Wat Tha Sung

The temple traces back to the Ayutthaya period. In 1789 Luang Pho Yai arrived on pilgrimage and villagers asked him to stay; Luang Pho Seng ('Luang Pho Khanom Chin') carried on the restoration. It was officially recognised as a temple in 1928 and granted a 40 × 80 m consecrated boundary on 25 October 1939, before decades of neglect. The abbot list from the national Buddhism office records runs Luang Pho Chan, Luang Pho Yai, Luang Pho Seng, Luang Pho Leng and Phra Achan Arun, with Luang Pho Ruesi Lingdam as the sixth.

In 1968 Phra Ratchaphromyan — Luang Pho Ruesi Lingdam (Wira Thawaro) — became abbot and expanded the temple from about 6 rai to about 289. Born in Bang Pla Ma, Suphan Buri (sources give 8 July 1916 or 28 June 1917; the widely published death age of 76 fits 1916), he was ordained at Wat Bang Nom Kho, Ayutthaya, (1936 or 16 July 1937, depending on the source) with Luang Pho Pan Sonantho as his ordination teacher; his pen name 'Ruesi Lingdam' comes from the book he wrote about Luang Pho Pan. He died at Siriraj Hospital on 30 October 1992, aged 76.

The temple's royal links run through the new ordination hall, begun on 17 March 1974 and finished in 1976. On 10 August 1975 King Rama IX and Queen Sirikit enshrined Buddha relics, cast the statue of Luang Pho Pan and raised the roof finial, and on 24 April 1977 they cut the boundary stone (luk nimit). The claim that the King opened the Crystal Hall in 1987 has no support.

The Crystal Hall is about 100 m long, two storeys under a three-tier roof, its walls and pillars covered in white mosaic and mirror, hung with 119 crystal chandeliers. It houses a replica of the Phra Phuttha Chinnarat and a pearl-inlaid glass coffin on a gilded pavilion holding Luang Pho Ruesi Lingdam's body. It opens 09:00–11:30 or 11:45 and 14:00–16:00, closing at midday for the monks' meditation.

The Kanchanaphisek Golden Castle was begun in March 1993 to mark King Rama IX's golden jubilee in 1996, with gilding from 1998: three tiers and 37 spires, modelled on the Loha Prasat, with a standing Buddha in the central spire. Its exterior was finished around 2018 and it is open to visitors, about 700 m from the Crystal Hall. The grounds also hold an old ordination hall with folk murals, a new one with statues of Luang Pho Pan and Luang Pho Yai, the '12-rai' hall, the Somdet Ong Pathom vihara, a 30-cubit standing Buddha and rows of hundreds of Buddhas; the full circuit is about 3 km, so drive between zones.

On 1 November 1992 the King and Queen sent royal bathing water and wreaths for Luang Pho Ruesi Lingdam's funeral. Afterwards Phra Ratchaphawanakosol (Luang Pho Anan Phutthayano) served as seventh abbot from 1993 until his death on 11 February 2018, with a royal cremation on 10 February 2019; the eighth abbot, Phra Palat Somnuek Suthammathirasattho, took over in 2018. The temple is open about 09:00–16:00 and free; dress to cover shoulders and knees, as sarongs may not be lent. Holidays are crowded — about 20,000 people came on 1 January 2017. The riverfront is a fish sanctuary full of striped catfish, and this stretch of river holds cages of Sakae Krang giant gourami, registered as a geographical-indication product on 23 August 2012.