Disadvantaged Sattahip residents
are thankful to receive rice handed out by Chinese-Thais wishing to brush away
their demons.
Patcharapol Panrak
About 3,000 disadvantaged Sattahip residents received free food as Chinese-Thais
brushed away their demons.
Mayor and Sawang Rojanathammasathan Foundation chief Narong Bunbancherdsri led
the Aug. 5 Thingkrachart merit-making festival, offering rice, dried food and
necessities to more than 3,000 poor people. The good deeds are meant to honor
lost and wandering souls with no relatives making merit for them.
According to Chinese beliefs, the dead rely solely on merit that people make for
them and those with no one suffer hunger in the afterlife. The ceremony also is
supposed to offset a living individual’s bad deeds with good ones.
Narong said the festival is held throughout China and countries that follow the
Chinese fork of Buddhism. On festival day, Chinese-Thais invite monks to perform
the ritual. Those living in far-flung regions where monks cannot visit get food
and prayers packaged up for them.
About 3,000 poor, elderly and disabled people lined up to receive donations of a
5kg bag of rice and a sack of dried food. In return, they were simply asked to
pray for the souls of the departed.
