Somdej Toh (สมเด็จโต) is the popular name of Somdet Phra Phutthachan (To Phrommarangsi, สมเด็จพระพุฒาจารย์ (โต พฺรหฺมรํสี)), a Thai Buddhist monk born on 17 April 1788 and died on 22 June 1872 [1], [2], [5], [7]. He was abbot of Wat Rakhang Khositaram (Wat Rakang) in Bangkok from 1852 to 1872 [2], [8]. In Thai religious life he is known as a preacher, as the reviser of the Chinabanchorn (Jinapañjara) chant and as the monk linked to the Phra Somdej Wat Rakang amulets [1], [7], [14].
Key facts
| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Full title | Somdet Phra Phutthachan (To Phrommarangsi); monastic name (chaya) Brahmaraṃsi | [1], [2] |
| Born | 17 April 1788 (2331 BE), Tha Ruea district, Ayutthaya province | [2], [3], [5], [7] |
| Full ordination | Sources differ: 1807 (2350 BE) at Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram (Wat Phra Kaew) in Thai Wikipedia; 1808 in Daily News; 1809 (2352 BE) at Wat Takrai in the 2021 JIBS study and Thai PBS | [2], [3], [4], [5], [7] |
| Abbot of Wat Rakang | 1852–1872 (2395–2415 BE) | [2], [8] |
| Highest rank | Somdet Phra Phutthachan, conferred 1864 (2407 BE) | [2], [4] |
| Died | 22 June 1872 (2415 BE), aged 84, at Wat Intharawihan, Bangkok | [2], [3], [4], [5] |
| Best-known works | Revised Jinapañjara chant; giant Buddha images at Wat Intharawihan, Wat Chaiyo and Wat Sathue | [2], [3], [14] |
Who was Somdej Toh?
Somdej Toh lived through the first five reigns of the Chakri dynasty, from Rama I to Rama V [2], [20]. A review of Justin McDaniel's The Lovelorn Ghost and the Magical Monk describes him as a high-ranking nineteenth-century Bangkok monk whom many regard as the most popular Buddhist saint in contemporary central Thailand [16]. The book (Columbia University Press, 2011) says that stories about him and the ghost Mae Nak are central to Thai Buddhism [15].
Three kinds of material survive about him:
- Documented record. Birth and death dates, royal ranks and abbotship. Thai Wikipedia, the Thai press and a 2021 academic study agree on the birth and death dates, not on the ordination year [2], [4], [5], [7]. Komchadluek closely follows the Thai Wikipedia text, so it is not a separate witness [2], [3].
- Early biographies. Thai lives by Phraya Thiphakosa (Son Lohanan) and, in 1952, Triyampawai. Thai Wikipedia calls Thiphakosa's the oldest organised biography, compiled in 1930 (2473 BE) from the accounts of people who knew him. They disagree on points such as his parentage [2].
- Legend. Anecdotes passed on by word of mouth. Thanissaro Bhikkhu, who retold some in English, says he cannot vouch for their accuracy [6].
Somdej Toh's early life: birth, parents and the royal-father story
Birth in Ayutthaya province
Thai biographies date his birth to Thursday, the 12th waxing day of the fifth lunar month, Year of the Monkey: 17 April 1788, about seven years after Bangkok became the capital [2], [4]. His birthplace is given as Ban Kai Chon (Ban Tha Luang), Tha Ruea district, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province [2], [3]. A Tha Luang oral tradition, which Thai Wikipedia records as such, says he was born on a boat moored in front of Wat Kai Chon [2].
His mother: the accounts differ
One version names his mother Ngut, from a farming family in Kamphaeng Phet. Another, by Phra Khru Kalyana Anukun, names her Ket, from Tha It in Bang Pho [2], [3]. The versions agree only that she came from the "northern" region and later moved to central Siam [2], [3].
