A Luang Phor Parn tiger amulet is a small tiger figure carved from a tiger's tooth (เขี้ยวเสือแกะ, khiao suea kae), the work for which Phra Kru Pipat Nirodhkij, known as Luang Phor Parn, the former abbot of Wat Mongkol Kothawat (Wat Bang Hia) in Samut Prakan, became known [1]. King Chulalongkorn's own account of meeting him records tiger figures carved from tiger fangs in small and large sizes; the letter gives a usual price of one baht each, rising to three baht, and by report even six, when people competed for them [14], [1]. Two other monks have similar names: a second Luang Phor Parn at Wat Bang Nomkho in Ayutthaya, known for fired-clay amulets [3], [4], and Luang Phor Pern of Wat Bang Phra, known for sak yant tattooing [5], [6].
Dates follow the sources, mostly in the Buddhist Era (BE); a CE year in brackets is a plain conversion (BE minus 543), not the source's figure.
Key facts
| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Monk | Phra Kru Pipat Nirodhkij (Luang Phor Parn, หลวงพ่อปาน), born BE 2368 (1825 CE), died 29 August BE 2453 (1910 CE) | [1], [15] |
| Temple | Wat Mongkol Kothawat, also called Wat Luang Phor Parn; first named Wat Bang Hia Nok; Tambon Khlong Dan, Bang Bo, Samut Prakan | [2] |
| Known for | Tiger figures carved from tiger fangs (เขี้ยวเสือแกะ) | [1], [14], [15] |
| Royal record | King Chulalongkorn's letter on the Prachin region trip, dated 24 December R.S. 127 (BE 2451, 1908 CE) | [14] |
| Prices in that account | As written in the letter: usually 1 baht per figure, rising to 3 baht, and by report 6 baht, when people competed (baht, 1908) | [14] |
| Namesake in Ayutthaya | Phra Kru Viharagijjanukan (Luang Phor Parn of Wat Bang Nomkho), 16 July BE 2418 to 26 July BE 2481; fired-clay amulets | [3], [4], [16] |
| Wat Bang Phra | Luang Phor Pern (Phra Udom Prachanart), abbot BE 2517 to BE 2545; sak yant | [5], [6] |
Who was Luang Phor Parn of Wat Bang Hia?
Thai Wikipedia describes Phra Kru Pipat Nirodhkij, known as Luang Phor Parn, as a former abbot of Wat Mongkol Kothawat (Wat Bang Hia) and a noted master monk (เกจิอาจารย์) famous for making carved tiger teeth [1]. He was a native of Tambon Bang Hia, today's Khlong Dan, and was born in BE 2368 as the third child of Pleum and Tan, who were both of Chinese descent [1]. Post Today gives the same birth year [15].
As a boy he studied at Wat Arun Ratchawararam and was ordained a novice with Phra Sri Sakyabut (Seng) as preceptor, but he later left the robes to help earn a living for his family [1]. At the age of 20 he was ordained a monk at Wat Arun with the same preceptor [1]. His monastic name is not firmly recorded; the article says some give Tissaro [1]. After a period studying meditation (กรรมฐาน) he returned to Wat Mongkol Kothawat and in time became its abbot [1].
The same article says that at the Chatra Mongkhon ceremony of R.S. 120 King Chulalongkorn raised him to a royal-warrant Phra Kru with the title Pipat Nirodhkij and a monthly allowance of 6 baht [1]. The temple's own Thai Wikipedia page tells it differently, saying the king conferred the rank after staying three nights at the Bang Hia sluice gate in early BE 2452 [2]. The two pages disagree on when the title was given.
He died on 29 August BE 2453 (1910 CE) after an illness described as an abscess in the neck [1], [15]. On 9 April BE 2454 (1911 CE) King Rama VI had officials send the royal cremation chest and gave 1,000 satang and two folded white cloths [1].
What did King Chulalongkorn write about the tiger carvings?
The main contemporary record is a royal letter, Sadet Praphat Monthon Prachin, dated 24 December R.S. 127 (BE 2451, 1908 CE), written when the king travelled to inspect the building of the irrigation gate on the Bang Hia canal [14]. The text is published by the Vajirayana Digital Library, and Thai Wikipedia quotes the passage in which he describes meeting the Phra Kru [14], [1].
The king wrote that the monk was esteemed for vipassana and dhutanga (forest-wandering) practice, and that monks from various temples, two or three hundred of them, walked with him [14]. The route ran down towards Bang Pla Soi, back up through Prachin, Nakhon Nayok and Phra Bat, and down through Saraburi along the railway line without riding the trains, except for monks who were exhausted or ill [14]. They returned to Bang Hia through Bangkok, leaving in the second lunar month and getting back in the fifth or sixth [1]. The king recorded that he had kept up this routine for 40 years [14].
