Tattooed devotees transform in Thai temple trance

[jollyhangmon]

22 minutes ago, Falcon said:

This topic is pretty much the same as religion. To the thais, they have been indoctrinated to believe the concepts of their own form of Buddhism and the belief in sak yant tattoos that go with this. How many of the posters/commenters above or here on thaivisa have their own beliefs in an invisible god that they pray to? How often have you said a prayer in times of difficulty only for it not to have been answered? Believing in a god is simply a safeguard for some people's so called sanity and a way to control the masses (if you do something bad you'll go to hell). In reality, there is, in my opinion, no god, believing in this so called god is like believing that there is a single person that is king or queen of the world. I still have nothing to say in detriment to people's beliefs, whether Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, etc. as we are all free to make our own decisions about this type of thing.

Agreed sir, fair enough. Love the 'safeguard so called sanity etc. ...' part. I mean just watch that video ...

No, never prayed to an invisible highly questionable (at best) entity since i was, dunno, 8 or 10 whatever, doesn't matter.

I believe what i can see, possibly touch and for that - aka. reality -  i don't need any (expensive) virtual crutches.

 

And you wisely spared that - in reality most important - monetary facet ... 

 

Edited March 12, 2017 by jollyhangmon

[DrTuner]

5 hours ago, mikebell said:

 How far has Thailand progressed since the 18th Century?

About 500 years - in reverse gear.

[DrTuner]

1 hour ago, klauskunkel said:

 

Yep, kitty-cat, whiskers and all... meow

That's Brad Pitt doing his best method acting.

[jollyhangmon]

 roo860 said:
What a wonderful diverse world we live in, religion, customs, beliefs, everyone has their own opinions, mine is live and let live.

 

28 minutes ago, Mook23 said:

Mine is bang or get banged...

 

 ...  (could't find the 'thumbs up' - 'facepalm' is also missing, not for your post mind you but generally very much in need here ...)

Edited March 12, 2017 by jollyhangmon

[jollyhangmon]

1 minute ago, DrTuner said:

That's Brad Pitt doing his best method acting.

... stop it please, gettin' a stitch already ...

But sure true, was musing but couldn't exactly place the face ...

[Bluespunk]

22 minutes ago, arend said:

I know that I respond at my own peril... but... yes if you only react literally to the phenomena, you miss the underlying psychology, the needs and purposes being addressed and fulfilled... you may feel superior to the Christian who expresses his faith in rituals and activities but I would assert that there are many ways to access the hidden and deeper states and powers of the mind. What is a rock concert, a full moon pagan ceremony but ways to experience what is beyond ordinary states of mind...pretty basic, of course. The point is that what is considered reason and rational is only one mental state available to us and yes, it should be home base but not a prison... I would simply point you to the extraordinary phenomena manifested through hypnosis for example...Also, I would point out that many of the participants are deeply inspired to live a good life by feeling that their tatoos have connected them to a higher power and code...

Nonetheless, the magical drawings do not bring about magical powers.

 

No matter how they make you feel, they have no special powers and it is ridiculous to claim this ritual is required to recharge them.

[arend]

5 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

Nonetheless, the magical drawings do not bring about magical powers.

 

No matter how they make you feel, they have no special powers and it is ridiculous to claim this ritual is required to recharge them.

Agreed but now we are talking about the maturity level of the participants.. Many of the uneducated believe that the powers are in the tatoos but the more mature recognize that the power is in the mind which of course has limits in the "real" world....

[Bluespunk]

12 minutes ago, arend said:

Agreed but now we are talking about the maturity level of the participants.. Many of the uneducated believe that the powers are in the tatoos but the more mature recognize that the power is in the mind which of course has limits in the "real" world....

I have no problem with people believing in things to put their minds at ease or peace.

 

My problem is when they start claiming magical powers for their body art.

 

That's BS.

