Buddhists and other visitors walk the levels of enlightenment perched on the side of Wat Phu Tok in north east Thailand
Wat Phu Tok also spelled Wat Phu Thawk in north east Thailand is known for its a remote sandstone outcrop deliberately left off maps but found by Buddhist pilgrims and a few tourists There is a modern area at the bottom of the outcrop but the wat temple complex is usually visited for the elaborate Buddhist construction including a temple in the overhang of rock on the outcrop It has a network of caves paths stairways and walkways that travel through seven levels representing the seven levels of enlightenment in Buddhism Those who complete the route must use thin plank walkways with sheer drops of hundreds of feet below Meditation and sleeping huts for 50 monks perch high on the outcrop At the ground level there is a modern marble chedi commemorating Phra Ajaan Juen the mediation master who founded the wat in 1968 and died in a plane crash 10 years later
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Photo credit: © John Keeble/VisualGems / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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