizing the representatives of the year according to the Chinese calendar, if you have no sins.
Mine is Dragon. He's Big Snake! Or you can put a guy in your belly at the entrance.
Or throw it into a big turtle’s cage for good health.
Bang Saen city after the Temple of Hell and Heaven
After visiting the Temple of Hell and Heaven, I highly recommend taking a walk around the town of Bang Saen. This is a fairly clean and cozy town, it has a lot of greenery and is generally easy to breathe. Along the sea there is a long promenade, in Thai style, densely packed with sun loungers.
If you pass them and make your way to the sea, you will see a good beach, much cleaner than Pattaya.
Holidays the Thai way Since I was here on Sunday, and this is the holiday time for Thai families, the beach was filled with bananas, buns and other water activities, and the embankment was filled with kiosks with inflatable toys. And all this, despite the low tide. Compared to the summer beaches of Pattaya or even Koh Larn, Bang Saena beach is just a Crimean or Yalta resort at the height of the season.
What can we say about the road along the beach: cars park here as standard in three rows, some manage to park in the fourth, completely blocking the passage. Manually rolling back the car that is propping up yours is a common practice here.
By the way, about cars. There are interesting examples, like this:
Xzibit pumped up his car There are Thai cafes everywhere on the embankment, the dishes in which are almost the same. And not cheap. Of course, I expected it to be more expensive, but I didn’t pay 150 baht for fried rice with shrimp. Not because of the 150 baht, but because they didn't have chicken rice! That is, I didn’t find it anywhere along the beach. Only seafood - they are in abundance.
At the end of the embankment, where the sandy beach ends, the stones begin. Large and very colorful. If you hurry, you can take a good place on them by the sea before they are occupied by the indigenous inhabitants)
It was here that I discovered a cafe where fried rice with shrimp cost 120 baht, portion size M (Medium). The stomach spoke its weight, and so they brought me this portion... Apparently, the midium for them is a portion for four people, in other words, half a pack of rice. So, it’s quite likely that a beach midget for 150 rubles is also not an average portion in the universal human understanding))
During the day I was in the city, I did not notice a single Russian, only two Europeans with Thais. Therefore, I won’t say whether there is life for Russians in Bang Saen, but the place is quite good, and the proximity to Bangkok is especially pleasing. The drive from here is about an hour.
If you are not a random traveler and are also planning a trip to Thailand (or Vietnam, or Cambodia, or any other country), with or without a cat, dog, my congratulations! The blog has a lot of useful information. Follow the links in the article, read other blog articles, ask questions in the comments if something is not clear!
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On the fourth day of our holiday in Pattaya, we booked a Discovery Tour, which includes many interesting attractions: 2 zoos, an incredibly beautiful Chinese temple and the Museum of Hell and Heaven, which will be discussed in this part of the report. Start of the trip: 1-3 days a. The Museum and the Temple of Hell and Heaven, or Wat Saen Suk, are different names for the same place. In the future I will refer to this attraction as the Museum.
This unusual museum is located not very far from Pattaya, in the city of Bang Saen. It is very peculiar: human sculptures (although not very human, with unnaturally large heads or strangely shaped bodies) make up compositions, each of which describes a sin, if we talk about Hell.
All exhibits are located in the open air, forming a walking and park area. The park is divided into two parts: Heaven and Hell. Thanks to my reader, I learned that Paradise is the story of the formation of Buddha as a Teacher.
Next to each exhibit are donation boxes, which also contain a description of the sin. If you throw money into the trash can, you can consider that you have been “cleansed” and the burden of sin has been removed from you. At least the Thais believe in this and visit the museum, even taking their children with them.
How to get to the Temple of Hell and Heaven
You can visit the museum/temple as part of a Discovery Tour, as we did. Or you can get there on your own, spending money only on travel and, if you want, donations - entry to the museum is free.
If you plan to get here on your own from Pattaya, then the ride on a rented bike is approximately 41 km - 45-50 minutes.
Approximate coordinates: 13°17′51″N, 100°54′46″E
How to get there by public transport:
Option 1: from the street. Sukhumvit by bus;
Option 2: stop at a songthaew and tell the driver where you want to go. He names the price, and you negotiate if necessary. He will take you to the Temple, wait while you take a walk there, and take you back to the same place where you caught him. The main thing is to discuss everything in advance before the trip.
It's time to take a little walk and look at some of the exhibits of the unusual museum.
We put coins in the belly:
Walked around Paradise:
Some of the sculptural compositions are very nice.
Each composition carries a certain meaning.
