First anniversary of King Rama IX's death.

Friday, October 13th, 2017

Seen in today's issue of the Bangkok Post.

Today is a day of mourning across the Kingdom of Thailand as it marks the date of the deceased King Rama IX on 13 October 2016 at the age of 88. During the past year, millions of Thais have come to the Grand Palace to pay tribute to their passing King, who ruled the country for 70 years. The Press says there were 13M people, who came to pay tribute to the king.

So, today has been declared a national holiday in the country and the preparation for the royal farewell has officially started. The royal cremation will be held on October 26. Everything in the country will come to a standstill until 29th.

Each public building celebrates the funeral.

The Thais believe in the power of numbers.Very strangely, today appears as an auspicious day. First, King Rama IX bore a title, which had a very special significance in the Thai culture, where number NINE plays a symbolic value. 
You may refer to the following blog article I already made on number 9 (in French): Importance du nombre 9 dans la culture thaïlandaise

Then today is a Friday, the 5th day of the week. And last but not least, it is Friday 13th on the 10th month of the year. King Rama X, his son, will be officially crowned after the cremation ceremonies.
To push this set of coincidences even farther, try now to add the numbers of King Rama IX's death (2016). You get 9. And then, try to add the number of the current year (2017). You get10!

I personally do not attach any specific premonition to these figures but you can't stop noting these facts. Thai people will most certainly find a value in these remarks.

Symbolically, one may notice there are three major colors in the culture: the black, the white, and the yellow. Here is what it all means.

- Black, is the usual color of a funeral in Thailand. This is why Thai people dressed in black for a full year in remembrance of their beloved sovereign.

- White is also a color for funerals in Asia. But since it is a symbol of purity, this is the appropriate color for a religious ceremony. 

- Yellow is Buddha's color and by assimilation the royal color. This does not simply apply to Thailand. It is true with other royal ceremonies, particularly in southeast Asia: Bali, Java, Brunei, Malaysia,...

So, for the past few days, Thai authorities have been displaying an array of yellow flowers absolutely everywhere.

Black stands for the country, white for the religion, and yellow for royalties.

A tribute to King Rama IX in a shopping mall.

I took a very specific photograph to pay my own tribute to the King.

It shows a lotus flower but not in its original color. I used a photo-shop to alter it for two reasons. First, I retouched the original capture to adapt it to the circumstance. Then, I chose a lotus as a symbol. The lotus flower has a very specific meaning in Hinduism and Buddhism. To quote Joseph Campbell in 'The Power of Myth': "Brahma sits on a lotus, the symbol of divine energy and divine grace. The lotus grows from the navel of Vishnu, who is the sleeping god, whose dream is the universe."

'Mourning Lotus'