What to know before visiting the temple
Dress modestly · Keep your voice and behaviour calm · Do not disturb monks meditating in kutis · Do not litter on the forest path
About 06:00–17:00
16:00
6 days ahead
When to go
this week
Tap a day card to see that day’s weather, rain, haze and hourly forecast
Best time to go Best window 06:00–13:00 Little rain · light drizzle possible at times
No warnings today — normal road and weather conditions
Hour by hour
Green band = hours used for the score
Best time to go Fine all day little rain through the day · light drizzle possible at times
No warnings today — normal road and weather conditions
Hour by hour
Green band = hours used for the score
Best time to go Fine all day little rain through the day · light drizzle possible at times
Thick morning fog with visibility under 1 km — use headlights and drive slowly
Hour by hour
Green band = hours used for the score
Best time to go Best window 06:00–14:00 Little rain · light drizzle possible at times
No warnings today — normal road and weather conditions
Hour by hour
Green band = hours used for the score
Best time to go Best window 06:00–14:00 Little rain · light drizzle possible at times
No warnings today — normal road and weather conditions
Hour by hour
Green band = hours used for the score
Best time to go Fine all day little rain through the day · light drizzle possible at times
Thick morning fog with visibility under 1 km — use headlights and drive slowly
Hour by hour
Green band = hours used for the score
Wat Tham Sarika
Wat Tham Sarika, Sarika, Mueang Nakhon Nayok, Nakhon Nayok.
- Cool and quiet
- Hot; little shade on the stairs
- Softer sun
Arrive 16:00
- Rock shelterLuang Pu Mun statueMorning
- Forest stairsTreesMorning
- Wax-figure pavilionLife-size likenessDaytime
Good to know here
Steep and slippery when wet
Mosquitoes and insects
- Wear grippy shoes; the stairs are steep with little shade
- It is an active meditation temple — keep quiet and respectful
- Do not confuse it with Sarika Waterfall, about 3–4 km away
- Bring water and insect repellent
Adults 0 THB · Time needed 45–90 minutes
Buddhist holy days and holidays with pilgrim groups
- Kids OK; take care on the stairs
- Seniors Only for those able to climb steep stairs
- Wheelchair Not suitable; stairs only
- Pets Not advised; meditation temple
- Krua SarikaSarika Road, 062-501-2606
- Restaurants near Sarika WaterfallAbout 3–4 km
- Dress modestly
- Keep your voice and behaviour calm
- Do not disturb monks meditating in kutis
- Do not litter on the forest path
- About 100 m of steep stairs with little shade
- Slippery stairs in the rainy season
- Mosquitoes and insects on the forested hill
Best months
Tap a month on the wheel to see weather, rain, haze and crowds from 10 years of records
Best time · Nov–Feb for cool, dry weather and easy stairs · go in the morning before the sun gets strong
Watch out · Midday in Mar–May is very hot · rainy days make the stairs slippery
21°Jan
22°Feb
24°Mar
25°Apr
25°May
25°Jun
25°Jul
24°Aug
24°Sep
23°Oct
22°Nov
21°Dec
Oct by the records 23–31°C · avg rain 223 mm (23 rainy days) · clear 2 days · avg PM2.5 11
The story of this place
Wat Tham Sarika sits on a small hill at Sarika, Mueang Nakhon Nayok, about 3–4 km from Sarika Waterfall; some sources spell it Wat Tham Salika. It is a forest meditation temple whose heart is "Luang Pu Mun's cave", a rock shelter about 3 m deep under a large boulder — not a large cave — now covered by a pavilion. No official founding date has been found; some accounts say the cave lay abandoned after Luang Pu Mun left until the present abbot, Phra Ajarn Chuea Kitchathammo, established the temple.
Read more 5 more paragraphs
Around 1911 Luang Pu Mun Bhuridatto returned from Burma to Bangkok and studied with Phra Ubali Khunupamachan (Chan Sirichantho) of Wat Borom Niwat. Meanwhile he stayed in caves in Lopburi, such as Phatthrawut Cave at Wat Khao Phra Ngam. The other monk named Mun who had travelled with him to Burma (later Chao Khun Thep Mongkhon Panyachan of Wat Pathum Wanaram) went his own way, and around 1912 Luang Pu Mun came to Sarika Cave alone. Villagers guided him there and warned that four monks had already died in the cave. Sources give different years, but about 1912 is the best supported.
While here he fell seriously ill with an abdominal complaint. He refused medicine and recovered through meditation, the "Dhamma medicine". Accounts by his disciples tell of visions and a club-wielding spirit who threatened him and then became his protector, and say he gave up his aspiration to Buddhahood here. Sources disagree on the level of attainment he reached at Sarika.
Afterwards Luang Pu Mun began accepting disciples, and many sources see Sarika as the starting point of the "Dhamma army" of forest monks that spread across Thailand. Some say he stayed several rainy seasons or about three years, but this is unconfirmed.
In 2019 UNESCO named Luang Pu Mun a world-important person for peace, marking the 150th anniversary of his birth in 2020–2021. The same year the Siriwattanabhakdi Foundation and the Community Development Department launched the "In the Footsteps of Luang Pu Mun" community-tourism route of 36 sites in 12 provinces, including Wat Tham Sarika.
Inside the shelter today are a slightly smaller-than-life statue of Luang Pu Mun, a seated Buddha in meditation and a statue of Somdet Phra Phutthachan (To Phromrangsi), plus a life-size wax figure of Luang Pu Mun in a glass case. The path up is about 100 m of stairs through forest, lined with small meditation kutis.
- c. 1911Luang Pu Mun returns from Burma, studies with Phra Ubali Khunupamachan and stays in Lopburi caves
- c. 1912He meditates alone at Sarika Cave and recovers through meditation
- after 1912He begins taking disciples — the start of the forest "Dhamma army"
- laterPhra Ajarn Chuea Kitchathammo founds the temple at the abandoned cave
- 2019UNESCO honours Luang Pu Mun; 36-site pilgrimage route launched
Check-ins & visitor photos
Arrived? Check in, collect a stamp and tell others what it is like right now
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Location must be on and within 1 km · One check-in per place per day · come back on other days to check in again
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How to get there
Paved road, then about 100 m of stairs
Into Nakhon Nayok town, then toward Sarika · Fuel
From town; tell the driver "Tham Sarika" · Metered/app
Sarika–Nang Rong Road
Car park at the foot of the hill
Nakhon Nayok town
Fair
About 06:00–17:00
around 11 km fromNakhon Nayok town
Wat Tham Sarika
0 THB
Stays near Wat Tham Sarika
Approx. nightly price for 2 adults (next week) · final price depends on your dates
FAQ
Before you goWat Tham Sarika
Answers travellers want before they go — a one-minute read
Is Wat Tham Sarika the same as Sarika Waterfall?
No. It is a hill temple at Sarika, about 3–4 km from the waterfall, which is in Khao Yai National Park
Why is it famous?
Luang Pu Mun Bhuridatto meditated in its rock shelter in 1912 and recovered from a serious illness through meditation
How big is the cave?
A rock shelter about 3 m deep under a large boulder, now covered by a pavilion
Is the climb hard?
About 100 m of steep stairs with little shade
Is there a fee?
No; donations are welcome
What is inside?
Statues of Luang Pu Mun, a seated Buddha, a statue of Somdet To, and a life-size wax figure of Luang Pu Mun
Ready to go to Wat Tham Sarika?
Best day this week: Friday 23 Oct · Check in when you arrive to collect a stamp