We got the news a couple of days ago. Our dear abbot of Wat Tham Seua (Tiger Cave Temple) has passed away in Malaysia after years of medical care. He will be returned to our temple on 21 August 2026 in a caravan for his ceremony.
In Loving Memory of Luang Por Chamnien Silasettho (Jamnian Seelasettho)
May 1, 1936 – August 18, 2026
Disciples, devotees, and the people of southern Thailand are mourning the passing of one of the region’s most beloved meditation masters. Luang Por Chamnien Silasettho, founder of Wat Tham Sua (Tiger Cave Temple) in Krabi, left this life on the afternoon of August 18, 2026, in Malaysia. He was 90 years old and had worn the robes for 69 years.
His remains are being brought home today, August 21. The procession departed Malaysia at 10:00 a.m. local time, crossed at the Sadao checkpoint in Songkhla, and is expected to reach Wat Tham Sua in the late afternoon for the traditional religious ceremonies.
A Life Rooted in the South
Born on May 1, 1936, in Ban Pak Nakhon, Tha Rai Subdistrict, Mueang District, Nakhon Si Thammarat, young Chamnien showed an unusual inclination toward meditation from early childhood. He began sitting in silence under his parents’ guidance around the age of five. After his mother’s death when he was six, that inclination deepened into a lifelong commitment to the Dhamma and to treating all beings with equal kindness.
He ordained on July 2, 1957, at the age of 21 at Wat Nari Pradit in his home district, receiving the monastic name Silasettho. After seven years at his ordination temple he set out as a forest monk, wandering, studying the Tipiṭaka, and training under respected teachers of the time.
Founder of Tiger Cave Temple
In 1975 he established a Vipassana meditation center in the forests of Krabi, then known simply as Tham Sua Monastery. On December 30, 1985, it was formally recognized as a temple. What began as a quiet place of practice grew into Wat Tham Sua — Tiger Cave Temple — one of Krabi’s most important spiritual and cultural landmarks. Nestled among limestone cliffs and caves, with a steep climb to a mountaintop viewpoint overlooking the province, the temple draws both Thai devotees seeking the Dhamma and visitors from around the world.
In 2012, seeking quieter surroundings for practice and teaching, Luang Por moved on to establish or support other centers, including Wat Khao Lao in Ratchaburi and Rangsi Matchima Monastery in Saraburi. In his final years he resided in Malaysia for medical care.
Teacher of Warmth and Clear Seeing
Those who knew him remember a teacher of infectious warmth, gentle humor, and tireless patience. He taught Vipassana grounded in the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, the Noble Eightfold Path, and the Seven Factors of Enlightenment. Again and again he returned to the simple, demanding practice of observing desire and aversion as they arise, and of steering the mind back to the Middle Way in every situation of daily life.
During the turbulent years in southern Thailand he also served as a quiet peacemaker, offering the same steady guidance to villagers, officials, and those caught up in conflict. His teachings later reached far beyond Thailand — to the United States, Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, and elsewhere — carried by the same boundless metta that marked his presence.
Returning Home
Phra Thep Wachirakorn (Phra Ajarn Chai Purinthako), Deputy Chief Monk of Region 17 and Acting Abbot of Wat Tham Sua, traveled to Malaysia to arrange the return of Luang Por’s remains. Today the final journey brings him back to the temple he founded, where disciples and the faithful will gather to pay respects, make merit, and remember a life wholly given to the Dhamma.
The shade of a great tree has fallen, yet the path he pointed to remains. May the merit of his long practice support him, and may all who loved him continue the work of clear seeing and boundless kindness that he so generously shared.
Sadhu. Sadhu. Sadhu.
See some of Ajahn Chamnien’s amulets – newer and historical antiques – here: