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Luang Pu Paew Pawaroh - Wat Rung Mun

There are many temples in Thailand famous for its impenetrable or invulnerability "Kongkrapan Chatri" sacred talismans.  For this same reason many readers would take SimplyBuy's article as a reference source for learning purpose and some would take the opportunity to obtain the sacred talismans to trade for money.  Whichever way it is, after each article story is published the price value of the talismans will gradually surge.  It's very disheartening that this became a trend.

Although I've thought about limiting the content on amulets which accompany each temple, the story may have a lesser demographic.  It is in my hope that this trend could be avoided.

Above everything else, to write a meaningful story based on truthfulness is the basis of SimplyBuy blog's existence. In this article, I've decided to expand the story about this temple at Nakhon Pathom province in Thailand.

This is in view that this temple is currently undergoing massive building construction during the past few years.  I have no doubt the temple constructions will be fully accomplished due to the generosity and support from kindhearted people around.

This article story will feature Luang Pu Paew Pawaroh, the temple abbot of Wat Pracha Rat Bumrung or more popularly known as Wat Rung Mun which is located in Khampaengsaen district, Nakhon Pathom province.

To get to Wat Rung Mun it would take approximately 2 hours by car from Bangkok depending on traffic condition.  Nakhon Pathom is home to many famous monks and temples too from its ancient history to powerful amulets. The most well-known temple in Nakhon Pathom is perhaps Phra Pathom Chedi which is the oldest Buddhist site in Southeast Asia mostly frequented by tourists.  But we are not going anywhere near to tourist temples.   

To begin with, Luang Pu Paew was born on the 7th of Oct 1923.  He then ordained as a Buddhist monk in the Sangha Order on 27th June 1943 when he was just 20 years old. His ordination took place at Wat Nong Pla Lai in Khampaengsaen district.  Luang Pu Paew have been wearing the yellow robe serving Buddhism for 75 years until today.

Luang Pu Paew is highly respected by the locals and those who knew him from afar. On the another aspect, LP Paew's amulets are also very well-known and highly respected too for obvious reasons. I am not going to dwell about the amulet aspect here because it was written in one of my previous article - A Whirlwind Tour to Nakhon Pathom.

Before Wat Rung Mun (1959 to 2008) Luang Pu Paew was the abbot of another nearby temple called Wat Khampaengsaen.  That explains why Wat Rung Mun have been undergoing construction and development since its humble beginning from 2008 until what it is today under the guidance of the Venerable Luang Pu Paew.  

At 95 years old, Luang Pu Paew is still receiving many guests and well-wishers on a daily basis. It's almost a routine where Luang Pu Paew would give his blessing to people with his walking stick as he walked slowly toward the congregation area to receive all the guests.

Many visitors came here to support Buddhism cause and to make offerings just like to any other Buddhist temples around the world. Here at Wat Rung Mun the norm is to reach before 11.00am to offer Lunch Dana in accordance to Buddhist practice, and at the same time to meet Luang Pu Paew.

At times the Lunch Dana could be attended by many visitors especially on weekends.  It can be quite chaotic but done in an orderly fashion thanks to the loyal temple-helpers.

You may bring cooked food, fruits, salads, drinks etc. for the Lunch Dana. If that's inconvenient you can always opt to donate money at the donation boxes around the temple. The temple does not distinguish anybody whether they're rich or poor, old or young, sick or healthy.

Everyone is welcomed to Wat Rung Mun as long as you have faith in learning and practicing the Truth. Whatever merits that you would like to cultivate in your mind, you can do it with a happy heart right here.   

Amulets of Luang Pu Paew Pawaroh

Now comes the interesting part where readers and the amulet collectors love most.  Over the span of one decade various coins or medallion called Rian were minted for donation purpose to establish Wat Rung Mun. Below are some examples of the vast collections of LP Paew's sacred talismans.

The coins or talismans blessed by Luang Pu Paew are considered highly sacred due to many good experiences and feedback. Some of these are extreme cases such as surviving from gun shots or other life threatening incidences.

I do not want to make any further remarks nor to promote the talismans from Wat Rung Miun. The aim here is to covey a message to readers that many series of amulets have been consecrated over the years to help generate the required funds from donors for its building constructions.

There is no way you could collect all the amulet series because it will become a very costly affair.  A few examples of amulets from Wat Rung Mun are shown in the above just for knowledge purpose without any intention to gratify reader's insatiable attachment to own them.

Luang Pu Paew have dedicated his life to lead the life as a Buddhist monk since 1945 and to teach Buddhism to everyone until today. This is a very noble act by any one person to be able to uphold the Buddha's teaching for the benefit of mankind.

With this short article story, I hope you will find solace and peace in the Buddha Sasana. May the Starlight of wisdom illuminate the way toward enlightenment for us all.

Sadhu! Sadhu! Sadhu!

