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The forgotten women living in the time of Buddha part 4: Queen Khema

Sunday 7 July 2019 03:00 PM

Queen Khema’s exact royal status is somewhat hazy in ancient Buddhist records. Some Southeast Asian records imply that she may have been of royal birth. Other sources sometimes describe her as a queen. And there are other records which document her as a consort.

The lotus eaters: The flower at the heart of Buddhist tradition and wonderful dishes

Phuket Life / Culture

Sunday 30 June 2019 03:00 PM

The lotus flower may be small in size, but culturally, it holds great significance for Thais and Buddhists around the world. You can see one in gold at the top of a tower at Chalong Circle.

Rogue writers: The unnecessary burden of fact

Phuket Life / Culture

Saturday 15 June 2019 03:00 PM

Traditionally, the mainstay reporter is beholden to the golden rules of factual journalism. The writer remains ‘invisible’ behind a screen of reported facts presented as objectively as possible.

Phuket’s Baba Wedding Fair finds a new home

Phuket Life / Culture

Tuesday 11 June 2019 05:32 PM

PHUKET: The Baba Wedding Fair this year will be held on June 29-30 at the Ramada Plaza by Wyndham Chao Fah Hotel in Wichit, it was announced yesterday (June 10).

Phuket History: The first English privateers in Phuket

Phuket Life / Culture

Monday 10 June 2019 02:00 PM

In 1591 the first English privateering fleet was funded to go to the East for, as its charter stated, “The anoyinge of the Spaniards and Portingalls, (nowe our enemys) as also for the vendinge of oure comodities.”

The forgotten women living in the time of Buddha part 3: The never-crowned queen Ambapali

Phuket Life / Culture

Sunday 2 June 2019 03:00 PM

If the stories of Queen Samavati and Queen Mallika in Trailblazers parts one and two taught us anything, it’s that the age of Buddhist kings was far more than just an age of great men. The age of Buddhist kings was equally an age of Buddhist queens.

The forgotten women living in the time of Buddha part 2: Queen Mallika

Phuket Life / Culture

Wednesday 29 May 2019 12:28 PM

Which comes first: music or magic? That’s the quintessential question eternally abeat at the centre of one of Buddhism’s most enduring love stories.

Hindu statues, Buddhist temples: How and why Indian gods feature in Thai culture

Phuket Life / Culture

Sunday 26 May 2019 03:00 PM

You may certainly have noticed that Hindu gods are very prominent in Thai culture. Thus, there are often images of these gods in Thai temples and at Thai shrines. In fact, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are the three most important Hindu gods representing the recurring and continual cycles of birth, life, death and rebirth.

Kathu’s 19th Century treasure: The discovery of tin in the 1790s

Phuket Life / Culture

Monday 13 May 2019 02:00 PM

Kathu had previously been an area frequented only by hunters chasing flocks of waterfowl in the swamps or rhinoceros, tigers, deer and boar in the forests. In 1870, Dr. D. B. Bradley, publisher of the Bangkok Daily Advertiser, visited Phuket and tells us the history of the early development of these new mines at Kathu.

One moment in time: The hidden wonderment of Japanese short-form poetry

Phuket Life / Culture

Sunday 12 May 2019 03:00 PM

Quality short-form writing is generally acknowledged in literary circles as an exceptionally difficult discipline and an art form of itself. There’s many an artisan coffee drunk at book circle deliberations on the best short story ever told, and fisty-cuffs at dawn should some illiterate ignoramus belittle your favoured novella.

Royal Coronation: The Royal Regalia

Phuket Life / Culture

Saturday 4 May 2019 12:00 PM

The offering of the Royal Regalia to His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun as performed in the Royal Coronation Ceremony today carries with it deep significance unto itself as part of the Royal Coronation ceremony.

Royal Coronation: The Royal Coronation Emblem, the Mark of Royalty

Phuket Life / Culture

Saturday 4 May 2019 11:00 AM

For many Thais, numbers,figures and imagery can be deeply important and are often perceived of as of marked significance. The Royal Coronation Emblem created for the Royal Coronation of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun is especially so.

Royal Coronation: Sacred waters

Phuket Life / Culture

Saturday 4 May 2019 10:00 AM

The historic ceremonies of the Royal Coronation of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun that will unfold today began months ago. The earliest process in the preparation for the Royal Coronation Ceremony was to collect waters from different important sources and then consecrate and combine them for use in the Royal Purification and Anointment Ceremonies during the Royal Coronation Ceremony.

Royal Coronation: Ancient ceremony steeped in tradition

Phuket Life / Culture

Saturday 4 May 2019 09:00 AM

The Royal Coronation of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun will be conducted today, witnessed by millions of people either present in person attending the historic event or through the live broadcasts to 170 countries worldwide. The ceremonies to be witnessed today are steeped in Thai tradition and history, as explained in this article provided by the Thai Ministry of Culture.

Royal Coronation: His Majesty The King

Phuket Life / Culture

Saturday 4 May 2019 08:00 AM

His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun (Rama X) is the only son, the second of four children, of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX) and Her Majesty Queen Sirikit.

History preserved: Rare footage gives glimpse into the royal coronation of King Rama VII

Phuket Life / Culture

Saturday 4 May 2019 08:00 AM

Before the reign of King Rama VII of the Chakri Dynasty, royal coronation ceremonies had never been filmed. As of now, the footage from the ceremonies of King Rama VII and the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej are the only two existing coronation motion pictures available in Thailand.

Royal Coronation: Official program of main ceremonies

Phuket Life / Culture

Friday 3 May 2019 10:23 AM

The year 2019 will go down in Thai history as one of the nation’s most significant years, since it marks the auspicious occasion of the Royal Coronation of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun.

The myth of Mae Phosop, rice goddess of Thailand

Phuket Life / Culture

Sunday 28 April 2019 03:00 PM

Worshipping goddesses like Mae Phosop, the rice goddess, has been part of Thai culture and tradition since prehistoric times.

Unesco project aims to give prominent women the recognition they deserve

Phuket Life / Culture

Sunday 21 April 2019 03:00 PM

Khunying Lin Srivisanvaja was the first Thai woman to receive a medical degree and practise medicine in Thailand. Sumalee Viravaidya, a journalist, ensured a gender equality clause was added to the Thai Constitution. Khunying Yai Damrongthammasan was a devout dhamma practitioner who wrote a widely celebrated Buddhist text. What do all of these women have in common? Relative anonymity.

AirAsia’s failed ad campaign is a reminder of the perils of word play

Phuket Life / Culture

Tuesday 16 April 2019 11:00 AM

My Thai experience is bookended with two memorable explanations of impolite English phrases. The first was 30 years ago; the second a few weeks ago.

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