Child angel 'Luk Thep' blessing ritual under watch by Thai police

[webfact]

Child angel blessing ritual under watch by police



BANGKOK: -- As adoption of "child angel" doll is becoming a fever for many Thais of various professions, the police now are keeping close watch on some Buddhist temples which are performing superstitious rites for these imported dolls from China as they fear the people might be deceived if it turns commercial.

The superstition-fueled fad over the child angel or ‘Luk Thep’ dolls has many of the public flocking to buy these dolls and have them receive blessing and incantations at temples.

One of the temples performing such ritual is in Nonthaburi province.

The public now questions whether Buddhist monks can actually perform Buddhism ritual or called “Plook Sek” on these dolls and if so, can this act be considered a contravention of Buddhist teachings.

Spokesman for the National Office of Buddhism Somchai Surachatri said that the act of performing the ‘Plook Sek’ ritual is no different from other rituals that Buddhist monks regularly perform to bless automobiles.

It is an act that at its core is designed to ease the fears of the Buddhist faithful and give them greater peace-of-mind.

As long as there is no commercial intent then the act does not contravene with Buddhist guidelines. A good monk cannot rightly refuse.

“If the ritual was performed in order to receive commercial gain or if the people were directly asked to make more donations then this is improper. That is what is known among devout monks as ‘Deracharn Wicha’ or ‘Corruption of Knowledge’ and is not supported by the Sangha Buddhist Supreme Council,” he explained.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/content/148328


-- Thai PBS 2016-01-26

[clockman]

Monkey business without a dought. Orange robed business men.

[daoyai]

How and why do people allow their brains to turn to mush?

Edited January 27, 2016 by daoyai

[NCC1701A]

in the words of Charlton Heston's character in the original Planet of the Apes film to his fellow astronauts upon seeing the the Humans who now behave like apes:

"Look on the bright side, in six months we will be running this place."

that was before he saw the smart Apes. Later in the human zoo, he screams:

"Its a mad house! A MAD HOUSE!"

and please i love the Thai people, so i am NOT suggesting they are apes, it is just that people all over the world believe some really stupid stuff.

I sometimes scream "Its a mad house! A MAD HOUSE!" when I ride my motorcycle around Thailand's highways.

Edited January 27, 2016 by NCC1701A

[stickylies]

I had nt heard of these dolls til yesterday. Haven't seen one sofar. ?

[FloridaExport]

We see you guys are making a lot of money on this scam. We want in, or we'll shut you down.

[jaywalker]

I had nt heard of these dolls til yesterday. Haven't seen one sofar. ?

Me either. Hope I never do see one.

That picture above reminds me of where Chucky must've come from.

Edited January 27, 2016 by jaywalker

[Pib]

As adoption of "child angel" doll is becoming a fever for many Thais of various professions,...

....Thais of various professions" makes it sound respectable and normal. Me thinks people who carry the dolls around are stuck in a "little girl" mentality....or just want to gain attention....or maybe just missing a few marbles. But hey, as long as they don't negatively impact others it's their lives to live.

But there are plenty of business folks (in including some monks) taking advantage of those doll carrying folks...money to be made as dolls require lots of attention, clothes, and they even may have to go to school or daycare. My Thai wife watched a 15 minute report on this fad last night....just shook her head and mumbled "crazy" several times.

From what I've read several Thai celebrities started this fad...in any country there are many people who will mimic celebrities but in Thailand it's taken to the highest level of craziness.

[IMA_FARANG]

Article in the Bangkok Post this morning.

A doll was discovered up in the airport parking area in Chiang Mai airport.

Was left in a suitcase in the parking area.

On investigation the police found it was filled with 400 meth pills, apparently intended to be smuggled in the doll.

Story is onthe front page of the Bangkok Post today.

[NCC1701A]

I had nt heard of these dolls til yesterday. Haven't seen one sofar. ?

Me either. Hope I never do see one.

That picture above reminds me of where Chucky must've come from.

Edited January 27, 2016 by NCC1701A

[iReason]

"Spokesman for the National Office of Buddhism Somchai Surachatri said that the act of performing the ‘Plook Sek’ ritual,

is no different from other rituals that Buddhist monks regularly perform to bless automobiles."

[IMA_FARANG]

Thai Buddhism has inherited many old practices from Indian religious traditions.

If you go to a Thai Wat look for a "Lingyam" (spelling?) stone.

Ask a monk what that stone is for.

Supposed to make sure a wife has a child....fertility tradition.

Also was practiced in Europe and England in Pre-Christian times.

Bet you never heard of that before.

[webfact]

Popular monk says ritual performance for “Child Angels” not against Buddhism principles

BANGKOK: -- A Bhuddist monk popular among parents bringing their adopted "child angel" dolls for ritual performance called "Plook Sek" says the ritual is not a contravention of Buddhism principles.

The monk, Phra Ajarn Winai Thitipanyo, at Wat Buakwan temple in Nonthaburi, said the practice of performing a ‘Plook Sek’ ritual on an inanimate object such as dolls is not a contravention of Buddhism principles but people must recognize and be able to differentiate the difference of legitimate religious practice and ungrounded superstitious belief.