On what people valued, the king listed takrut inscribed by the monk, thread tied around the wrist and lustral water; the most popular item, he wrote, was the tiger figure carved from tiger fangs, some small and some large, and roughly made [14].
His description of the man is short: a kind old monk of calm manner, aged 70 but not yet very old, big and sturdily built, who said little and let others speak for him [14].
How much did the tiger figures cost in 1908?
The king wrote that, in his view, those around the monk gained from making things to sell, tiger carvings among them; the letter says these normally cost one baht each and went up to three baht, and by report six baht, when people scrambled for them [14]. After obtaining a figure, he wrote, people took it to the Phra Kru to be consecrated [14].
These figures are as written in the royal letter, also quoted on Thai Wikipedia and in a 2019 Post Today article; they are not a market survey, and the amounts are in baht of 1908 [14], [1], [15]. We found no independent published price series for these pieces, so this article gives no current valuation.
Sourced observations for other series are collected in our observed listing prices, which is the only place on this site where market prices are shown with their source and date.
What is Wat Mongkol Kothawat (Wat Bang Hia)?
Thai Wikipedia lists the common names of the temple as Wat Mongkol Kothawat, Wat Luang Phor Parn and Wat Bang Hia Nok, in Tambon Khlong Dan, Bang Bo District, Samut Prakan, close to Khlong Dan market [2].
According to the page, building began on 15 April BE 2300 (1757 CE) and the first name, Wat Bang Hia Nok, came from Tambon Bang Hia, which had many monitor lizards (เหี้ย) [2]. After the king's stay at the sluice gate, it says, the temple took the name Mongkol Kothawat, though people kept calling it Wat Luang Phor Parn [2]. The ordination hall received its boundary consecration (วิสุงคามสีมา) on 19 June BE 2512 (1969 CE) [2].
A cast image of Luang Phor Parn, made before his death, is kept at his residence (กุฏิ) [2]. Each year, on the 5th to 7th waxing days of the 12th lunar month, the image is taken out for worship and gold-leaf offering at the Bang Bo district office [2].
Which Luang Phor Parn is which? Wat Bang Hia and Wat Bang Nomkho
The two monks of the same name compare as follows.
| Point | Wat Bang Hia (Wat Mongkol Kothawat) | Wat Bang Nomkho |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Khlong Dan, Bang Bo, Samut Prakan [2] | Tambon Bang Nomkho, Sena, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya [3], [4] |
| Formal title | Phra Kru Pipat Nirodhkij [1] | Phra Kru Viharagijjanukan [3] |
| Dates | Born BE 2368, died 29 August BE 2453 [1] | 16 July BE 2418 to 26 July BE 2481, aged 63 [3], [16] |
| Known for | Carved tiger-fang figures [1] | Fired-clay amulets with animal forms [4], [12] |
| Tiger figures | Yes, in the king's account [1] | None named in the sources checked [4], [12] |
Luang Phor Parn of Wat Bang Nomkho
Born on 16 July BE 2418 (1875 CE) in Tambon Bang Nomkho, he was of the Suttawong family [3], [16]. Thai Wikipedia dates his ordination at Wat Bang Nomkho to BE 2439 and Thairath to 1 April BE 2438; both name Luang Phor Sun of Wat Bang Pla Mo as preceptor and give his monastic name as Sonando [3], [16]. The page says he learned to make clay amulets from a figure called Chi Pa Khao, and learned consecration and the Yant Krapao Phet (diamond armour yantra) from Ajarn Chaeng of Sawankhalok [3].
He received a royal-warrant rank as Phra Kru Viharagijjanukan on 6 November BE 2474 (1931 CE) [3]. The page lists him as the third abbot of Wat Bang Nomkho, from BE 2478 to BE 2481 [3]. He died on 26 July BE 2481 (1938 CE) at 63 after 42 vassa, and the page says he left fired-clay amulets, Yant Krapao Phet cloths and the Pacceka-bodhisatta katha to his pupils [3].
His clay amulets
The Wat Bang Nomkho page says the temple is known for fired-clay amulets plugged with his Phong Itthije powder, and describes them as the only batch he made and consecrated himself [4]. It says the technique came from Chi Pa Khao and dates the first batch, showing the Buddha seated on a throne above animals, to BE 2450 (1907 CE) [4]. The page speaks of seven animals without naming them [4].
A Post Today article on the "four-line tail rooster" print names six animal forms: rooster, Hanuman, garuda, fish, porcupine and bird [12]; a Thairath article lists the same six [16]. None of these sources lists a tiger. The temple page also records an annual memorial for him on 26 July [4]. If a listing calls a clay tablet from Wat Bang Nomkho a "tiger" piece, the sources checked here give no support for that.
