Bowl brawl: Thai monk’s alms lid swipe has woman in stitches

A violent Thai monk struck a local woman with the lid of his alms bowl, leaving the victim with four stitches to her head. The monk’s thuggish attack was reportedly prompted by the woman’s delay in helping him pack his food offerings.

A witness recorded a video capturing the moment when the monk, identified as Nart, attempted to flee after assaulting a 75 year old woman named Yu. The witness clarified that Nart struck Yu with the lid of his alms bowl and then hurriedly tried to take her away in a taxi, claiming he would transport her to the hospital.

The witnesses and motorcycle taxi riders at the scene intervened to prevent Nart from leaving, fearing he might escape.

The video footage shows witnesses repeatedly questioning the monk about the motive for the attack, while Nart urged them to stop filming. The monk later got out of the taxi but did not answer why he attacked the woman.

Witnesses revealed to the media that the incident occurred at about 7am yesterday, March 24, near Soi Wuttakart 14 in the Thon Buri district of Bangkok.

A motorcycle taxi rider, Somchai Markpanya, told Amarin TV that this wasn’t the first time the monk attacked Yu. The monk stuck Yu with the alms bowl’s lid several times before but this time resulted in the most serious injury. Previously, the monk had struck Yu with the lid of the alms bowl on multiple occasions, but this instance resulted in the most severe injury.

Repeated assaults

Somchai explained that Yu was a vendor at a market near the incident scene. She always offered food to the monk and also helped him pack food offerings from locals into sacks.

Somchai recounted his own experience of being attacked by Nart when he was transporting him to the temple. He recalled how Nart became angry as Somchai rode his motorcycle past the destination, prompting the monk to strike him in the body with the alms bowl’s lid.

Somchai expressed that he didn’t get angry towards Nart but wanted him to stop his aggressive behaviour. He observed that a monk should exemplify calmness and kindness in accordance with the precepts of Buddhist monasticism.

Yu later recounted the incident to Amarin TV, disclosing that she had been aiding Nart for over a decade. She described Nart as volatile and unpredictable, having inflicted harm on her numerous times in the past. Despite this, she had chosen to keep these occurrences concealed, attributing her injuries to accidents.

Yu stated that she forgave the monk and vowed to avoid any further involvement with him. While she harboured no resentment towards him, she lodged a complaint against him and intended to pursue the matter through legal channels.

Naewna reported that Nart disappeared from the temple after the assault went viral on Thai social media. He was seen leaving the temple in a pickup car and told other monks at the temple that he would return to his home province, Uttaradit.