Another colourful Thai event to mark Khao Phansa, the start of the Buddhist rainy season retreat is tak bat dok mai, floral almsgiving which takes place at the beautiful Wat Phra Phutthabat in Saraburi.

The special annual event has become so popular that it is now held twice a day for two days in order to accommodate the huge crowds that come to make merit.

As the monks walk towards the temple, the faithful put flowers, candles and incense in the alms bowls and pour water on the monks’ feet.

The saffron robed monks continue their route, up the steps to the hilltop temple where they pay respects in the ornate mondop which houses a footprint of Buddha. It’s refreshing to see merit making that involves the simple giving of flowers rather than money which has become all too prevalent in Buddhism.

I’ve been hanging around with dodgy Buddhist cults again. Well, I have to do something to entertain myself. While in Chiang Mai I attended a gathering organised by the Dhammakaya Foundation which is said to be Thailand’s fastest growing religious movement.

They have a fondness for large scale events and an even greater liking for liberating members from their cash.

In Chiang Mai, attendees discovered that seeking the path to enlightenment costs 1,500 baht a head. The sermon to the faithful  also slipped in the line, ‘may you all become generous millionaires…and support Buddhism with your wealth’.

Of course, the blatant fleecing of the flock is not restricted to the Dhammakaya Foundation. Almost without exception, the focus at Buddhist temples is the collection of cash…and lots of it.

Just a quick posting of a Buddha image snapped in a small Chinese temple tucked away down a side street in downtown Kuala Lumpur.

There was another mass monkathon in Bangkok on Saturday, once again organized by the distinctly dodgy Wat Phra Dhammakaya, a Bangkok temple known for its aggressive fundraising. The mantra seems to be, ‘give us your money and your good deed will be rewarded with personal riches in the future’. It’s a technique you’d expect from rabid TV evangelists in the USA and it is disturbing to see that it has become part of Buddhism too.

In the last few years Dhammakaya has managed to attain almost cult status but despite its high profile well attended events it is actually frowned upon by many Thai Buddhists. As Frank Zappa once said, ‘The only difference between a cult and a religion is the amount of real estate they own”.

But I won’t get into a rant about religion here, tempting though it is. This is a photo-blog after all and my reason for getting up at 4.30 a.m. was to try and capture some striking images.

This time the event was held at the crossroads of Asoke and Sukhumvit roads in downtown Bangkok.

It has been disturbing to witness what has happened to Angkor over the last few years. Even now with the rainy season in full swing visitor numbers are still high. As one hotelier said to me, ‘for the Chinese and Koreans there is no low season’. Nevertheless, the next month or two is without doubt the best time to go. Leave it until November and you won’t be able to turn sideways without hitting another tourist in the face with your 70-200 mm lens.

The highlight for many is Angkor Wat; dawn ‘til dusk it simply heaves. The temple complex covers an area of one square kilometre and comprises of three levels around a central tower. The entranceway is particularly impressive and is the site of the early morning pilgrimage for the obligatory sunrise photo shoot. Inside the confines of the temple the inner and outer walls are covered with exquisite bas reliefs. If you want to get a detailed explanation of what you are looking at, you can hire an official guide at the entrance to the site.

Due to the millions of visitors, the monks of Angkor are powerless to resist the lure of the dollar, and the monumental site which was once lost to the jungle now functions as a temple again. At its heart is a small shrine where a monk sits patiently waiting to extract money from the faithful (or gullible, depending on your perspective) in return for a splash of holy water and a blessing muttered in Sanskrit. If you are there early enough and sit quietly within the shaded cloisters you can almost imagine a time before Buddhism was corrupted by cash, egotism and self-interest, if indeed such a time ever existed.

While I was there, a nun approached a monk who had been quietly reading and presented his breakfast as an offering. As she handed over the food, he averted his eyes, recited his blessing and then tucked into his food while she moved on and prayed to an image of Buddha. It was a timeless scene played out at Angkor Wat for centuries.

Getting there:

Flying into Siem Reap from Thailand you are at the mercy of Bangkok Airways’ monopoly of the route and its grossly inflated price for the 50 minute flight. At this time of year, expect to pay around 11,000 baht.  Flights leave several times a day from Suvarnabhumi Airport. A visa on arrival is available at Siem Reap airport for $20. The entry procedure is quick and efficient. If you have arranged your accommodation in advance, ask for an airport pick-up. The ride into town takes around 20 minutes.  There is no longer a departure tax at the airport.