Now let's look at Hell. Each sculpture symbolizes a specific sin. You are greeted by the two tallest figures of the museum:
To understand the scale of the photo from our company (I take photographs):
Whether you would be interested in visiting the museum, judge for yourself. I didn’t photograph all the sculptures, but based on the ones available, it’s easy to assess the significance of this landmark. Some people like these places, others not so much. I believe that you need to see as much as possible in life, so I was pleased with my visit.
I successfully camouflaged myself in the area. If you don’t look carefully, you might not notice the girl in green with a strange expression on her face. 🙂
Anton is worse at disguise. But he managed to successfully fit into the sculptural composition:
The most popular sins based on which sculptures were created are abortion, drugs, transvestites.
Anton, a little tired from the “hellish” inspection:
Coconut palm trees grow in the park:
In the pond you can feed catfish for an additional fee (by purchasing food for symbolic money):
After visiting the Temple of Hell and Heaven, we boarded the bus and moved to the next location. Oyster farm with tasting.
Since I had never tried oysters, I was apprehensive at first: they were served raw, on ice. But it turned out to be delicious!
As a snack they offered lemon slices, various light salads and an omelette (or is it not an omelette? :)
Our excursion was not over here. After having a tasty snack, we went to the Chinese Temple, which deserves a separate post.
The Wat Saen Suk temple complex in southeastern Thailand is a theme park dedicated to the afterlife. Its territory is divided into two zones - Heaven and Hell. Lush gardens are prepared for the righteous. And as a visual aid to sinners, frightening sculptures and monuments were installed. One look at the faces of those who disdained strict Buddhist rules, twisted in pain, is enough to think about one’s own karma.
The sculptural compositions illustrate the punishments in store for sinners. They are boiled in cauldrons, eaten alive by birds and impaled. Those who harm nature are turned into moose and goats, alcoholics are forced to drink hot lead, and thieves have their hands cut off. Hellish torment awaits those who cheated, betrayed, gambled and used drugs. Some figures in hellish torment resemble art objects - just look at the sinners with shrimp heads.
The Eden Gardens feature sculptures of Buddha and saints meditating in the shade of trees. Also on the territory of the theme park there is a pond in which a huge number of turtles swim. You can feed them - special food is sold nearby.
Entry to the Temple of Heaven and Hell is free. However, monetary donations are “hinted” here at every turn; bins for bills and coins are located throughout the park. Thais believe that the best way to get rid of bad luck is to leave a large amount of money for the needs of the Wat Saen Suk temple, thereby atonement for sins. For convenience, the approximate size of donations is even indicated here - depending on age and even your eastern horoscope sign. On average, it is the sum of the last two digits of your date of birth plus the number of years you have lived.
The resort town of Bang Saen has excellent beaches - you can stay here for a few days if you wish. But it’s better to avoid weekends and holidays: the place is very popular with locals, and the coastline is not crowded during peak periods.
How to get there
The Temple of Heaven and Hell is located in the resort of Bang Saen, 45 kilometers north of Pattaya and 90 kilometers southeast of Bangkok. The most convenient option to get to the attraction is to use a taxi. The driver will wait for you while you explore the theme park and then take you back to your hotel. This way you will save time and effort - you can get to the Wat Saen Suk temple by public transport, but with several transfers. The cost of a taxi from Bangkok is about 1000 baht (about 1300 rubles) one way per car, from Pattaya - 500 baht (about 650 rubles).
There is no direct bus service between Bangkok and Wat Saen Suk. Buses and minibuses to Bang Saen depart from Victory Monument BTS Skytrain Station. The fare is about 100 baht (130 rubles) per person. Travel time is a little over an hour. Next, the Temple of Heaven and Hell can be reached on foot or by tuk-tuk. From Bang Saen, minibuses back to Bangkok depart from Laemtong Shopping Centre.
You can get to Wat Saen Suk Temple from Pattaya by public transport with one change. First you need to get to the Sukhumvit highway by any transport heading towards Bangkok (for example, to Chonburi), then catch a bus or minibus to Bang Saen. The fare is about 60 baht (78 rubles). Next, walk or take a tuk-tuk to the temple. The total travel time will be about an hour.
Organized tours of the Temple of Heaven and Hell are included in the popular Discovery tour program. Full-day tours depart daily from Pattaya and Bangkok.
Location
Wat Saen Suk Temple is located in the resort town of Bang Saen, north of Pattaya, in the province of Chonburi, in southeastern Thailand.