His father: a legend, not a record
His parents' identity is not certain [2]. Accounts make him the son of a king: Phraya Thiphakosa's biography an illegitimate son of Rama I, from before Rama I took the throne, and other Thai versions a son of Rama II [2]. English-language retellings usually follow the Rama II version [1], [6]. Thai Wikipedia and Komchadluek describe the royal-father story as folk belief, not established history [2], [3].
Ordination and training: how To became "Phra Maha To"
Novice and monk
Thai accounts place his ordination as a novice (samanera) in 1800 (2343 BE) [2], [3]. The date and place of his full ordination are disputed. Thai Wikipedia, citing a Wat Rakang library biography, gives 1807 (2350 BE) at Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram (the Temple of the Emerald Buddha), as a nak luang (a king-sponsored candidate), with the Supreme Patriarch Somdet Phra Ariyawongsayan (Suk Yanasangwon) as preceptor [2], [3]. Daily News gives 1808 [4]. A 2021 study in the Journal of International Buddhist Studies, citing Prince Damrong, gives 1809 (2352 BE), at age 21, at Wat Takrai (Wat Ratchaburana) in Phitsanulok, and mentions Wat Phra Kaew only as another account [7]. Thai PBS also gives 1809 at Wat Takrai, but in Phichit [5].
His monastic name was Phrommarangsi (Brahmaraṃsi). Thai Wikipedia says he was called Phra Maha To because he was a Pali scholar (prian, เปรียญธรรม), but also that he declined to sit the Pali examinations, so it is inconsistent here [2].
Study and the "school of Somdej Toh"
The 2021 study says he studied the scriptures (pariyatti) in the older Pali tradition and practised insight meditation. It describes an informal "school" around him that trained novices and monks from many provinces, many of whom later taught in their home regions. It credits him with a pioneering Thai translation of a commentary on the Mūlapariyāya Sutta and with moral verse for students and lay people [7].
Thai PBS says he studied Dhamma under Phra Arannyik (Duang) at Wat Bang Khun Phrom Nok (Wat Intharawihan) and the scriptures at Wat Rakang [5]. Thai biographies say Rama II took him under royal patronage [3].
From Phra Maha To to Somdet Phra Phutthachan: royal ranks under King Mongkut
Declining rank under Rama III
Thai biographies say he declined a royal ecclesiastical rank offered by Rama III and remained plain Phra Maha To for that whole reign [2], [3]. Daily News says he liked to go on ascetic journeys [4]. Thai PBS says he spent about 15 years of the Third Reign wandering through forests and mountains to train his mind [5].
Three promotions under Rama IV
Under King Mongkut (Rama IV, reigned 1851–1868) he accepted rank [19]. The years below are from Thai Wikipedia and Daily News; Thai Wikipedia cites the 1864 appointment to a published compilation of senior Rattanakosin-era ecclesiastical appointments [2], [4]. We have not seen the proclamations themselves.
| Year | Rank (Thai) | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1852 (2395 BE) | Phra Thammakitti (พระธรรมกิติ) | First royal rank; made abbot of Wat Rakang (age given as 65) | [2], [3], [4] |
| 1854 (2397 BE) | Phra Thepkawi (พระเทพกระวี) | Promotion to a senior rank; Daily News spells it พระเทพกวี | [2], [3], [4] |
| 1864 (2407 BE) | Somdet Phra Phutthachan (สมเด็จพระพุฒาจารย์) | His highest rank, held until death | [2], [3], [4] |
Thai PBS and Thai Wikipedia number him the fifth holder of the title in the Rattanakosin era. Thai Wikipedia lists 22 holders (the title is still conferred), but its list includes earlier holders of the lower rank Phra Phutthachan, and its own history names Son of Wat Saket, in 1851 (2394 BE), as the first raised to Somdet grade under this name [5], [18]. Thai PBS says Toh received the title at about 76, after Son had died [5].
