Waves of people flock to pay last respect to Luang Phor Koon tonight.

[Lite Beer]

Waves of people flock to pay last respect to Luang Phor Koon tonight.

KHON KAEN: -- Waves of several hundred thousands of people and followers from all walks of life continued to Khon Khen University's Kanjanapisek auditorium to pay the last respect to the revered abbot Luang Phor Koon Parisutho today before his body will be put in a specially designed container to embalm and handed over to the university's Faculty of Medicine for medical research tomorrow.

Daily arrivals to the university to pay respect the abbot was estimated at 200,000-300,000, thus causing heavy traffic on several roads and the Friendship Highway leading to the university campus in the northeastern city.

The university has pleaded with motorists to abandon plans to drive to the campus as it would only worsen the traffic congestion.

The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has added carriages for free rides on local trains departing from Kaeng Khoi district in Saraburi and Nakhon Ratchasima to Khon Kaen, According to Bangkok Post.

This human influx forced the university to install several huge TV screens to allow people unable to enter the auditorium to watch.

The seven-day funeral rites drew to a close tonight.

The university allows the public to pay their respects to the former abbot of Wat Ban Rai in Dan Khun Thot district of Nakhon Ratchasima until 10 pm tonight.

Luang Phor Koon passed away at Maharaj Hospital in Nakhon Ratchasima province on May 16. He was 92.

The body of Luang Phor Koon will be moved from the auditorium to the Faculty of Medicine at 3 pm tomorrow to fulfill his wish to donate his body as “Ajarn Yai” or teacher for medical research.

The specially designed container to embalm the monk was handed over to the faculty today.

His body will be embalmed for one year and me ducal students will study their “teacher” for another two years.

Luang Phor Koon’s and others donated for medical study this year will be cremated in a royally sponsored ceremony in 2018.

It is expected that huge crowds will line along the roads from the campus to respect him as the convoy carrying his body leaves the auditorium to the embalming room at the Anatomy Department.

The room is equipped with closed-circuit cameras and an anti-theft system linked to the police station in Muang Khon Kaen.

Crowds are advised not to follow the convoy as it could obstruct the work of officials moving it to the embalming room.

A mass ordination of 93 novices will be held tomorrow morning as a merit-making to devote to the revered monk.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/waves-of-people-flock-to-pay-last-respect-to-luang-phor-koon-tonight

-- Thai PBS 2015-05-23

[JOC]

People are free to believe whatever they want, but this circus is just ridiculous !!

[NCFC]

..."anti-theft system".... !!

[Lite Beer]

Crowd for last rites for monk
The Sunday Nation

People wait in long queues under intense sunlight to enter the Kanchanaphisek Auditorium in Khon Kaen University yesterday for an opportunity to pay homage to respected Buddhist monk Luang Phor Khoon.

KHON KAEN: -- Several thousand people from all over the country gathered at a Khon Kaen University hall where respected Buddhist monk Luang Phor Khoon's body lay in state for a religious ceremony for the last day yesterday.

The ceremony continued for seven days after the famous former abbot of Wat Ban Rai in Nakhon Ratchasima province died last Saturday.

Long queues were still formed at the Kanchanaphisek Auditorium yesterday, when people waited to enter the hall to pay homage to the monk.

More than 500,000 people are estimated to have joined last rites for Luang Phor Khoon, who died in hospital last Saturday.

In his will, the monk requested that his body be donated to Khon Kaen University's Faculty of Medicine for dissection study of medical students.

His body will be moved out of the hall today for further process to preserve it for medical dissection study.

Meanwhile, Nakhon Ratchasima Governor Thongchai Lue-adul said yesterday no money was missing from Wat Ban Rai's bank accounts as feared. "The Bt47 million is still in the bank accounts. It's not missing," he said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Crowd-for-last-rites-for-monk-30260815.html

-- The Nation 2015-05-24

[ourmanflint]

All hoping to get a lucky lottery number no doubt

[Lite Beer]

Huge crowd pays last respect to the late Luang Phor Khoon

KHON KAEN: -- Several tens of thousands of followers of the late Luang Phor Khoon flocked to the Kanchanapisek multi-purpose conference hall at Khon Kaen University to pay their respect to the revered monk before his body was to be embalmed and then turned over to the university for medical studies.

A mass ordination involving 109 monks was held this morning at the conference hall as a tribute to Luang Phor Khoon. The religious ceremony was chaired by the chief monk of Khon Kaen, Phra Ratpiyatsophon, governors of Khon Kaen, Nakhon Ratchasima and Trang provinces, Lt-Gen Thawatchai Sukplang, commander of the Second Army Region and attended by thousands of the monk’s followers.

The mass ordination was part of the religious activities planned today before the body of the former abbot of Wat Rai was moved from the hall and turned over to the university for medical studies scheduled to take place at 3 pm.

The newly-ordained monks joined the procession to move the body to the university.

Traffic in front of the university was so congested that the police had to close the point where cars normally made a U-turn in order to facilitate traffic flow. The organizing committee responsible for staging the religious activities increased the number of lotus used in the ceremony to 300,000 to cater to the needs of the attendants.

As for those who could not get close to the conference hall to pay their last respect due to the huge crowd, the organizing committee had arranged for 20 worshipping spots around the hall where followers could pay their last respect.

About 1,300 policemen have been mobilized from 23 police stations in Khon Kaen to ensure order and security at the site of the

ceremony.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/huge-crowd-pays-last-respect-to-the-late-luang-phor-khoon

-- Thai PBS 2015-05-24

[Smiles]

People are free to believe whatever they want, but this circus is just ridiculous !!

What will happen if the pope passed away? Say his body are there for those to pay their last respects.

Will that be another ridiculous circus as well?

[Benmart]

People are free to believe whatever they want, but this circus is just ridiculous !!

What will happen if the pope passed away? Say his body are there for those to pay their last respects.

Will that be another ridiculous circus as well?

Most likely.

People are free to idolize and revere other humans, even if certain teachings run contrary to that behavior.

Edited May 24, 2015 by Benmart