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Adventure Trail Hiking - Pertak Bukit Kutu

This is a weekend hiking adventure to one of Malaysia's pristine rainforest named Bukit Kutu. It's a challenging experience with a lot of breathtaking sceneries along the climb uphill to an elevation of 1,000 meters. This journey took us from Kuala Lumpur through a scenic drive all the way to Kampung Pertak that is approximately 10km away from Kuala Kubu Bharu.

In this story I will share my own personal experience from a first-time adventure trail seeker's perspective.  The mountain that I'm going to conquer today will take a hiking journey of 7 hours of moderate speed to complete the entire trail.

To get here, the nearest landmark is an old town in Kuala Kubu Bharu to stopover for breakfast or a sumptuous meal. This is your last stop to get all your essential requisites such as bottled mineral water, packed food, bread, chocolate bars, candies, etc.  I chose to have a hearty breakfast at one of the few coffee shops around town.

I've been to this old Kuala Kubu town a couple of times to stopover before heading to Chilling Waterfall on the same route toward Kampung Pertak - an Orang Asli settlement for this outdoor adventure.  The atmosphere here is pretty laid back and somewhat serene and peaceful. As soon as you've replenished your supplies with a full stomach quickly head toward Kampung Pertak because it's difficult to find car park there as this place is getting very popular with weekend hikers and picnickers. 

After you found a spot to park your car at Kampung Pertak you may begin to head toward the base of the mountain.  You can get assistance from other hikers for the correct direction because this place is quite popular nowadays for the perfect hiking getaway.

There are shallow streams to cross-over before reaching the base of Bukit Kutu.  Its very refreshing to breath the air here. Everything is natural and organic.  The only way to preserve this natural habitat is to use my camera to capture its beauty without destroying any part of this rainforest.

The bridge crossing and river crossing that I've shown here will be the same route that you will take to return to Kampung Pertak at the end of the journey.  In other words this trail is one-way up and one-way down. You will meet other hikers along the way and follow the proper marking for direction.

For the most part during the early hiking journey you can see the walkway path that leads the direction.  Surface is still flat at this moment after the last river crossing.  As a word of advise it is better to remove your socks and shoes during the river crossing with your bare feet.  If your hiking shoes and socks are wet it would be very difficult to walk the long journey for another 3 hours before reaching the summit.   

Just make sure your feet stays dry. The other most important aspect for this type of outdoor hiking adventure is about dehydration.  You need to carry enough water for your own. But carrying too much weights will make your rucksack become heavy for this long hiking trip with steep elevation.

After experiencing this journey, my advise is to get a 1.5 Litre bottled water and another bottle of 0.7 litre 100 Plus isotonic drink.  Isotonic drink will give you the extra boost of energy. You need to conserve your water ration appropriately so that when you reach the summit only half of your water ration is used up. You need to preserve the other half of your water ration for the way downward.  Many folks thought that coming down the mountain is much easier. But this may not be true for steep mountain like this in and the dense forest heat will dehydrate you easily making you feel tired and drag your movement to a prolong period. I bet you don't want to me the last one to come out from the jungle trail.

Journey planning is very important.  You need to know how many hours is your outdoor trail going to take and whether it's a flat land surface or elevation height.  For mountain hike like Bukit Kutu or other similar mountains we really need to plan what to take along but it has to be light enough to endure the whole journey.

From photos it doesn't look very steep. But believe me it is steep enough for an average hiker.  I took along a walking pole to assist in my balance while walking up the uneven steep trail.

Along the way up you will be rewarded with some remarkable views while taking a 2-3 minutes break. The trick here is not to over-exert yourself.  Take a short rest if you feel you are short of breath.  Don't rush but keep a check on time management.

At 805 meters from my altimeter reading, there's another 200 meters to go before reaching the summit.  But this 200 meters would take another 1 hour of uphill effort.  A moderate hiking speed from the start of journey until reaching the summit would take approximately 3.5 hours.

Reaching the top is a sense of achievement.  For all the hardwork you've put up during this uphill hike you can now enjoy a light meal that you brought along.

Depending on the hour of the day most hikers would spend between 20 - 30 minutes for a quick rest and selfies.  After that it's all the way down that will take another 3 hours.  Assuming you've made it to the summit at 1.00pm and the estimated descending time to reach your car would be around 4.00pm.  Don't forget that you will need to drive from Pertak to reach your home destination before sunset and have dinner with your family and chat about this wonderful experience.  In saying that you don't have much of a luxury time to spend at the top of Bukit Kutu.  As soon as you've enough rest and satisfied you must begin your journey to descend.  Descending down is just as agonizing as the way up.  Remember I've said earlier to conserve your water ration. You will need it to stay energetic and steady.

After an agonizing pain of walking down from 1,000 meters you will find civilization when you started seeing day tripper folks at the river streams that you've crossed earlier in the morning.  Overall this adventure hike is a success for me and to others on this day.

"There Are No Shortcuts To Anyplace Worth Going"

I hope you've enjoyed reading this hiking story with picturesque atmosphere of lush rainforest setting to aspire your next adventure.   



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