Why is it so hard to get a Sak Yant? 

We Thai people have heard for years complaints from foreigners that it is hard to get away from the tours and the path most traveled when it comes to experiencing true Thai culture because of language and cultural barriers.

Yes, the language barrier is a very real one but so is the cultural barrier. We Thai’s, are often afraid to put our culture out there with fear of being misunderstood or criticized or worse it was exposed to too many foreign people it would lose its authenticity to a huge part. It is hard to have a balance between preserving something and exposing it to masses of people. The Muslim village of Pai, I knew as a child is nothing at all like the laidback  Pai that droves of backpackers descend upon daily while seeking the quintessential Thai experience they seek. It is now a true Thai experience for tens of thousands of backpackers and tourists annually, but it is not the traditional or the culturally authentic experience it once was, when the seed of tourism in Pai first started by the Frenchman who offered amazing caving and Kayaking adventures to very select few people willing to travel to his adopted village.

An example :  The Muslim village of Pai, I knew as a child is nothing at all like the laidback  Pai that droves of backpackers descend upon daily while seeking the quintessential Thai experience they seek. It is now a true Thai experience for tens of thousands of backpackers and tourists annually, but it is not the traditional or the culturally authentic experience it once was, when the seed of tourism in Pai first started by the Frenchman who offered amazing caving and Kayaking adventures to very select few people willing to travel to his adopted village.

So understand there are reasons some things are kept a bit guarded. To preserve what is special.