The Price of Faith?

Recently there is an article on Facebook talking about HK celebrity Cecilia Chung paying 300,000 HKD or around 1 million baht for a piece of Somdej Kaiser Krut Wat Pra Kaew (seen above), which is an obvious fake amulet. Almost anyone with some basic knowledge about old Thai amulets know that such a batch of Somdej Kaiser does not exist, but unfortunately Ceclilia does not. Fake Somdej amulets such as this can be easily found at the fake amulet market in Tha Pachan, Bangkok for 100 baht or less. It is a shame because for that kind of money Cecilia could get a real antique piece of Somdej Wat Rakang or Bangkhunprom, with change to spare for performing other forms of Sangkatan (donations to the Sangha).

But the sad fact is rich people like Cecilia are scammed by the unscrupulous all the time. They pay a hefty price for their misplaced faith in the commercial aspect of Thai Buddhism. It is another example of the danger of collecting amulets without any basic knowledge about Buddhism and Thai amulets. In the past when LP Sod created his first batch of Wat Paknam amulets, he gave only 1 single piece to each devotee who came to make a donation, no matter whether they were rich or poor. It did not matter whether they gave a lot or a little money; they still received 1 piece as a token of appreciation. There was great meaning in why LP Sod gave out amulets in this way. It is in great contrast to what is happening today, where even the rich donate a lot just to get a cheap piece of fake amulet. When rich donors like Cecilia one day realizes that she paid so much for a fake, she will inevitably lost faith in the Triple Gems. Those who sold her such fakes have committed a great sin, destroying people's faith in Buddhism. The profits of sin brings very short term enjoyment to the sinner, but long term suffering in the lower realms. As the Dhammapada says:

"It may be well with the evil-doer

as long as the evil ripens not.

But when it does ripen,

then the evil-doer sees (the painful results of) his evil deeds."

HK celebrities popularize Thai Amulet culture

Recently there was an article in Malaysia's New Life Post paper regarding the practice of many famous Hong Kong celebrities wearing Thai amulets to help them in their show biz career. For example, Cecilia Chung is said to wear a Somdej Wat Rakang (more likely to be Somdej Kaiser) and known to keep many Kumantongs at home. She is probably heavily influenced by ex-husband Nicholas Tse and mother in law Deborah, who are both Thai Buddhists and Phra Prom Erawan devotees. It also mentioned Jackie Chan, who was said to be wearing Somdej Than Saem 2517 from LP Pae when he survived falling from a great height during a movie shooting accident in 1986. Later this Somdej was named "Pim Jackie Chan" after him and became extremely popular in HK and Taiwan. Finally it talked about martial arts and action star Donny Yan, who always wear his Khun Paen while shooting dangerous action sequences.

These HK celebrities and their belief in Thai amulets have helped to spread Thai Buddhist culture not only in HK, but Taiwan and today China, covering a large part of East Asia. Especially in China, where waves of Thai amulet shops have mushroomed in many major cities, against an officially atheistic communist culture. We can say the zeal of persecuting organised religion since the days of the Cultural Revolution has not only been totally eaten away by commercialism, but ironically a commercial part of religion at that. In a vast China market, the demand for Thai amulets very often exceeds the supply that those dealers could provide. Which is why we can now see many China citizens prowling Tha Pachan and Pantip Ngam Wong Wan in Bangkok, buying amulets and casings in large numbers. But although the varieties of Thai amulets number into thousands, these guys are only interested in a few types, most notably: Butterfly, 9-tail Fox, KMTs, LP Pae and maybe LP Koon. So much so that the prices for these amulets have shot up many times. A good example mentioned in the article is China rich girl Guo Meimei, who gained some celebrity status flaunting her wealth on the Internet. Having gained some good fortune in the casino after chowing 2 KMTs, she eventually opened a shop in Beijing selling mostly KMTs and other popular amulets. Above we can see her chowing many KMT buchas from AJ Nikom (aka AJ Kom) in Suphanburi. She said that the cheapest KMT in her shop cost 3800 RMB, or more than 18000 Thai baht. This is at least 9x the original price at AJ Kom's Samnak, which is a huge profit for our already rich Ms Guo. The expensive ones cost more than 20000 RMB. She claims that the business at her shop is excellent and so we can only imagine the rich getting richer.

