Cave rescue op triggers Thailand’s spiritual reflex

Mae Sai, Thailand: A hermit in tiger- print robes, animal sacrifice by hill- tribes and rounds of Buddhist prayer: the physical efforts to reach a teenage football team trapped in a flooded Thai cave are being matched by by a surge of Thai spirituality. The saga, which on Monday entered a ninth day, has stirred a deep response in a nation where Buddhist ritual and animist practice is cross- stitched into daily life. On Monday as divers edged through thick mud and water closer to a raised area where they hope to find the stricken team alive, several colourfully- dressed ethnic minority Lisu tribespeople arrived near the entrance to the cave. They chanted and sacrificed chickens and pigs in an offering to the river and forest spirits, imploring the safe return of the 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25year- old coach. “We’re asking forgiveness for things we’ve done wrong, asking them ( the spirits) to release the children,” said Anucha Poorirucha, 44, Lisu village leader from neighbouring province of Pai. Later a hermit — known in Thai as “reusee” — was seen wrapped in a tiger print cloth standing motionless and silent on a nearby road, as practitioners of the nation’s complex and diverse belief systems converge on the cave. Offerings have been made at homes, schools and temples across the country, while the Supreme Patriarch — the head of Buddhist clergy — has urged Thailand to unite in prayer for the safe return of the team. The fate of the young boys has drawn gospel- singing Christians to the teeming rescue site, while Muslims across the Buddhist- majority country were asked to dedicate Friday prayers to the missing footballers.