Wat Bot (วัดโบสถ์)

Thai. ‘Temple of the Ordination Hall’. Name of a Buddhist temple, located along the banks of Khlong Kwae Om (คลองแควอ้อม) in Bang Kung (บางกุ้ง), Samut Songkhram, approximately 14 kilometres from the provincial city centre. The temple dates back to the late Ayutthaya period, a time spanning from 1351 to 1767 AD, when the Kingdom of Ayutthaya was a flourishing centre of culture, trade, and Theravada Buddhism in the region. According to local oral tradition, Wat Bot was founded by a wealthy man referred to as Setthi Thong, who is said to have had two wives—sisters by birth. The elder sister, Yai (ใหญ่), was the principal wife. One of Setthi Thong’s daughters ran away to live with a household slave, an act that enraged him. In response, he disinherited her and forbade her from ever returning home. The estranged daughter eventually settled in Ayutthaya, where she gave birth to a son named Sin (สิน). From a young age, Sin entered the monastic life, becoming a novice monk. He diligently studied the Dhamma and Vinaya and eventually achieved the respected title of Maha Parian, signifying mastery in Buddhist scriptures. Upon full ordination as a monk, Phra Maha Sin travelled to Bang Kung to visit his maternal grandparents. The reunion brought great joy to the family, and he was asked to relay a message of forgiveness from Setthi Thong (เศรษฐีทอง) to his daughter and to invite her and her husband to return and live together in Bang Kung. During this time, Setthi Thong had already begun constructing Wat Bot, though the temple remained incomplete. He extended an invitation to his monk nephew, Phra Maha Sin, to reside there, and the monk accepted. However, tragedy soon followed. The wealthy couple was killed during a violent robbery, and with their deaths, the temple’s construction ceased. To this day, Wat Bot remains unfinished—it lacks a chofa, bai raka, and other defining architectural elements of a completed ordination hall or ubosot. Adding to the temple's mystique is a tale connected to the Burmese–Siamese conflict during the Bang Kung War. It is said that the original ordination hall had a double-layered brick wall. When Burmese forces invaded, they dismantled the outer layer and used the bricks to construct a military encampment. The remaining bricks were then used by the temple to rebuild the wall as a single layer—the same structure that remains standing today. Wat Bot stands as a poignant reminder of personal reconciliation, unfinished aspirations, and the broader historical forces that shaped the region. Though incomplete, it continues to carry the weight of its narrative—layered with themes of repentance, devotion, loss, and legacy. WATCH VIDEO. 回