[arend]

Got it.... I wouldn't worry about it though.. not any different from magical creams to make you young again,  magical foods to make you lose weight or pills to enlarge your penis... it's worldwide...

[Bluespunk]

9 minutes ago, arend said:

Got it.... I wouldn't worry about it though.. not any different from magical creams to make you young again,  magical foods to make you lose weight or pills to enlarge your penis... it's worldwide...

I regard all those as BS as well.

[arend]

2 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

I regard all those as BS as well.

And so here we are.... reality simply as it is vs reality as how we think it should be... a classic Buddhist description of the dilemma of suffering... and we all struggle with it in different ways... thanks for staying with the conversation and not bailing out....

[metisdead]

Offensive posts and replies have been removed. 

[canthai55]

2 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

I regard all those as BS as well.

Believe what you want. But no need to ridicule the beliefs of others.You think one way - they think another.

[Bluespunk]

19 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

Believe what you want. But no need to ridicule the beliefs of others.You think one way - they think another.

Diet pills, magic pictures, penis growth pills and whatever the other thing was = BS

 

Oh yeah...age reversing cream.

 

All utter nonsense.

Edited March 12, 2017 by Bluespunk

[elgordo38]

6 hours ago, roo860 said:

 

What a wonderful diverse world we live in, religion, customs, beliefs, everyone has their own opinions, mine is live and let live.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thaivisa Connect mobile app
 

 

Good attitude some of TV want to draw and quarter. 

[impulse]

It ain't the tat.  It's the sense of belonging to something bigger than ourselves, along with others who understand.

 

I'm always amazed at the guys who meet up every week at the same exact corner of the same exact bar at the same exact time- to discuss (among other topics) how stupid and meaningless the local rituals are.

Edited March 12, 2017 by impulse

[Songlaw]

6 hours ago, arend said:

Don't underestimate the power of the mind or the inventive ways people have of accessing it.... Contempt is not a power as much as you may superstitiously believe it is... it's just a strategy of the cowardly to feel superior that's been around a long time....

 

There is no magic. That is a point of fact. It is the support of such delusions that perpetuates endless cycles of nonsense and prevents the species from ever convincingly exiting the Dark Ages. BP is right in his approach. Take a good look around (globally, as well as locally) and witness what indifference to ignorance hath wrought. Enough already. 

[Artisi]

11 hours ago, LukDod said:

I have never had nor will ever have a tattoo, yet I have to admire the creativity and artwork of a talented tattooist. Only with close inspection, revealed in the posted photos, can one appreciate the detail of the tattoos presented. The delicate lines which would appear from a distance are not just lines but made of dots of letters created in Thai script.

To create and complete a design with such detail is something which few tattoo artisans could accomplish.

OTOH, those tattooed must have been very devoted or masochists (!)...it must have taken many sittings over months to complete such designs!

Like you, I have no desire to have a tat, but if people want to them and believe they are of some of benefit that's their right. Again like yourself I see the art /skill of some tattooists as a real work of art and should never be dismissed for what it is. 

[elgordo38]

3 hours ago, Songlaw said:

Take a good look around (globally, as well as locally) and witness what indifference to ignorance hath wrought.

I am I do and its scary. 

[jaywalker]

14 hours ago, mtls2005 said:

Videos from this event are interesting.

 

 

Reminds me of some US churches.

 

 

[Moonmoon]

So the temple guards and soldiers r able to stop them in their possessed state when they charge, ok i have understood the extend of the powers of the tattoos n spirits now.

[Moonmoon]

8 hours ago, arend said:

I know that I respond at my own peril... but... yes if you only react literally to the phenomena, you miss the underlying psychology, the needs and purposes being addressed and fulfilled... you may feel superior to the Christian who expresses his faith in rituals and activities but I would assert that there are many ways to access the hidden and deeper states and powers of the mind. What is a rock concert, a full moon pagan ceremony but ways to experience what is beyond ordinary states of mind...pretty basic, of course. The point is that what is considered reason and rational is only one mental state available to us and yes, it should be home base but not a prison... I would simply point you to the extraordinary phenomena manifested through hypnosis for example...Also, I would point out that many of the participants are deeply inspired to live a good life by feeling that their tatoos have connected them to a higher power and code...

