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Feb 2010

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Written by Editor
Thursday, 07 October 2010 14:08
VOL 4 ISSUE NO 3 FEBRUARY 2010 The Illustrated Men page 4

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Thursday, 07 October 2010 14:07

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Thursday, 07 October 2010 13:49

The Illustrated Men

Tattoo mania at Wat Bang Phra

by Dave Stamboulis

I am standing in front of a sea of men, along with a few women mixed in, most of who are covered in prolific body tattoos depicting various animals, mythological creatures, numerological encryptions, and Khmer and Buddhist texts. The majority of the men are entering deep trances, and many of them are beginning to snarl and froth at the mouth.

Suddenly, the man in front of me leaps to his feat, stares me in the eye, and utters a guttural scream. Convinced he is a tiger, he comes charging at me at full speed, and I have to make like a matador, or more appropriately, like an Olympic 100-meter sprinter, to avoid being hit head on.

Imagine being at a Black Sabbath concert, with a thousand raving lunatics trying to rush the stage, being staved off by a squadron of soldiers, with only as the buffer between the lunatics and the troops, and you get the idea of what being a photographer at the Wat Bang Phra Tattoo Festival entails.

Wat Bang Phra is a rural temple located in Nakhorn Chaisri, some forty kilometers from Bangkok. The temple is famed for its previous abbot, Luang Phor Pern, who specialized in giving and activating talismanic tattoos, which purport to protect the wearer from harm, and can also bestow financial success, family prosperity, and other good luck to the illustrated elite. Luang Phor Pern died several years ago, but Wat Bang Phra continues on with his traditions, climaxed by the annual temple fair.

Young men make up a majority of the blessed, especially those who are involved in dangerous occupations, such as drivers, laborers, stunt men, and those with links to the mafia, as the tattoos are supposed to work very strong charms once activated, not to mention that they offer a relatively inexpensive form of insurance. To say that the crowd is somewhat akin to a heavy metal rock show attended by a bunch of parolees might not be too far from the truth.

The monks at Wat Bang Phra use long metal rods dipped in a mixture of snake venom, ash, and various herbs to apply the tattoos. Wielding the needles like ice axes, they go about their grisly work. Given the size and details of the tattoos, after the pain the wearers must suffer to be engraved upon, the rest of the day’s tribulations must be easy.

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Thursday, 07 October 2010 13:38

In the early morning hours, the faithful sit cross-legged on mats in front of a platform that has a large statue of Luang Phor Pern, as well as a spirit house and other religious paraphernalia. According to tradition, once the tattooed start going into trances, their tattoos “wake up” and begin calling to their monks up on the stage. The men then begin to act like the animals depicted on their backs and chests. Lizards slither and crawl on their bellies, hermits inch along like old men, birds flap their wings and screech… and then there are the tigers, which the wat is most famed for, who growl, roar, and eventually charge in a frenzy towards the stage.

The troops of soldiers are waiting for them, often 4-5 men per charging animal, and they grab the followers in bear hugs, also rubbing their ears, which is meant to calm the madmen down (“That’s a nice kitty, isn’t it?”). There are open lanes between the rows of seated men, which attempt to give the entranced an unobstructed beeline to the stage, but in their stupor, these paths aren’t always adhered to, leading to a fair amount of tripping over bodies and head-on collisions.

I attempted to take photos from behind a row of seated men, thinking I was safe, only to discover while focusing that the fellow in front of me had decided to wake up and charge the stage. Looking around at the chaos, with men covered in dust and sometimes blood, it didn’t look too far different from a mosh pit at some frenzied musical event.

Once the monks have finished their chantings and blessings, a signal is given, and the faithful get up and rush the podium in one final bout of chaotic madness. Everyone tries to reach the stage for a final blessing, and the monks spray water hoses over the crowd to cool things off.

In typical Thai fashion, things are suddenly over, with nobody any longer in any kind of trance or acting weird. Vendors hawk som tam and noodles, couples flock to buy wat trinkets, people comment on how “sanuk” (fun) the event was, and it looks like any old temple fair. The faithful climb aboard buses home, convinced that they are safe and that their tigers are back in their cages… at least for another year.

The festival runs on auspicious days chosen by Wat Bang Phra’s abbot with short notice before the event. BT has “confirmed” that it is set for February 27th, but Google it or check the forum on Richard Barrow’s website, www.thailandqa.com, before heading out to make sure.

Getting to Wat Bang Phra: By car, take Highway 4 west of Bangkok heading to Nakhon Pathom; Nakhon Chaisri is about 10km before Nakhon Pathom. Turn right at the main junction of the town and Highway 4. There are fairly prominent signs heading to the temple from here, another 10 minutes away on a few backroads. By public transport, buses leave Bangkok frequently from the Southern Bus Station, stopping in Nakhon Chaisri, where on festival day, plenty of songthaew trucks are waiting out on Highway 4 to take visitors to the temple.

Dave Stamboulis is a freelance photographer and travel writer based in Bangkok. He is the author of “Odysseus’ Last Stand,” which received the Silver Medal Book of the Year award from the Society of American Travel Writers. He can be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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