His Plook Sek ritual performance first featured the painting of Buddhist characters on the doll so that a child’s spirit is invited to posses the ‘Luk Thep’ doll.

Then it is accompanied by a ritual to call on all the 4 natural elements to enter the body of the dolls in the belief that by doing so the owners of the dolls will receive good fortune.

The whole ritual takes around 10 – 15 for one doll and at present many people are flocking to the temple to have similar rituals performed on their owned dolls, he explained.

Besides performing the ritual for the hundreds of people who arrive at the temple everyday Phra Ajarn Winai stated that he also held a Buddhist sermon to warn them of the dangers of blindly following in superstitious beliefs.

In the sermon he advised these people to place greater importance in adhering to Buddhist teachings and conform to high moral standard in their daily lives.

“To become a good monk you must have a high degree of compassion. That is why when I was approached by people to bless their dolls I did it, out of compassion. Along with that, I always try to teach them to have high moral standards and hopefully open their eyes to the reality of life.”

He went on saying that “it is like when a starving man comes to the temple, his first concern is not Buddhism sermons or preaching but he wants to be fed. So you satisfy his physical needs first. At the very least, he will more receptive to hearing Buddhism teachings. I do whatever is needed to spread Buddhism teaching as long as it does not contravene with the code of conduct for Buddhist monks.”

A lady from Singhburi province come to the temple to have the ‘Plook Sek’ ritual performed on her ‘Luk Thep’ doll.

She stated that she came because she had faith in Phra Ajarn Winai.

She said that the reason that she had originally purchased the ‘Look Thep’ doll was that she was curious.

“I have had previous experience with this holiness and have faith in him. He has never asked for anything of value or money in return for service rendered. You can put whatever amount you can afford in donation envelopes or chose not to if you don’t have any money. Furthermore, he always teaches us to do good.”

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/content/148337


-- Thai PBS 2016-01-26

[DrTuner]

They'll bless anything for money, but does anybody know how to get that crap out of the car upholstery?

[tominbkk]

<deleted>?

[clockman]

Cannot believe this utter rubbish.

[Tatsujin]

"people must recognize and be able to differentiate the difference of legitimate religious practice and ungrounded superstitious belief"

classic! lol

[DM07]

If I see anyone with a doll like that, I will treat them, with all the respect they deserve: none!

[stickylies]

main question remains: can the doll lose face ?!

[metisdead]

Off topic posts have been removed.

[Bluespunk]

"Spokesman for the National Office of Buddhism Somchai Surachatri said that the act of performing the ‘Plook Sek’ ritual is no different from other rituals that Buddhist monks regularly perform to bless automobiles.

It is an act that at its core is designed to ease the fears of the Buddhist faithful and give them greater peace-of-mind.

As long as there is no commercial intent then the act does not contravene with Buddhist guidelines. A good monk cannot rightly refuse."

No, but a sane one might.

Edited January 27, 2016 by Bluespunk

[dageurreotype]

This is just so quintessentially Thai. A nation of children and their dollies and 'monks' pretending to practice Buddhism. Awww

[Morakot]

Child angel blessing ritual under watch by police

Police has nothing better to do?

[eddie61]

The one eyed leading the blind.

A natural wai for Thai people.

poor sods

[Cpkt8]

These dolls look eerie.. Remind me of Chucky[emoji16]

[gerrythepoet]

I am of the opinion blessings can be done for anything from massage parlours to cars to Buddha images- and people have their beliefs so let that be- the real issue is that there are some monks who use the opportunity to go against the said teachings to make it a commercial entity. Until Thailand can get to the bottom of the false Monks such as the notorious Luang Pu Nenkham Chattigo who reportedly had very high connections is brought to justice and not be accepted for asylum in the USA then Thais will never get out of the cycle of being led astray as sheep and be conned at every corner.

[MockingJay]

It appears that Thai people have too much money and too much free time on their hands...

[flyDelight]

Also known as Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS). Weird that it manifests itself so publicly in Thailand.

[TPI]

Thai Buddhism has inherited many old practices from Indian religious traditions.

If you go to a Thai Wat look for a "Lingyam" (spelling?) stone.

Ask a monk what that stone is for.

Supposed to make sure a wife has a child....fertility tradition.

Also was practiced in Europe and England in Pre-Christian times.

Bet you never heard of that before.

Lingam = male penis

Yoni = Vagina (it's round in shape with a slot carved around the the edge with a drain)

[Emster23]

"Spokesman for the National Office of Buddhism Somchai Surachatri said that the act of performing the ‘Plook Sek’ ritual is no different from other rituals that Buddhist monks regularly perform to bless automobiles."

And therein lies the problem.

Somehow perpetuating this sort of foolishness with rationale that it shows compassion just doesn't cut it.

I am a Buddhist and wonder if any of them have studied Buddhism. Buddha said to practice "merciless compassion" and monks stepping up to the plate (baseball term not offering plate) and informing the public about 4 noble truths, such as attachment (to dolls, cars, whatever) as shown by wanting those things blessed runs counter to fundamental teachings. There is no excuse for allowing this sort of unenlightened behavior to be allowed.

This puts monks and these blessings on same level as selling indulgences. Reprehensible.