Nice n idealistic, i m sure the meaning of these warrior tattoos started off as you claim.. 

However the present "warriors" donning these colors might not have the same mindset as you do. These tattoos just mean it would protect them from traffic accidents when they race around recklessly on the roads, and protect them from gangfights knives and bullets from their mafia activities.

Not want to be a Thai basher but my wife agrees with me and I have tattoos too so i dont look down now on people who color themselves for whatever purpose. Just hope they have the right mindset. 

[HOAX]

At leased they're not so crazy that they bring their kids with them to enjoy themselves with crackers and wine, and pretend its human flesh and blood. No one would do something like that. That would be sickening... oh, but...


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[berybert]

It doesn't always work.

Angelina had this done just before she split with Brad.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/thai-monk-gives-angelina-jolie-10007682

     

[Bluespunk]

55 minutes ago, HOAX said:

At leased they're not so crazy that they bring their kids with them to enjoy themselves with crackers and wine, and pretend its human flesh and blood. No one would do something like that. That would be sickening... oh, but...


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

Dear me not this one again. 

 

No one taking sacrament believes it is human flesh. 

 

Nor does mainstream Catholicism claim it gives you magical powers these days. 

 

Now those talking in tongues or those who talk to snakes. Or those sects who believe in mystical protection and charms or spiritualists who believe they talk to ghosts...

 

They are as barking as anyone who believes in magical drawings. 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 12, 2017 by Bluespunk

[Songlaw]

17 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

I have no problem with people believing in things to put their minds at ease or peace.

 

My problem is when they start claiming magical powers for their body art.

 

That's BS.

 

My ire stems from the organizations and individuals selling this nonsense, BP. Peddlers of this sort of crap when pressed (say, with a revolver at their heads) claim they are 'only giving their audience what it wants.' The problem being they do it under the guise of giving it what it needs. Egregious. Slapping on lipstick does little to conceal a pig. One of the things the irresponsible (though perhaps well-intentioned) supporters of religions of all stripes do not sufficiently consider is that these charlatans are in essence life-blood sucking shackles. They willfully prevent their 'followers' from ever understanding the forces to which they are truly subject, all the while relieving them of their elusive resources, as well as any sort of fair crack at either dignity or destiny. Unconscionable.

[Songlaw]

11 hours ago, Moonmoon said:

So the temple guards and soldiers r able to stop them in their possessed state when they charge, ok i have understood the extend of the powers of the tattoos n spirits now.

2

What the article failed to mention is that they had amulets. This is a prime example of why even soldiers refuse to leave home without them. However, everyone who is anyone in the world of woo knows that if you don't have MMU (Mighty Mormon Underwear), you are deluding yourself. The only wearable article clinically proven to both repel reason and reinforce BS, though I suspect there might be others. Dog help us all.

[Songlaw]

9 hours ago, berybert said:

It doesn't always work.

Angelina had this done just before she split with Brad.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/thai-monk-gives-angelina-jolie-10007682

     

 

 

Why am I  not surprised? Non-famous people certainly do not have the market cornered on stupidity. I can't help but notice how much more 'magical' and 'mystical' she appears now. Emulating idiocy has always been one of Hollywood's favorite pastimes. In this case, I can't help notice how far the nut hasn't fallen from the sack. The old man, after all, is no great shakes in the intellect department, either. 

Edited March 13, 2017 by Songlaw

[Songlaw]

And yes, nonsense is my favorite topic. It's why I love this site. 

[mtls2005]

I think the amart/powers-that-be would prefer to move away from many/most of the animism practices here, but they probably figure if it keeps the masses happy why mess with success.