How did Diving the Buddha in Phetchabun Originate
Legend has it that some 400 years ago fishermen on the Pa Sak River snagged a Buddha image in their nets and took it to Wat Tri Phum in the city. A year later the statue disappeared from its resting place in the temple and was again found in the river. The locals took this as a sign that they should bathe the Buddha image in the Pa Sak waterway every year to stop it leaving the temple. And so the ceremony continues to this day.
Failure to complete the ceremony is said to be a bad omen that will affect the prosperity of the area in a negative way.