Wat Rakang: the temple Somdej Toh led
Wat Rakhang Khositaram, usually called Wat Rakang, stands on the west (Thonburi) bank of the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok Noi district, near Siriraj Hospital [8]. Its formal Thai name is วัดระฆังโฆสิตารามวรมหาวิหาร [9].
How Wat Rakang got its name
- The temple dates from the Ayutthaya period, when it was called Wat Bang Wa Yai [8], [9].
- King Taksin of Thonburi restored it and made it a royal temple [8].
- Under Rama I, a bell was dug up in the grounds. The king moved it to Wat Phra Kaew and gave the temple five new bells in exchange [8], [9].
- The temple was then renamed Rakhang Khositaram, from rakhang, "bell", in memory of the find [8], [9].
Somdej Toh at Wat Rakang
He was abbot for about 20 years, until his death [2], [4], [8]. His statue stands in the Vihara of Somdet Phra Phutthachan To, facing the vihara of the Supreme Patriarch (Si); the building is dated 2503 BE (1960) [9]. The temple also keeps an old Tripitaka hall (Ho Phra Trai) with murals, and was registered as an ancient monument on 22 November 1949 [8], [9].
Wat Rakang today
Wat Rakang is on the Tourism Authority of Thailand's "nine temples" circuit [8]. Pattaya Mail reported a 148th death-anniversary commemoration there in 2020 [23]; Komchadluek marked the 151st in 2023 with a biography [3]. The Nation (12 April 2026) announced a procession of his image for 13 April 2026, during Songkran [22].
The giant Buddha images Somdej Toh built
The Thai word to (โต) means "big", and Daily News notes that his monuments were all very large, to match his name [4]. Three are documented.
Reclining Buddha, Wat Sathue (Ayutthaya)
Wat Sathue, in Tha Luang subdistrict, Tha Ruea district, on the Pa Sak River near his birthplace, has a reclining Buddha credited to him, recorded as 52 metres long, 9 wide and 16 high. Thai Wikipedia dates the temple to 1857 (2400 BE) and says he stayed in a boat-shaped hall on site while overseeing the work [13].
Seated Buddha, Wat Chaiyo Worawihan (Ang Thong)
Under Rama IV he built a large outdoor seated Buddha in meditation posture at what was then an old non-royal temple in Chaiyo district, Ang Thong. During a restoration ordered by Rama V in 1887, the image collapsed while foundations for a new hall were laid; a new one was finished in 1895. It is recorded as 22.65 metres high and 16.10 metres across the lap [12].
Standing Buddha, Wat Intharawihan (Bangkok)
At Wat Intharawihan, in Bangkok's Phra Nakhon district, he began a standing Buddha in the alms-bowl posture in 1867 (2410 BE). Known as Luang Pho To or Phra Si Ariyamettrai, it was his last major project [2], [10], [11]. About 32 metres tall and 10 wide, it had reached only the navel when he died and was finished in the 1920s [2], [10], [11]. A relic given by the Government of Sri Lanka was later enshrined in its topknot (ushnisha) [10], [11].
Somdej Toh and the Chinabanchorn (Jinapañjara) chant
The Jinapañjara Gāthā (Thai ชินบัญชร, Chinabanchorn) is a Pali chant. It belongs to the paritta, a class of chants that Wikipedia describes as protective texts, but it is post-canonical: it does not come from the Pali Canon itself [14]. Its title is usually rendered "the cage" or "armour" of the Conqueror, meaning the Buddha [14].
Did Somdej Toh write it?
Popular sources often say he composed the chant [1], [3]. The scholarly summary is narrower:
- Original author unknown. Historians have not identified who composed it or where. It is commonly assumed to be the work of a Lanna (northern Thai) monk [14].
- Versions outside Thailand. The text is also found in Myanmar and Sri Lanka, where a Sinhalese Cūḷajinapañjara exists [14].
- His role. He modified and completed the Thai text, translated it and removed obscure passages [14]. The 2021 study credits him with promoting the chant in Thai society [7].
