BANGKOK, 9 September 2013Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisan and Buddhist Thais, have made merit by offering food to 10,000 monks coming from the Deep South.
Presiding over the food offering ceremony held at Ratchaprasong intersection, Minister Niwatthamrong said the activity was part of the project aimed at offering food to 2 million monks in 77 provinces of Thailand. The project was first launched in 2008, in cooperation with the Young Buddhists Association of Thailand Under Royal Patronage, the National Office of Buddhism, the government, and the private sector.
The activity was also organized to celebrate the auspicious occasion of the renowned Vesak Day, during which food was offered to monks in 323 temples in the violence-torn South and to those hit by natural disasters.
The Day of Vesak commemorates the birth of the Buddha, his attainment of enlightenment, and his passing away. An extraordinary aspect of the occasion is that the three incidents took place on the same day although different years.
