Thailand Voice

The Three Pagoda Pass in the north of Kanchanaburi Province is historically important for several reasons. It was this route that Buddhism is believed to have taken when it first came to Thailand. The pass was also used by the Burmese when they …

Last weekend Maha Pucha Day was celebrated in much of Thailand, but hardly at all here in Phana. It never is, because the people here celebrate Boun Pravet on the same day. Maha Pucha has been a Thai national holiday since the reign … Read full story >>>

The Sak Yant design ‘Paed Tidt’ or Eight Direction Yant is a sacred Geometric Yant containing eight Mantras written in 2 concentric circles in the centre of the design. The design of the Paed Tidt Yant also incorporates eight representations of the Buddha. Read full story >>>

  Last Saturday morning a celebration was held in the sala / viharn at Wat Phra Lao to celebrate the promotion of four local monks. It was a 'long weekend' in Thailand because Maha Pucha Day, a national holiday, fell on the Sunday so Monday was a compensating … Read full story >>>

He identifies himself only as “K. Thong.” He posted this video on Youtube dated Feb 26, declaring that a “civil war” was breaking out and bombs would hit the city “every day” from now on. A blog later identified him as a close aide to Maj Gen Kattiya … Read full story >>>

The BBC has already had an explosives expert take apart a GT200 device, but now one has been taken apart on Thai TV. You can see the YouTube clip of it here (even has English subtitles).  BP:… Read full story >>>

Heatwave is a post from: ThaiPulse.com/blog/ , a Thailand focused website. ©2009-2010 ThaiPulse It’s been blistering hot now for about 2 months. We’ve had a couple rain showers in 60 days, but it’s noticeably hotter and dryer than the last couple years. Moving into a house I thought it’d be cooler than the flat we… Read full story >>>

Not so many people have been looking at my Pic of the Day (use the tab at the top of this page) so I have posted a selection from January and February pics. Click on the thumbnail to enlarge.          Read full story >>>

Traditionally, in Thailand, when a Buddhist dies, their body is cremated and then the bones and ashes are collected and are either kept at the temple or at home or sometimes both. However, there is a third option which is seemingly becoming more popular these days. It is called “loi angkarn” which means the…

I guess everybody is familiar with the feeling that you know someon'e face but can't put a name to it, and more often than not you can't pinpoint where or when you met the person.   I had precisely this problem when I was beckoned to speak with this… Read full story >>>

Thailand is a Buddhist country and Buddhists believe in rebirth. The 100 Day Ceremony is a Buddhist Death Ritual where prayers for the dead are chanted, exactly 100 days after a person dies. This death Ritual is known as “Tamboon Roy Wan”. The purpose… Read full story >>>

My previous post concerned the preparations for the special somphot ceremony at Wat Phra Lao which took place last weekend. Two years ago I filmed some video of the same ceremony. It included footage taken inside the Phra Ubosot. It is quite rare to see such footage,  I think… Read full story >>>

It is unfortunately the case that the image of Thailand overseas is most strongly influenced by stories such as this, which concerns Portsmouth manager Avram Grant visiting the Thai Siam Massage Parlour, which seems to have occupied an industrial unit, and which is described by intrepid Sun journos as a … Read full story >>>

Fuji Apples at Big C – 29 THB is a post from: ThaiPulse.com/blog/ , a Thailand focused website. ©2009-2010 ThaiPulse Farang Food Alert: Awesome apples, these FUJI brand from Big C. I can sometimes find them in the open market – but there is … Read full story >>>

Holding on: Following the burst of corruption scandals and in anticipation of the impending no-confidence debate, PM Abhisit had to replace/reshuffle five cabinet members in 1/10. Since the new year, PM Abhisit seemed to have become remarkably bolder in his move against corruption and arm… Read full story >>>

I have been working with publications in the Royal Gazette a lot, but only recently I first processed one which was on the starting page of a volume, so I could see the header displayed above. Notice that it features … Read full story >>>

Did you know that we are well into the third lunar month? Not to worry. Later in the year the eighth month will occur twice. It does this every few years so that the lunar calendar can more or less catch up with… Read full story >>>

In Thailand meditation centres there are 2 types of meditation practiced, Vipassana and Samatha. This Thailand meditation guide will try to outline the differences between Vipassana and Samatha meditation practice. Vipassana meditation is also known as Insight meditation and Samatha meditation is referred to as Concentration meditation Read full story >>>

Pensri has been collecting material for a history of Phana for about ten years. Her father had a big collection of books and documents on the subject and several people in the village have added to her collection by allowing her to photo-copy written … Read full story >>>

THAI TAKES By PHILIP GOLINGAI THE other day I was eating Thai food in a restaurant in a Bangkok suburb with a Malaysian tourist and my guest was surprised that the dishes did not taste like the ones in her favourite Thai restaurant… Read full story >>>

Wat Bang Phra… This weekend is the first three day 2010 Bangkok International Tattoo Convention . Ever. Not being up for a crowd (and full of caffeine), I called Khun Pissout (my fav taxi driver) to see if he was free for the day. He was. So as a tattoo substitute, we drove… Read full story >>>

On my recent visit to Bangkok I took the chance of a free day to wander around the area between the Democracy Monument on Rajdamnern Avenue and the Giant Swing at Wat Suthat. I spent most of the time on Bamrungmuang Road because I wanted to explore the shops which… Read full story >>>

Mizuno Kosuke and Pasuk Phongpaichit, eds., Populism in Asia . Singapore : NUS Press in association with Kyoto University Press, 2009. Pp. xii, 228; ill., map. The logistics for this innovative volume were overseen by collaborators from Thammasat University in Bangkok and the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Kyoto University… Read full story >>>

Many Buddhist Temples in Thailand will have at least one Bodhi tree and where you find a Bodhi tree you will often see long sticks with a V shaped end which are known as Mai Kam ไม้ค้ำ. It appears that these… Read full story >>>

These two monks arrived outside our house on New Year's Eve. They are on tudong, walking from Nam Yun, which is about as far south as you can get in Ubon Ratchathani Province . And about as far south as you can get … Read full story >>>

It’s not everyday you get the chance to see 10000 Buddhist Monks all together in Chiang Mai or anywhere else for that matter. The Buddhist Monks gathered to collect alms on a massive scale and this has become an annual event in Chiang Mai. This year, the alms collected were to be… Read full story >>>

Back in 2007 Nok Air began daily flights between Ubon and Bangkok. Unfortunately it only lasted 6 months. Nok Air is affiliated with Thai airways which is one of the two current airlines to service Ubon, the other being Air Asia. It seems that Thai airways… Read full story >>>

This is a blog only In the ‘Brits subjected to  ’Clockwork Orange’ attack story once again I am the bearer of bad tidings about violent crime in Thailand but in this case it is foreigners doing unspeakable things to foreigners. This is not an attack on Thailand, although once again, I believe this demonstrates that , … Read full story >>>

I was recently asked what is a Katoey and why are there so many Thai Ladyboys or Katoey in Thailand. Indeed, in some cities, Thai Ladyboys do appear to outnumber the Thai ladies, Pattaya being a prime example. The normally accepted definition of a… Read full story >>>

Link to DailyMail By Andrew Drummond Last updated at 12:38 AM on 28th November 2009 A British couple have become victims of a horrendous Clockwork Orange-style sex attack ordeal while on holiday in Thailand. The professional couple had chosen the Thai holiday … Read full story >>>