Thailand grieves in final goodbye to beloved king
With solemn faces and outright tears, black-clad Thais said farewell to their king and longtime father figure Thursday on Bangkok’s streets and at viewing areas around the nation, capping a year of mourning with funeral ceremonies steeped in centuries of tradition.
Three processions involving the royal family, thousands of troops, a golden palanquin, a chariot and a royal gun carriage carried a ceremonial urn representing King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s remains from the Dusit Maha Prasad Throne Hall to the newly built crematorium.
The urn, placed under a ninetiered white umbrella and accompanied by a palace official, was then hoisted into the main chamber of the golden-spired crematorium as monks chanted, traditional instruments wailed and artillery fired in the distance.
New King Maha Vajiralongkorn then climbed the red-car- peted steps to light candles and incense in honor of his father.
The ceremony was watched in person by tens of thousands of mourners dressed all in black and millions more around the kingdom in broadcasts aired live on most Thai TV stations and shown at designated viewing areas across the country.
The funeral for Bhumibol will take place over five days and began Wednesday with his son, King Maha Vajiralongkorn, performing Buddhist merit-making rites before chanting monks and officials in immaculate white uniforms.
Bhumibol was scheduled to be cremated on Thursday evening within the special crematorium built over a year and representing mystical Mount Meru, where Buddhist and Hindu gods are believed to dwell.
Tradition
Deceased Thai royals have traditionally been kept upright in urns during official mourning. But Bhumibol, who spent much of his early life in the West, opted to be put in a coffin, with the royal urn placed next to it for devotional purposes.
The urn was at the center of Thursday’s processions, including one led by Vajiralongkorn, Bhumibol’s only son, in which the golden container was placed upon the Great Victory Chariot.
Built in 1795 and made of gilded and lacquered carved wood, the chariot has been used to carry the urns of royal family members dating to the start of the Chakri dynasty.
As the chariot, pulled by hundreds of men in traditional red uniforms, passed the mourners lining the parade route, they prostrated themselves, pressing their folded hands and head on the ground in a show of reverence for the late monarch.
Bhumibol’s death at age 88 on Oct. 13, 2016, after a reign of seven decades sparked a national outpouring of grief.
Millions of Thais visited the throne hall at Bangkok’s Grand Palace to pay respects.
The funeral is by design an intensely somber event, but also rich in history and cultural and spiritual tradition.