Luang Phor Pern of Wat Bang Phra and the tiger yantra story
Wat Bang Phra is in Nakhon Chaisi District, Nakhon Pathom, about 50 km west of Bangkok [6]. Thai Wikipedia gives its founding as around BE 2220 (1677 CE), in the late Ayutthaya period, with the builder unknown, while English Wikipedia says the temple dates to the late 18th century [5], [6]. The two pages disagree.
Phra Udom Prachanart, known as Luang Phor Pern (Pern Thitakuno), was abbot from BE 2517 to BE 2545 (1974 to 2002 CE), and the temple is known for sak yant tattooing [5]. English Wikipedia says he ordained at Wat Bang Phra at 25 and studied under the abbot Luang Pu Him Inthasoto, a sak yant master, although he was never tattooed himself [6]. He died in 2002 aged 79 [6].
The tiger link comes from a single account. In 1953, the article says, he wandered in the forests of Kanchanaburi on the Myanmar border, where villagers had been mauled or killed by wild tigers; he offered katha and sak yant and taught that tiger yantras could fend off attacks [6]. The article adds that nobody who received his help was ever attacked, which is a devotional claim we could not check independently [6]. It also says devotional images of him today often show him meditating on the back of a tiger [6].
Sak yant in brief
English Wikipedia places the origin of sak yant in the Khmer Empire around the ninth century, and says its designs are said to offer power, protection, fortune and charisma to the wearer [9]. It also records that Angelina Jolie received a Bengal tiger yantra tattoo in 2004 [9].
Tiger parts in Thai amulets: what the sources say
Thai Wikipedia's tiger article says the animal has long been bound up with human culture, especially in Asia, with many stories and beliefs about it because it is large, strong and majestic [7]. In astrological and occult belief, it adds, parts such as bones, skull, fangs, claws and skin are held to serve as charms against ghosts, spirits and ill omen [7]. This is a statement of belief, not a finding.
The same article says belief in the tonic value of tiger organs in Chinese medicine, which it calls mistaken, is one cause of the hunting that has brought the species near extinction in the wild [7]. English Wikipedia names poaching for the illegal wildlife trade as the primary threat to the Indochinese tiger [8]. It also reports wildlife-market surveys in Myanmar, Thailand and Laos between 2001 and 2010 that found 157 tiger body parts from at least 91 individuals, with whole skins the most commonly traded part [8].
For the Luang Phor Parn figures, the only dated evidence we found is the king's: tiger figures carved from tiger fangs, roughly worked, in BE 2451 (1908 CE) [1]. No fetched source describes marks of age or authenticity for these pieces, so none are given here.
Tigers in Thailand today: the Indochinese tiger
Thai Wikipedia classifies the tiger as Panthera tigris, family Felidae, and describes it as the largest member of the family and a top predator in the food chain [7]. It records 38 chromosomes (2N = 38) [7]. The same article puts the number of tigers in Thailand at about 250, mostly in Khao Yai National Park and the Western Forest Complex [7].
The Indochinese tiger is a population of mainland Southeast Asia found in Myanmar and Thailand [8]. In 2011 the population was thought to number 342, with the largest unit in Thailand at an estimated 189 to 252 individuals for 2009 to 2014 [8]. More than half of the total survives in the Western Forest Complex, especially around the Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, said to be home to 75 to 80 percent of Thailand's tigers [8]. The population is considered Endangered in Thailand and Laos [8].
What do wildlife-protection rules say about tiger parts?
Since 1993 the Indochinese tiger has been listed on CITES Appendix I, which bars international commercial trade in wild specimens [8], [10]. CITES was agreed on 3 March 1973 and entered into force on 1 July 1975 [10]. For Appendix I species, commercial trade in wild-sourced specimens is not permitted, and non-commercial trade is strictly controlled by permits [10]. CITES also has a pre-Convention certificate process for specimens acquired before its provisions applied to that species, and only legally acquired specimens qualify [10]. Whether any particular object qualifies is not something these sources can answer.
Inside Thailand, the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation sits under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and was set up in BE 2545 (2002 CE) to conserve natural resources and wildlife in protected forest areas [11]. A legal commentary from Tilleke & Gibbins dated 17 July 2019 says that a new Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act B.E. 2562 was published on 29 May 2019 and was due to take effect on 25 November 2019 [13]. It sets out five categories of wildlife (preserved, protected, controlled, dangerous and carcasses) and says violations such as importing or trading preserved wildlife and hunting protected wildlife are punishable by substantially increased prison terms, fines or both [13]. That commentary does not mention tigers, so no penalty for any tiger part is stated here.
Where to see pieces like this — Our sister shop, Shogun X Amulets, has a page on tiger amulets: https://shogunxamulets.com/?s=tiger&post_type=product. Disclosure: Shogun X Amulets and ThaiAmuletExchange.com are run by the same group.