Search the Community

[h=1]Buri Ram family finds kitten corpse in sausages, makes offerings to it[/h] Residents in Buri Ram’s Satuek district are paying respect and making offerings to a kitten corpse, believing that it could bring them luck for the next lotto drawing. Fifty-two-year-old Krod Yodjongrum said that while she was enjoying Thai sausages with her children last Saturday, she discovered that the last piece of sausage contained some unexpected remains. Krod said that she was initially disgusted and furious but later thought that the remains could be a good sign. The corpse, which Krod kept for worshipping, has attracted a large number of visitors, who have come in search for tips for their lotto purchases. Satuek police said that the sausage’s maker might have ground the kitten with pork in order to save cost, but the grinder did not function well. According to Thairath, police will summon the vendor for questioning. And I thought tyromancy was weird... http://www.coconutsbangkok.com/random/buri-ram-family-finds-kitten-corpse-in-sausages-makes-offerings-to-it/

Ayutthaya residents are making offerings to two mango trees, one of which appears to have a penis, the other of which appears to have a vagina, under the belief that these offerings will bring them good luck. ‘Penis’ mango tree worshiped by Ayutthaya residents

have you guys ever thought that the current situation we r facing now are the result from what we have done in the past in this present life or resulting from the things we had done in our past life or just our fate????????????????????????????????

Seeking Better Luck, Some Try New Monikers; Opting for 'Charisma' By JAMES HOOKWAY and WILAWAN WATCHARASAKWET BANGKOK—Google Inc.'s GOOG -1.99% Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt once predicted that in the future people around the world will change their names to escape all the embarrassing things they did online in the past. In Thailand, people already are doing it—for good luck. Baramee Thammabandan, 46 years old, had a run of misfortune a decade ago when he was still known as Teerapol Lilitjirawat. His business trading garments in Bangkok's mazelike markets slumped, his eyesight began to fail and he could no longer properly manage his affairs. Worse, he says his former wife left him. So, Mr. Baramee did what many Thais do when faced with a patch of bad luck: He changed his name. "I wanted to become a new person," says the slim, clean-shaven Mr. Baramee, whose new name means "Charisma" and which he chose to bring him wealth and fame. It seems to have worked. Though almost entirely blind, Mr. Baramee now is at the forefront of a booming new industry advising other Thais how to choose new names for themselves. A long list of Thai celebrities and business tycoons parade into his office in one of Bangkok's busiest shopping malls, asking for advice on new monikers, while his team fields more than 250 calls from anxious others wanting a consultation. In just five years, he says, his business has doubled, enough for him to create four new websites, and prompting a horde of competitors with names like thaigoodname.com and fortunename.com to jump into the peculiar niche. "People are like cars, and changing names is like changing a flat tire. It can take you further, and give you a smoother ride," Mr. Baramee says, as a pair of old Nokia NOK1V.HE -5.88% cellphones chirp on a desk in front of him and incense sticks burn before a collection of Buddha images. Changing names might seem like an extreme remedy for bad luck, but in Thailand, it is sometimes the first thing people do to improve their prospects. Thai parents have long exercised great care in choosing names for their children. Often they consult fortune tellers to help select names that complement the day and time at which their children were born. Mr. Baramee charges people around 500 baht, or around $17, to provide several suitable names. If that doesn't work, many people are willing to change their names if they think it will give them a competitive edge now that the country's economy is quickly swinging from its old rice-farming origins toward the urban, globalized world of iPhones, shopping malls and mass manufacturing. "Thailand is changing very quickly and it is natural to look for ways to help you prosper," said Suchada Jarernsritrakul, a 34-year-old real-estate consultant who changed her name two years ago. The process is quick and straightforward. Thais simply register their new names at local government offices and can get new identification cards printed on the spot. In the U.S., name changes often involve court procedures to be fully recognized, while many European countries require government approval for proposed name changes. How often all this is happening isn't known, but there is enough name-switching to give the police fits tracking criminals. In one case, police say they have launched a manhunt for a 35-year-old man originally named Sahachat Kasemthang, who allegedly changed his name several times as he opened new bank accounts and used bounced checks to buy $167,000 worth of gold from jewelry stores across the nation. Partly because of problems like this, the authorities now fingerprint not only to identify criminal suspects but also to handle all sorts of routine processes, including visa extensions. "We can't rely on names and ID cards to accurately identify people any more," said Lt. Gen. Panu Kerdlarbpol of the Thai Police. Still, you won't hear a certain Olympic athlete questioning the powers of name changing. At 28, Junpim Kuntatean had won a silver medal in the world weightlifting championships but then suffered an elbow injury a year before the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Hoping to change her luck, she visited a fortune teller who suggested a name makeover. The new one, Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarakoon, which roughly translates as "Sparkling River-flow of Brilliant Prosperity," was a challenge to TV commentators, but she did win a gold medal. She wasn't reachable for comment now, but told reporters after winning that "some people believe in fortune tellers and I am one of them." Businesswoman Benyapa Sujirapat went to a fortune teller too when, at age 50, she decided to quit her job and start her own advertising business. She was told her old name, Sutheera Visetsung, had too many letters which brought bad luck, so Ms. Benyapa, decided to select a new one, which means "Flourish with Wisdom." That gave her confidence to go ahead, said Ms. Benyapa, who not long afterward met the man she married—which she also partly attributes to her new identity. There are all sorts of methods for choosing new names, and the process is growing more sophisticated. Mathematicians at Naresuan University, about 200 miles north of Bangkok, came up with a novel algorithm for selecting auspicious names in 2009 to make the process even simpler. Based on old beliefs about how different letters of the alphabet can influence a person's fate, the formula looks at the statistical auspiciousness of a name, as calculated by its perceived attributes such as wisdom and strength, along with the number of letters in a name. Since then, a plethora of Internet sites have emerged to help people change their names online without going through the hassle of seeing an actual fortune teller or numerologists. Users simply type in their names and their birth dates and the sites will crunch several factors, and provide some alternative, luckier names for a fee. At fortunename.com, five suggestions cost 299 baht, or just under $10, with additional charges for more names and advice on how to sign your new moniker best. There are even "name-changer" smartphone applications allowing Thais to ponder a name-change while stuck in Bangkok's chronic traffic jams. Not surprisingly, not everything about all this all name-changing goes well for people. Ms. Benyapa, the businesswoman, has to walk around with a battered cardboard folder of documents to prove she is who she says she is. In some cases, she complains, she has had to rebuild business relationships from scratch after changing her name. Other people carry laminated, notarized copies of their old identification cards. Then there is the matter of her recent wedding. "I sent out the invitation cards, but nobody knew it was me because I was using my new name," she says. Many of her guests only agreed to attend after she visited them in person. "If you change your name, you should be ready to face all sorts of problems," Ms. Benyapa says.