In a traditional account given by Thai PBS, he came across an old text at a temple and told King Mongkut it was a northern version that he had revised and shortened, while a longer Sri Lankan version existed [5]. The same report connects the text to a Lanna palm-leaf record of a monk's pilgrimage to Sri Lanka in 1438 [5]. We have not been able to check that record independently.
Legends of Somdej Toh: what accounts say
The stories below are legends, attributed to the sources that tell them.
Stories retold by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
Thanissaro Bhikkhu's essay Legends of Somdet Toh (2006) retells tales he values for their lessons while saying he cannot vouch for their accuracy [6]. Among them:
- The bowl of water. A young woman slows a thirsty nobleman's drinking by scattering lotus stamens on the water. He later becomes Rama II, and their child is Toh, who is recognised by a belt the nobleman left [6].
- Teacher to Mongkut. Toh trains Prince Mongkut as his "older brother monk", then leaves for the forest when Mongkut is passed over for the throne [6].
- The king's drinking. Rama IV scolds Toh for paddling his own boat. Toh answers that when the king drinks in public, Somdets may paddle their own boats [6].
- Dogs at mealtimes. Toh feeds stray dogs at his meals, so proud visitors have to bow towards the dogs to speak to him [6].
- The centre of the world. Toh answers foreign missionaries by planting his staff in front of his hut and calling that spot the centre of the world [6].
In Thanissaro's telling, Rama IV makes Toh a Somdet and abbot of Wat Rakang soon after the 1851 coronation; the Thai biographies date these to 1852 (abbotship) and 1864 (Somdet) [2], [6]. English-language summaries call him a preceptor or teacher of Prince Mongkut, a monk from 1824 to 1851 [1], [19], [21]; the Thai biographies used here do not document this.
Somdej Toh and Mae Nak
Somdej Toh also appears in versions of the Mae Nak Phra Khanong ghost story, which folklore sets in the reign of Rama IV [17]. In one version he confines Nak's spirit in a piece of her forehead bone tied to his waistband; legend says the waistband passed into royal hands, and Prince Abhakara of Chumphon also claimed the relic. In another, he persuades Nak to move on by telling her she will meet her husband again in a future life [17].
Mediums and devotion
Thanissaro notes that many mediums have claimed to channel Somdej Toh's spirit since his death [6], and the New Mandala review of McDaniel mentions a shrine grotto dedicated to him and chanting clubs around the Jinapañjara [16]. These belong to his modern following, not to the historical record.
Phra Somdej amulets: a short note
The Phra Somdej Wat Rakang amulets are votive tablets linked to Somdej Toh, which Thai Wikipedia counts among the Benjapakee, the five premier sets of Thai amulets [9]. Thairath says he made them over about six years, 1866 to 1872 (2409–2415 BE), and that nobody counted how many [20]. Thai PBS presumes they began about 1864, after his Somdet rank [5]. Thairath describes the main material as white lime (ปูนขาว) mixed with powders (ผงพุทธคุณ) and bound with tang-iu oil, and Thai PBS lists shell lime (ปูนเปลือกหอย) among the ingredients [5], [20]. Both name five standard moulds: Pim Yai, Chedi, Ket Bua Tum, Than Saem and Prok Pho [20]. The 2021 study links the tablets to Buddhānussati, the practice of recollecting the Buddha [7]. Our Phra Somdej article covers moulds, judging and replicas; our price index lists observed listing prices for comparable pieces.
Death and legacy of Somdej Toh
Death at Wat Intharawihan, 1872
Somdej Toh died at noon on Saturday, 22 June 1872 (2415 BE), under Rama V, aged 84, in an old pavilion at Wat Intharawihan (then Wat Bang Khun Phrom), where his standing Buddha was still being built [1], [2], [3], [4]. One English source gives 1871 [10]; all the others used here give 1872 [2], [3], [4], [5], [7], [23].