Within the broad landscape of Theravāda, the Thai Forest Tradition is marked by a distinctive return to wilderness and simplicity as the primary context for practice. Monastics deliberately seek out forests, caves, and other remote places, valuing physical seclusion and austere conditions as powerful supports for both concentration (samādhi) and insight (vipassanā). This lifestyle is intentionally minimal, with few possessions and an avoidance of institutional complexity, politics, or elaborate ritual. The forest environment is not merely a backdrop but a teacher in its own right, constantly reminding practitioners of impermanence, vulnerability, and the urgency of liberation.

A second hallmark is the uncompromising emphasis on strict Vinaya and related ascetic practices. Observance of monastic rules is treated as the indispensable foundation for meditation, often pursued with a rigor that exceeds more conventional monastic settings. Practices such as living under trees, eating once a day, wandering on tudong, and maintaining very simple living conditions are embraced as means of cutting through attachment and complacency. This disciplined renunciation is seen not as an end in itself, but as the necessary container in which deep meditative realization can reliably unfold.

In terms of inner cultivation, the tradition gives priority to direct meditative experience over scholastic study. Scriptural learning is respected, yet realization is measured by transformation of the mind rather than by textual mastery. Samatha and vipassanā are cultivated in an integrated way, rather than as sharply separated paths, with deep concentration serving as a stable basis for penetrating insight. The investigation of the mind (citta) and its processes is central, and continuous mindfulness in daily activities is treated as an extension of formal meditation rather than something separate from it.

The mode of transmission further sets this lineage apart. Instruction is primarily oral and experiential, grounded in close, personal relationships between teacher and student. Revered masters, particularly those in the lineage of Ajahn Mun and his disciples such as Ajahn Chah, are valued as living embodiments of the path rather than as academic authorities. Their teaching style tends to be simple, pragmatic, and closely tied to the realities of daily life, offering clear, practice-oriented guidance to both monastics and laypeople while maintaining a strong monastic core. Traditional beliefs and reports of extraordinary experiences may be acknowledged, yet they are consistently subordinated to the central aim of liberation from suffering.