Just curious will that be the end of 2012?

I went to a shop outside BKK to buy a small souvenir to my old mom back here, she wanted a buddha figure. I found a little shop that didnt sell anything but this, and found a little tiny buddha figure that i ended up deciding on. Asked the price, and thought we were going on a battlfield in the area of 200-400 bath - and was taken off my feet when i was told it was 15.000 TB !! I thought he didnt liked me and went away, got my friends thai-wife who is a hardcore dealer on antiques to go and check if thats really the case. She then told me that those amulets can be really expensive, and that you could find some to be priced at several million TB ! I ended up buying one for 6000 TB - not exactly what i thought it would cost, but got abit interested in this ? can anybody enlighten me what its all about ? Why are they so expensive - and what do they mean ? i was told it was something that should be used close to the body to help generate QI and protect you ?

When I first came to Thailand some years ago, it was totally unplanned. By that I mean I didn't know where I was going until I made the arrangements. I had gone through a painful divorce 4 years earlier . . . my health problems were getting worse and I had to leave my job. There seemed to me to be nothin' left for me to do on this earth. Finally I told myself I need to change my life . . . my decision. . . get out of this place and go somewhere else. . . start again. I boiled it down to 3 choices. . . Belize in the Carribean, the Philipines or Thailand. You all know my choice. After a couple of weeks in the hotel one of the drivers there introduced me to a female friend of his, who wasn't looking for a boyfriend, but wanted to be my escort while at the hotel. I told her I wanted to live in Thailand and she helped me find an apartment in Bang Na. A few days after I moved into the apartment, the driver from the hotel came for a visit, and I suggested we go eat somewhere and have a few drinks. The minute I walked into the restaurant, I was treated like a V.I.P. . I wasn't used to the Thai service then and I was quite impressed. I noticed a waitress who stayed near my table to make sure everything was okay. The driver asked her to join us and it turned out she was the head waitress and the only one there who spoke any english at all. We exchanged phone numbers and I went home that night feeling good because it was a very enjoyable night. The next day, she called me and we made arrangements to meet at Central City. After a few dates. . .restaurants cinemas, parks. . .etc., I convinced her to move in with me. This lady is now my wife(which will lead me into an entirely different story). I truely believe "FATE" played a major role in my life. How about you?? Did "FATE" intervein when you met your guy or gal?? :?:

... Or not? Do you believe that astrology has a bearing on your life, or are you in complete control of everything that happens to you? I'd like to know what you think.

I am interested in Sak Yant tattoo's. On the back of the falang above you will see three favourite tattoo's. The top one at the nape of the neck is Yao Gord, nine towers. The middle one is Pheadtit - Eight directions, the bottom one is called in English - Diamond Body Armour. Each has different meanings. I was wondering if anyone here has any yant tattoo's ? Do you believe they have given you any protection or good luck ? What do Thai people think about falangs who get these traditional temple tattoo's. Do they look good or stupid ?

I was reading in another set of forums that some Thai ladies, before making life changing decisions, consult with "seeing doctors." I was just curious how many lady TF'ers do this, or is it mostly common place in the 21st century, and what types of questions are discussed when you go?