Although it is not a bad thing for China people to soak up Thai amulet culture, I'm afraid they do not know why they work or what is their purpose. And by this I mean the real amulets and not those fake or commercial ones. Like many from other countries who are captivated by them, they only see the superficial aspect of amulets and not its spirit - which is to make merit in the Triple Gems, to keep the 5 precepts, to refrain from all evil and to cultivate all that is good. Without the basic tenets of Buddhism in place, amulets are only empty gadgets, no different from toys. If one day their amulets fail to bring them good luck or protect them from danger, they will only have themselves to blame for being ignorant. I hope that they can slowly be inspired by Thai amulets to learn more about Buddhism and improve their lives spiritually. Only then would the purpose of those guru monks who created them be fulfilled, sadhu.

Melon in exchange for Corpse

"There also came from different lands in other worlds and from the Saha world deities such as those of the seas, of the rivers, of the forests, of the mountains, of the earth, of the streams and lakes, of the crops, of the day, of the night, of space, of the sky, of food and of vegetation; all assembled there." - Ksitigarbha Sutra

Last week there was a Wanbao article regarding how the missing corpse of one of the local victims in a fishing trip mishap in Pulau Layak, Malaysia was found. Apparently the body of Mr Chen Wan Seng was found soon after one of the search boat owners threw a water melon offering with Mr Chen's name and particulars written on it into the sea. The family of the victim was surprised as prior to that, the search and rescue boats had searched the sea in that area for 2 days without finding his body.

How is it that a melon can help to find corpses lost at sea? I think not many people know that this is actually an ancient Chinese ritual with its roots in Taoism and Buddhism. Because the pronunciation of water melon in dialect sounds like "water ghost", thus it is offered as a replacement to the Naga King (which some call the god of the sea) in exchange for the bodies of those who drown at sea. Why is it that such an offering need to be done? Simply due to fact that all creatures dead or alive in the sea comes under the jurisdiction of the Naga Kings. Which is why the boat owner prayed to the "god of the sea" before setting off and made the water melon offering to appease him once they reach those waters. Sure enough, the corpse mysteriously appears floating on the surface less than half an hour after the offering was done. This incident tells us that those deities and Devadas that have dominion over the forces of nature do exist, even though they are invisible to ordinary humans. Whether it is the water, wind, fire, lightning, thunder, earth, mountains, big trees etc, there are always higher beings who control them or live in them. As they are frequently mentioned in the Buddhist scriptures, we should always respect these nature deities who are in many cases, Dharma protectors. Very often they will help humans who are righteous in the Dharma and humble towards them.

AJ Tee Lek of Samnak Khao Sunamo

AJ Tee Lek of Samnak Khao Sunamo, Petchaboon province is known in the whole of Thailand as the "Bulletproof monk of Petchaboon". He became somewhat of a legend due to the TV programs that show his takruts and amulets being tested regularly against guns. He lives on a remote hill without a temple, yet devotees from Thailand and overseas, both near and as far as thousands of miles away come to pay respect to him. Above we see the main Sala.

The kutis on the hilltop where AJ and his followers live.
Chatting with AJ abt his new takruts coming out next month.

AJ reblessing the stuff that I chowed.

His famous Maha Ut Kongkapan takruts.

Equally famous Rian Chanachai.

LP Chalerm of Wat Boon Nah

LP Chalerm of Wat Boon Nah in Samut Songkram province is a guru monk well respected for his strong wicha knowledge. Having consecrated some new amulets to raise funds for the temple, I went there to take a look. Above is the kuti where LP resides.

The bell and drum towers.

The Ubosot still under construction.

Altar inside LP's kuti.

Shot taken with LP.

LP reblessing the items I chowed.

9" Maha Jakkapat takrut.

Kring Mongkon Jakkawan (Vairocana).

Sian Lersi.

AJ Yit of Wat Chulamani

AJ Yit is the current abbot of Wat Chulamani in Samut Songkram province. This is a very famous temple in that province well known for its Chinese Taoist amulets. They are very popular among the Thai Chinese community there.