In the neighboring province of Phang Nga, an unusual temple has been built, where some basic Buddhist principles are clearly demonstrated for parishioners. Entire families come to Tham Tapan Temple to teach children the concept of heaven and hell. For such realistic other worlds, Wat Tham Ta Pan is also called the Temple of Heaven and Hell. The territory of the sacred place is overgrown with unkempt jungle among untouched stone cliffs, which is why the amount of eerie mysticism increases.
The more accurate name of the temple is Tham Tapan Monastery or Tham Tapan Bureau of Monks. It is a monastic monastery located around a cave. Hence the name: “tham” is translated from Thai as cave. One could say that this is another cave temple, like, for example, or. However, the monastery recreates Buddhist heaven and hell with quite realistic sculptures.
The Temple of Heaven and Hell is somewhat reminiscent of it, it also picturesquely shows all the circles of hell and punishments for bad deeds. The Buddhist concept of life and death is different from the Christian one. The main thing is an endless series of human rebirths, the accumulation of bun - positive karma, for enlightenment and transition to nirvana. The karma of every Thai is made up of merit and bad deeds - pluses and minuses. There is no Christian concept of sin that one can repent of and forget. All good and bad deeds accumulate, as if on a scale.
After a person dies, his spirit is transferred either to Sawan - heaven, or to Narok - hell. In the latter, the spirit lives life in countless circles of torment in order to atone for negative karma. Then from Sawan and Narok the spirit is reborn on earth. Any living being goes through such a series of rebirths. If plants and animals do not have the opportunity to perform good deeds, then man is entirely responsible for earthly life and subsequent rebirths. It happens that you meet a very angry, grumpy person. It is quite possible that this is his first human incarnation, and in a past life he was a dog and has not yet fully mastered the principle of accumulating karma.
Upon entering the Temple of Heaven and Hell grounds, you will see a sculpture of five seated monks with offering bowls and a building where rituals are performed. It is surrounded by mythical heroes. There is the demon Rahu, who swallows the sun or moon, causing eclipses, and hermit monks who retire to forests or caves for meditation, and princes from Thai folklore, who set an example of respect for elders, following traditions and other moral lessons.
In the depths of the park you will see a large statue of a seated Buddha, and not far from it are the dwellings of the monks. While walking along the alley of sculptures of meditating monks, you might even meet a couple of monkeys. You should not feed or pet them.
Heaven or rather the heaven of the Sawan in the temple is represented by a mountain with various sculptures of Hindu deities, including Akilandeshwari (one of the incarnations of Parvati) riding a crocodile and the giant head of Shiva. A staircase leads up the mountain. Monkeys are also found here. From the top there is a beautiful panorama of the nearby hills and fields.
Near the celestial mountain, a dragon with its mouth wide open awaits you. Feel free to go inside, after walking through the tunnel for a couple of tens of meters, you will come out of its... tail. Go down the stairs - welcome to Tapan Cave.
Several bridges have been built across the underground river, and there is lighting inside the cave. At the very end you will see three Buddha statues.
If you want to get off the tourist path and look further into the dark tunnels, you will need a flashlight. It can be rented for a donation from the monk sitting at the entrance. But remember that the cave is quite humid and stuffy, and the stones are sometimes very slippery and sharp, so be careful.
Coming out of the dragon's tail, in addition to the sign to the Tapan cave, you will see the road to the highlight of the temple - hell. At the entrance you are met by guards and the king of hell, who reads out bad deeds and due punishment. A little further down the stairs - and here is a real Buddhist hell with terrifying sculptures.
Here are martyrs who violated the principles of Buddhist morality: to abstain from killing any living being, from theft, from intoxicating drinks and substances, from lying and adultery. Thai parents bring their children to court to show what bad deeds lead to.
The statues in hell show in great detail the torment for bad deeds: liars have their tongues torn out; the wombs of women who have had abortions are squeezed in a giant vice; rapists and unfaithful spouses are speared; Alcoholics and drug addicts are given hot oil from a ladle and then fried.
The statues, although a little shabby, make an eerie impression. However, you can see everything in my video, but it’s better to see it with your own eyes.
On the way from hell you will meet disembodied ghosts who are forced to wander among people, thereby working off their karma. There are a lot of such spirits in Thai beliefs. The most common ghost is. He is depicted with long thin limbs and neck, a large head and belly.
It is believed that greedy and envious people turn into such spirits after death, wander the earth hungry and cannot satisfy themselves. Closer to the exit there are statues of animals according to the Chinese calendar: a horse, a rabbit, a dragon, a rooster and others.
The Temple of Heaven and Hell is not a particularly touristic place; rare excursions include the temple in their program. If you are interested in unusual sights near Phuket, come here on your own - entry to the temple is free, donations are welcome. Watch my video from the Temple of Heaven and Hell.
