King Bhumibol Adulyadej (1927-2016)

How can one begins to make a tribute page to one of the greatest kings of all time, who has reigned for 70 full years. Especially, since His Majesty has done so much in his lifetime, all for the benefits of the Thai people, in so many work scopes. He was also a talented individual in music, painting, sports, invention, and more. How can one person possesses such a widescope of work and talent. It is no wonder that the majority of the Thai population view him as semidivine. It would seem benefiting that he should be viewed in such a way, even though we know in fact that he was a human being, albeit, an extraordinary one.

As someone once said, "This man named Bhumibol Adulyadej took over the 'job' from his brother at the age of just 19, and worked tirelessly for 70 years. He has travelled to all corners of the kingdom, with more distances attached to him than anyone else in Thailand and the world. He has seen every inch of Thailand his kingdom, been to places that were not easily accessible, and helped countless of people to have proper jobs, make their own income, and look after their own livelihood as well as their family's". His work spanned to include creating new inventions that would make things easier for the people to apply themselves with, most notably in the argricultural and environmental sectors. The Royal Projects carried the king's many initiatives to bring the bare necessity level of the population up to par with the general acceptance of the bare minimum. His talents in music, arts and sports were known worldwide. He was simply extraordinary. It is thus not difficult to understand why the majority of the Thai people see him as a super human being, nearest to a devine being if needing comparison. He works tirelessly 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without complaining. All of his works were for the benefits of his people. His work spanned nearly his whole life, to the point where his mind is still alert, but his body had given up. I don't know anyone who does not complain about their job, even though they work from only 9 to 5. King Bhumibol Adulyadej has done more for the betterment of Thailand than anyone else that we know today. He is the father of all examples, and should be remembered by his subjects forever, his teachings and examples to be passed down from generation to generation.

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Crowds of people in mourning clothes lined the street

The last time the Thai people were truly united was in 2006 when His Majesty the King celebrated his Diamond Jubilee, or 50th year on the throne. Many people can still remember the sea of yellow-shirted people filled up Rajdamneon Avenue in front of the Ananta Samakom Throne Hall. When the king came on to the balcany, everyone chanted in unison "Long Live His Majesty The King". Even thinking about it makes the tears swelled up in my eyes still. Why? Because he has given up his entire life to his people. His good intentions for the country knew no bounds - no single person can match that. And, the strength of unity is simply unmeasurable. I can say for certain that although the love exists between the people and their monarchs in other countries, that love and respect is not the same as in Thailand. It could be because of circumstances - that Thailand is politically unstable since the change to constitutional monarchy in 1932 - that the monarchy has in fact been the only stable entity in the entire country and its history. The then government was known to be jealous of the love and respect shown by the people to King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII) even though he was young, has not rule as yet, and was the first constitutional monarch. His death had put Siam into mourning, and in effect united its people. And now, 70 years later, his brother, King Bhumibol Adulyadej again has united his people in death. On the afternoon of 14 October, the sea of black can be seen endlessly from the Grand Palace to Siriraj Hospital. The people came out to pay respect to their King, while his body travelled back to the Grand Palace for the lying in state. There is really no need for any explanation anymore, as the action pretty much speaks for itself.

The video link at left shows the late king's body en route from Siriraj Hospital to the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall in the Grand Palace.

HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn arrived at the hospital sometime after 4pm on Friday 14 October 2016, together with members of the Royal Family, and accompanied the late king's body.

Sometime after, Her Majesty Queen Sirikit also left the hospital to go to Chitralada Villa, Dusit Palace. She had suffered strokes several times in the last year or so, and her showing in public has made her subjects very happy indeed.

The funeral rites begin with the bathing rites which is for members of the Royal Family only, and some members of the Royal Houses with the ranking of Royal Highness (Pra Ong Chao) up. Similar procedures can be viewed at the late Princess Galyani Vadhana's State Funeral page.

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The Royal Funeral Urn used here is of the highest rank, used for kings, queens and senior members of the Royal Family. This one is actually built new by the late king for the funeral of his sister, HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana, in 2008, based on the old one. The first urn was built by King Rama I in preparation for his own funeral, but was first used for a senior daughter who died before the king. That urn was used up to the Nineth Reign, the last person being HRH Princess Sri Nagarindra, the Princess Mother in 1995. After that it was retired as it was getting too old, and needed much repair. It is now placed in the National Museum. A new one was built using the same designs as the old.

The top the Royal Urn is decorated with diamonds on gold, with the base of the top part decorated with moving gold flowers set with diamonds. The urn itself is an octagonal shape made of intricately carved wood covered in gold and decorated with glass. What you see here is the outer cover. The inner cover is made new for every funeral, which would normally contain the royal body. Nowadays, many prefer the use of coffins, which are placed behind the urn. But Princess Bejaratana, who died in 2012, elected to be placed in the urn, and not the coffin. In this case, the body would be place in a seated position per the ancient customs, rather than lie flat in the coffin per Western customs. She was thus the first to actually used this urn, as she was actually placed within it. Princess Galayani and the late King Bhumibol have both chose to lie in coffins.

FINAL PREPARATIONS

It was first announced that the last day for people to pay respect to the late king was to be 30 September 2017, but more and more people came from all over Thailand. There were just so many people, HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn granted an extension to 5 October. The palace door closed at 12.20am on the morning of 6 October, and the last of the general public left the palace at 2.18am, reported by the Thairath Newspaper.

In preparations for the Royal Cremation Ceremony, there are practices for the major event on 7, 15 and 21 October, with road closures all around the areas leading up the Grand Palace and the Cremation Ground at Sanam Luang, interspersed with smaller practices on 11 October. Members of the different Royal Houses were selected to walk with the Royal Urn on the final journey from the Grand Palace to the Royal Cremation Ground at Sanam Luang. Thai craftsmen came out in full force to help with the preparations of the cremation structure and surrounding landscapes, including ex-Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai, who is a painter in his own right. Photographer Nakares Punpuning Teerakhamsri captured beautiful details of the structures, landscape, surroundings as well as people, a small selection is showcased here. To view his complete album, please follow the link to his Facebook page: Nakares Punpuning Teerakhamsri

13 OCTOBER 2017 - ONE YEAR ON

It has been exactly one year to this date, that HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Thailand's, as well as the World's longest reigning monarch to the date, passed away. Most Thai people were born in his reign, thus they "knew" only him - The King who has looked after his people through both good and bad times, and always stood by the people's side, particulalrly when there were spats between political parties, which were often. His passing away has left a big void in the people's heart, and understandably, many felt lost. As the king was the country's major pillar, it felt like the strong pillar that held up the kingdom's roof has fallen, which left open the opportunity for changes, either good or bad. But, with the army in power having taken over the country, their loyalty to the crown made it their first priority to keep peace. The transition in the period of one year has made the kingdom a place of stability, even though it was seen by the outside world as undemocratic. Personally, I think democracy has different meanings to different countries and cultures. What keeps peace and stability is the first thing that really matters, no matter what one calls that particular way of governing.