Revered Monk Khloy's Amulets Draw Devotion in Chumphon

Luang Pho Khloy Thammo, known locally as Pho Tan Khloy, was a distinguished Buddhist monk and teacher at Khao Ngoen Cave Temple in Tambol Thamapla, Langsuan District, Chumphon Province, deeply revered by the local community. Born Khloy Thoengsamian on January 11, 1905, in Pak La village, the son of Pum and Chaem Thoengsamian, he was one of five siblings who spent his youth in close contact with the temple and ordained clergy. After completing Grade 4, he studied Pali and liturgical chanting under Phra Achan Chup Suvano at Pak Sra Temple for many years. Phra Thammachari Muniwongsa Charn Kosalo, then provincial sangha leader at Khanngoen Temple, recognized his diligence and virtuous bearing and invited him to stay at Khanngoen Temple.

After serving there for over a decade, he formally ordained on July 26, 1961, at Khanngoen Temple, with Phra Thammachari Muniwongsa as his preceptor and Phra Somuh Suk Tikkhapanyo as his ordination witness. He received the monastic name Thammo. He devoted himself to vipassana meditation and Buddhist studies, seeking out renowned teachers wherever they could be found. Besides his foundational training with Phra Achan Chup, he studied under several teachers from the Khao Aw tradition, including Phra Achan Nam Kaew Chan at Wat Don Sala, Luang Pho Kong Sirimoto at Wat Ban Suan, and Phra Achan Mun at Wat Khao Daeng. He later studied bone-setting techniques from Luang Pho Daeng Tissako at Wat Laem So and from Phra Kru Athorn Thammavathorn at Pak Sra Temple.

When appointed abbot of Khao Ngoen Cave Temple, he further refined his knowledge through the teachings and texts of Luang Pho Daeng Putho, a former abbot and respected scholar who was a contemporary of Prince Chumphon. He earned renown as a master of amulet casting, particularly for designs meant to penetrate and disappear into the forehead or skin, techniques that drew countless devotees seeking his rituals. His prominence attracted steady flows of faith and support to the temple, making possible the construction of an ordination hall, multipurpose hall, Thammo Building, and Langsuan Hospital, realizing his vision for community benefit.

Beyond his fame as a scholar, Luang Pho Khloy was a development-minded monk who contributed widely to his community and society, restoring and expanding numerous religious structures within the temple, which flourished accordingly. He pursued many other public-welfare projects intended to benefit devotees and the general public. Yet all things, as is the natural way of the human world, must come to an end. After presiding over the annual Teacher Veneration ceremony in 1996, his health gradually declined with age. On Friday, October 25, 1996, he passed away peacefully.

His scholarly reputation and achievements continue to be celebrated to this day. The amulets and blessed objects he consecrated remain highly coveted by collectors. Notable examples include large Kham Paeng Ni amulet prints in lead from 1968; Sivali amulets from the quarterly series in pollen base from 1968; small Pid Tam Ha La Bhok amulets in pollen base from 1990; Somdej Kha Tho from the Friday Five series in mixed pollen and lead from 1993; wooden carved Pid Ta amulets with pollen-filled bases from 1994; and Pid Tam Ha La Bhok amulets from the Friday Five series in mixed pollen and lead with copper takrut from 1993. Most notably, the first-edition medal from 1979, created to commemorate his 60th anniversary, was cast in both fire-finish copper and special alloy and remains exceptionally popular among collectors today.