Wat Kaeo Fah

Wat Kaeo Fah sits on Khlong Bangkok Noi in Bang Kruai, part of Nonthaburi, and dates to around 1552, when officials loyal to the assassinated child-king Prince Kaeo Fah built it as a memorial to him. Entry is free, and most visitors today come for one specific reason: the temple’s kasin fire karma-cutting ceremony, held four times a day. It’s a common temple name (separate Wat Kaeo Fah temples stand in Ayutthaya and Samut Songkhram) so this is specifically the Bang Kruai temple on the Nonthaburi side of the river.

A memorial to an eleven-year-old king

Prince Kaeo Fah, also known as Somdet Phra Yot Fa, inherited the Ayutthaya throne at eleven years old and reigned barely a year before Khun Worawongsa had him killed. The temple built in his memory received formal boundary consecration in 1567 and 1571, and its old ordination hall still stands: an unglazed clay-tile roof with a central spire, stucco-framed windows, and eight arched colonnades in the classic late-Ayutthaya style. Inside, around 40 wall murals, reportedly worth tens of millions of baht, surround Luang Pho Yai, the temple’s principal Buddha image.

The kasin fire ceremony

The kasin fire ritual is what brings crowds now. Monks lead a meditation focused on the fire element while participants write their names on two slips of paper (one to cut away bad karma, one asking forgiveness) along with vegetable oil and alcohol, then burn the offerings in a container set in front of the ordination hall. Ceremonies run at 09:30, 13:30, 19:30, and midnight, with an extended fortune-blessing rite added on Buddhist holy days and Sunday afternoons.

The mood shifts noticeably around ceremony times. Outside them, Wat Kaeo Fah is a quiet neighbourhood temple where locals bring alms in the morning and children play in the courtyard between the old colonnades, a contrast to the more famous royal temple of Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat Worawihan elsewhere in the province, or the market island of Koh Kret a short drive north.

Insider Tip: Turn up 15-20 minutes before a scheduled burning: seating around the fire pit fills fast once a ceremony is announced over the temple’s PA system.

Watch out: The karma-cutting ritual draws a genuinely devout, sometimes emotional crowd. Treat it as a real ceremony rather than a photo opportunity, and ask before pointing a camera at anyone mid-ritual.

Planning your visit

Dress modestly and remove your shoes before entering the ordination hall, whether or not you’re there for a ceremony.