Temple wants remains from graveyard removed
The Nation



BANGKOK: -- The relatives of 1,677 people buried at a graveyard belonging to the historic Wat Phananchoeng in Ayutthaya, have been told to remove their remains by August next year, as the 20-rai compound is being turned into a car park and will also be the site for the construction of a building for convalescing monks.

Deputy abbot Phra Maha Cherdchai Katapunyo also cited the upcoming Asean Economic Community in 2015 as a reason for the changes, based on complaints from visitors that they had problems parking their cars.

The abbot confirmed rumours that the traditional Chinese burial plots in the graveyard had been bought up by private owners and were currently being sold for about Bt300,000 a plot, but said the temple had never benefited from any kind of trade in the plots, and had never supported any kind of policy geared towards making a profit from the burial plots.

The temple also plans to build a number of walls supporting alcoves where the "relics" of any future dead would be housed. However, the remains in the graveyard would need to be removed before the deadline, or the relatives would "face legal action", said Winai Asvarachan, the temple's chief layman.

He said relatives were attempting to reach a middle ground with the temple, mediated by the local public prosecutors' office, but the temple had moved to make the matter a legal issue.

Winai said he felt bad about exhuming the remains of the dead from the graveyard, and was in the process of deciding jointly with his relatives whether the body of their own departed relative should be buried at another graveyard, or cremated.

The monk said a complex of buildings for convalescing monks and a number of buildings for meditation were possible future projects in a separate space adjacent to the graveyard.

It is not known when Wat Phananchoeng, also known by its full name, Worawihan, was built before the Ayutthaya period (1351-1767), but the main Buddha image, named Phra Phuttha Trai Rattana Nayok, housed in this temple, was made in 1324.

The temple also serves as the official residence of Phra Thep Rattanakorn, the chief of the provincial monastic office and also the temple's abbot.


-- The Nation 2013-10-11

Who said religion is not about money

Cruel, insensitive, unreasonable and all about the money, money.

It's not about the price tag! I wanna see the world dance.

CCC

a car park ?..........over my dead body !. .........would like to see this abbots bank account balance in a years time .

Oh boy is this place going to produce some ghost stories or not? I parked my car there and now...

This action stinks of corruption at it's highest level. I think the monk that did this deed sold his sole to the devil. The government should step in and pass a law that cemetery's are sacred and claim the land under eminent domain and never let anybody build on this site.

Deputy abbot Phra Maha Cherdchai Katapunyo also cited the upcoming Asean Economic Community in 2015 as a reason for the changes, based on complaints from visitors that they had problems parking their cars.

The abbot confirmed rumours that the traditional Chinese burial plots in the graveyard had been bought up by private owners and were currently being sold for about Bt300,000 a plot, but said the temple had never benefited from any kind of trade in the plots, and had never supported any kind of policy geared towards making a profit from the burial plots.

He then cut the press conference short apologizing that he'd just received a text that his BMW 760iL was ready for collection from the car cleaners..

The abbot confirmed rumours that the traditional Chinese burial plots in the graveyard had been bought up by private owners and were currently being sold for about Bt300,000 a plot, but said the temple had never benefited from any kind of trade in the plots, and had never supported any kind of policy geared towards making a profit from the burial plots.

A real clever play on words. At Bt300,000 a plot who is receiving the benifit if not the temple?

a car park ?..........over my dead body !. .........would like to see this abbots bank account balance in a years time .

I'd rather see his future karma.

Ah! Thai Buddhism!..........Thais have a way of screwing up everything....including religions ie belief systems, practices, the real truth etc.....and now that they are starting to do the same to Hinduism, they have destroyed and made Wat Khaek (the Indain Sri Mariamman Temple at Silom) into a commercial enterprise and have made the practice of workshipping Lord Ganesha in Thailand into another commercial enterprise while distorting the real spiritual significance and practices. Just go to Silom on this Monday 14th of October when the Silom and parts of sathorn road will be closed in the aftrenoon for the annual chariot processions, you can see all kind of Thai Mediums professing to "possess these Hindu deities" with their decorated stalls along the road.

Anyway, my advice to all foreigners and expats.....thailand is a nice place as for its people......stay away from them, simply smile, have as little to do with them except for necessity contacts, do not help them, do not impart any knowledge to them and simply use them. Life would be great for you then while here.

They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
With a pink hotel *, a boutique
And a swinging hot spot

Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot

This action stinks of corruption at it's highest level. I think the monk that did this deed sold his sole to the devil. The government should step in and pass a law that cemetery's are sacred and claim the land under eminent domain and never let anybody build on this site.

The problem being that it is highly likely someone from Government has colluded with the Abbot in the first place. These peices of land are worth hundreds of millions, just look how much is paid when you build a golf course or housing development on temple land!

currently being sold for about Bt300,000 a plot

Someone wants in on this lucrative biz.

This seems very odd. I've visited the temple dozens of times and never had any problem parking. The current car park is vast compared with most temples around here.

I'd also note that this temple is particularly popular with Thai-Chinese and is very wealthy. I wonder whether it will continue to be so popular with Thai-Chinese following the forced exhumation of their ancestors.

The land concerned is on the opposite side of the main road from the temple. I hadn't realised it belonged to the temple. I'm not sure, however, that the land itself is particularly valuable given its location away from the town centre.

I think someone should send the new owners a copy of the movie "Poltergeist". This seems to be a very uncaring act. I don't see a problem moving graves which are long forgotten to history to make way for progress but to move graves which contain the remains of those still loved, is quite cold.

1,677 x 300,000 = 503,100,000 So who is getting all this money, just maybe a donation to the temple, ????

Absolutely outrageous and unethical. This Abbot will return to Earth as a Tasmanian Devil when he dies (preferable rather soon).

Religion as it finest.....one superstition against a other superstition....

Deputy abbot Phra Maha Cherdchai Katapunyo

Soon to join the "flying" monk.

An inflammatory post has been deleted.

"Temple wants remains from graveyard removed"

Contemptible.

This is another temple that is an abomination of Buddhism. This place is all about the money!