VAT PHNOM YAT

The famous Burmese pagoda of Pailin, named after Grandmother Yat, an old hermit who was a bit of a witch and didn't like the animals in the forest being killed. In exchange for stopping the hunt, the old woman promised the inhabitants that a reward would be waiting for them in a stream on the hill above the village. When they arrived, they discovered an otter playing in the water and approached them with a mouthful of precious stones. The altar of Mother Yat, at the top of the hill, has now become a place of pilgrimage for all Khmers who wish to get rich. There are all kinds of statues there, including one of the legendary otter and another of Mother Yat, as well as scenes from the Buddhist hell. At the top of the hill is the funeral stupa of Rattanak Sambat, the key character in the novel The Rose of Pailin, written at the beginning of the last century. The story is as follows: Chao Chet, a poor deserving orphan, goes to work for the rich Rattanak and falls in love with the latter's daughter who is promised, as a matter of course, to a powerful person named Balat. One day, Chao Chet, who was finally appointed Balat's driver, drove the future couple in a car on the road to Pailin. While he was giving them a ride, thieves attacked them and Balat, a coward, hid under the car. Chao Chet puts the aggressors on the run and the beautiful one falls in his arms. Sensitive to this noble courage, Rattanak offered Khun Neary, his daughter, in marriage to the young hero.