Despite being based in Bangkok, I rarely find time to photograph the city. That has got to change as I recently signed a contract to do a book on the magical metropolis, know to locals as  Krung Thep. With the deadline clearly visible on the not too distant horizon, I forced myself away from the desk and spent an enjoyable morning in Chinatown and relaxed evening in a bar opposite Wat Arun. I can’t tell you how good it is to have a job that allows me to enjoy a beer and eat while working.

Wat Arun is one of the most photographed landmarks in Bangkok. The name means Temple of the Dawn, and the structure is comprised of one elongated prang or Khmer-style chedi surrounded by four smaller ones. The main tower is 82 metres high and features ornate decoration with mosaics made of porcelain and broken bone china. Unlike many of Bangkok’s other temples, this one looks better from a distance, especially when viewed from across the river. Despite its name, the best photographs of it are taken at sunset. Wat Arun is open every day from 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Get off at Tha Tien Pier and take a ferry across the river.

The good folks at Asian Journeys recently used an image of mine to grace the cover of their magazine. Hats off to the publisher, editor, adventurer and explorer of the Singapore-based mag, Mr. Floyd Cowan for choosing the picture of a young Thai Yai boy at the Poi Sang Long ordindantion ceremony. Apologies from me for the rather dodgy scan of the cover. However, you can see more images from the annual event on an earlier post here.

In late March or early April, Poi Sang Long takes place in towns and villages all over Mae Hong Son province. The Buddhist ordination ceremony is part of the Shan or Tai Yai tradition and was brought to Thailand by settlers from neighbouring Myanmar.  During the event known as the Festival of Precious Gems, young boys are ordained as novices and spend time studying Buddhist doctrine. A colourful spectacle to witness, it is one of the most delightful festivals in the country. On the first day of the four day ceremony, the boys have their hair shaved off at the temple and are then bathed and anointed with consecrated waters. The following day they are dressed in brightly coloured clothes and paraded through the town as sang long— precious gems.

You can also visit the Asia Journeys’ website.

I’ve always found large gatherings of people or any so-called mass consciousness rather disturbing to be around. The herd instinct if you like. It is even more unsettling when it is a religious event.

On Sunday I went to photograph the final day of a series of large scale alms giving ceremonies that have been carried out around Thailand to celebrate the 2,600th anniversary of the Lord Buddha’s enlightenment. Each event has seen 30,000 monks (one million in all) and thousands of followers gather for prayers. Much of the food collected has also been donated to Buddhists in the south, an area experiencing increasingly violent separatist unrest by Muslims. The final gathering was held near Wongwian Yai in Bangkok.

Although you cannot deny the visual impact of the gathering (as a photographer that is of course why I was there, I found the whole thing distinctly creepy. The fact Wat Phra Dhammakaya, a Bangkok temple known for aggressive fundraising, was the main organiser didn’t help. Like all religions, the Buddhist institution is riddled with corruption and cultism.

The ceremony started at 6 a.m. and lasted just over two hours. Of course the prayers were interspersed with plenty of requests to part with your money. The underlying theme seemed to be ‘Practice non-attachment, particularly to your money, land and property – it’s ok, we’ll take care of it for you’. Alas, the call for money is all too frequently heard at Buddhist temples these days .

What Buddha would have thought of it, we can only guess.

The photo above shows some followers at the event being greeted by monks. The ladies were seemingly oblivious to the backdrop. The writing says ‘Nude Resort’.

Another quickie.

A few weeks ago, on my last day in Yangon, I spent an hour or so wandering around Scott Market in Yangon, also known as Bogyoke Aung San Market. It’s a popular haunt for tourists looking to pick up last minute gifts such jewelry, textiles, and lacquerware. There are also plenty of gold shops and blackmarket money changers, the latter of which are feeling the pinch since Myanmar banks recently opened official currency exchanges and offer a better rate than on the street.

While I was in the market, I captured this image of a young Buddhist nun waiting patiently in front of a gold shop for an offering.  Unfortuantely she left empty handed.

Just time for a couple of quick posts before I head off to Cambodia. I’ll be in Phnom Penh for a few days photographing for sample page spreads for a new book on the country – a more comphrensive tome than the last one, Enchanting Cambodia. It’s almost a year since I was there and I’m looking forward to the trip. Phnom Penh is an energetic, fast changing city and will no doubt deliver a few surprises among the familiar.

The above shot was taken in a temple on Inle Lake in the Shan State, Myanmar. Once the sun became too bright to photograph on the lake I retreated into a temple where the light is often atmospheric.