The Ubosot.

Inside the Ubosot is the Relic shrine and the temple counter.

The principal Buddha statue of the Ubosot.

Sala at the side.

Signboard showing the famous Buddha of this temple, Phra Buddha Chulamani.

Inside the Buddha Chulamani Vihara.

Shrine to LP Neng, the previous abbot and master of AJ Yit.

Gate to the shrine.

Phra Pikanet shrine.

Tao Wessuwan shrine. This temple is also famous for its Wessuwan.

Shiva Lingam shrine.

LP Ban Laem shrine. There is also Somdej Toh, Shiva, Pikanet and 9-face Buddha statues below.

The very unqiue Zhang Tianshi Phayant of this temple, filled with Taoist Talismans.

The fan-shaped 8 Immortals Divinity Rian.

The Bagua Lion biting sword Rian.

LP Jeud of Wat Po Setthi

LP Jeud of Wat Po Setthi in Nakhon Pathom province is a famous guru monk best known for his wealth hornet amulets. However I did not get to meet him when I visited this temple. Above we see the platform in the main Sala where he normally blesses devotees.

Altar with Phra Sivali and LP Jeud's masters.

Buddha statues in the side Sala.

Large Bodhi Tree.

LP Yai Buddha shrine.

The Pikanet riding Hornet shrine, still under construction.

Bell tower.

Phra Pidta carved from coconut husk, with many takruts embedded behind.

Somdej riding twin hornets, with 2 takruts behind.

Wat Salapap in Singburi

Wat Salapap in Singburi province recently came out with a batch of Kring, Sivali and Hanuman amulets to gather funds for building up the temple. They invited famous monks like LP Perm Wat Pom Kaew and LP Pian Wat Kren Kathin to consecrate the amulets.

The Phra Pang Umbat Statue still under construction.

The office bulding where the temple counter is.

Statues in the park depicting scenes from Lord Buddha's life.

Khmer style Nakprok statue.

Lord Buddha and the first five disciples.

HK cop gets into trouble for selling Lukkok online

"Truly, an evil deed committed does not immediately bear fruit,

like milk that does not turn sour all at once.

But smoldering, it follows the fool,

like fire covered by ashes." - Dhammapada

I just read an article in Shin Min papers today regarding a HK riot cop "Mr Ma" who got exposed by the paparazzi for smuggling Lukkok (dead baby fetus) from Thailand into Hong Kong and selling them online. Apparently he owns an occult amulet forum there and goes by the nick of "Barry". Barry boasts of having customers from China, HK, Taiwan and Macau who chow his Thai occult amulets.

He also claimed that his personal female Lukkok "Lui Lui", which he tried to sell the reporter, could fetch a whopping 150,000 HKD if sold in China (mentioned in the video). But now that Barry is going to face disciplinary action and criminal charges for his sideline, can the Lukkok save his skin? This reminds me of the recent case of the Taiwanese guy who was arrested in Bangkok by Thai police for also trying to smuggle a number of Lukkoks back to Taiwan.

Why is it that guys from HK and Taiwan so fascinated by this aspect of Thai occultism? Is it because of the fast results of attraction and side wealth that they claim it brings? Or is it because of the lucrative, sometimes ridiculous profits that it brings when they resell it to the ignorant rich back in their country? Either way, they probably don't realize it does more harm than good to both the seller and buyer.

Lukkoks, unlike Kumanthongs (people usually mix them up), are mostly created with black magic from real baby fetuses to serve a selfish purpose. As such they are not bound by any Buddhist precepts and are very volatile. These baby spirits can turn against their owners any time if they do not get the proper ritual offering or the required katha is not recited regularly to control them. And even if those requirements are met, long term usage of such occult items drains one Chi and life-force. Frankly the long term problems that it causes greatly outweighs the short term benefits that it brings (if it works). Although there are famous monks past and present who also create similar occult items for more positive purposes, it still takes a lot of Barami (spiritual cultivation) to make them work, because that is what these spirits feed on for their "power". In Barry's case, it probably did not work too well because a real effective Lukkok would have warned him that it was a setup by the reporter to trap him. Does that not teach something to those who are fascinated with getting such a thing?