Opening hours:every day from 08:00 to 18:00.
Coordinates: 8.454757, 98.527880
You have never seen Thailand like this!
Get your children away from the screen and dive under the cat! Now I will scare you.
“What is this obscurantism in the title picture?»
- you probably thought... And the answer will be very unexpected - this is a Buddhist temple!
When I was preparing a trip to Phang Nga province, I accidentally read and saw a couple of pictures that there was a completely crazy temple there... and since I am a big fan of hitting the trash... “We are 100% going!”– immediately flashed through my head!
The full name of the temple is Wat Tham Ta Pan Bureau of Monks, in Russian they call it Temple of Heaven and Hell. And now you will understand why.
To be honest, when I went there, I had no idea what awaited me.
1. We found the temple very quickly, it is on Google maps, at the entrance there was a fountain with five monks and a statue of Buddha... Well, it’s quite familiar and expected for a Buddhist temple.
2. The area looked abandoned, but this only added to the charm of the place.
3. Near this sign, lines from a fairy tale popped into my head: “If you go to the right, you will find happiness, if you go to the left, you will lose your head...”. We didn’t understand anything, I didn’t even know that this was the temple of Heaven and Hell, and we just went straight.
4. First we met statues of different animals, in which we quickly recognized the 12 symbols of the Chinese zodiac calendar... But what was my surprise when we saw THIS!
5. I visited a couple of dozen Thai temples, but I haven’t seen anything like this... “What kind of hell is this?”– that’s all that came out of my mouth.
6. Ah, then I didn’t even realize how right I was...
7. To the right of this disgrace there was a lowland, I walked a little further, lowered my head down and saw this picture...
8. Here, of course, scenes from Hell are already easily recognizable.
9. According to the architect’s idea (if there was one), it was supposed to go down to Hell through a tunnel in the form of a dragon’s body, but I just jumped down the stones, so I wanted to examine this horror in detail.
10. I couldn't believe my eyes. I repeat, I have never seen anything like this in Tai. “This is the fruit of a person’s sick imagination!”– I thought. Someone built this! Look at the details!
11. These scenes symbolize the torment of sinners; after watching this, you really won’t want to sin for a long time...
12. There are a lot of figures and you can look at them for a long time. Everything looks abandoned, but in fact almost all the figures have holes for donations, which a monk with keys periodically comes to collect.
13. The place is both creepy and somehow alluring... Well, okay, I admit, I also like to walk through cemeteries.
14. I thought about what would happen if I brought someone here at night) This is real horror.
15. If you dream about something like this, you can’t shrug it off with cowards!
16. In short, it’s better not to spoil!
17. Otherwise they’ll impale you like this prostitute...
18. Here is a scene from the great Judgment of Sinners. The horror in their eyes is portrayed quite believably. The only thing is that I didn’t understand who this guy is who, in the minds of Buddhists, administers the Great Judgment.
19. For those who want to go to Buddhist hell, here are 5 commandments that, to be faithful, it is better to break all of them:
– Refrain from taking life (do not kill)
– Refrain from accepting what is not given (do not steal)
– Abstain from sexual misconduct (do not commit adultery)
– Refrain from lying
– Refrain from drinking alcohol
One thing is good - Hell, like Heaven, is not an eternal phenomenon in Buddhism; it is supposed to be here on vacation between rebirths. So.. everything can be fixed 😉
20. After such horror, we really wanted to see Paradise. We rose from the pit of Hell, and a completely peaceful picture with a lonely wandering monk again appeared before us.
21. And this is the same dragon, along whose body it was supposed to descend to Hell.
22. In general, guys! If Hell is a terrible horror, then Heaven is a complete disappointment... Yes, it’s just a mountain with a huge green head on top and Hindu gods.
23. Well, damn, after such and such Hell, I was expecting something incredibly divine and ascending to heaven!
Yes, in this temple, as in all Thai Buddhism, many trends are mixed - Buddhism, Hinduism and even Taoism.
24. But there is still a huge Buddha statue.
25. Against the background of a monk.
26. In general, on the territory of the temple there are a huge number of bizarre figures and statues.
27. The temple looks old and decrepit, but this only adds to its mysticism and mystery)
28.
This is undoubtedly one of the most unusual and unexpected places I have seen in Thailand! Just breaking the pattern :) It excites the mind and tickles the nerves, and therefore I really liked it here) Incredibly cool!
According to the descriptions on the Internet, I read that there you can also climb the stairs to the tower and see the surroundings from above, and also go down into the cave... we somehow missed this, but it was enough of an impression)