Tham Russi - LP0002

Martin Ellis - 28/03/2020

This small underground cavern is hollowed out from the laterite bedrock. The entrance is easily located by the ornate covering built to protect this venerated shrine. Steps lead down from the floor level to a square chamber dominated by a shrine with a statue of the hermit Wa Suthep. The cave is roughly square, about 4 x 4 m and 3 m high with a large hole in the roof, but it is difficult to estimate the natural size as it has almost certainly been enlarged by generations of worshippers. The temple is particulalrly significant in Buddhist mythology as it has seven footprints carved into the laterite. The footprints are believed to have been made by the Buddha himself, his disciple Ananda, hermit Wa Suthep, a seven year old child saint and Kru Ba Srivichai, a former abbot of the monastery and one of the most famous monks in Northern Thailand. The Buddha's print is the largest at 2.5 m long and even the hermit's is 43 cm, whereas the print of Kru Ba is the most realistic at 30 cm. A rock nearby is supposed to bear the imprint of the Buddha's robes which were laid out to dry.