Taxi driver’s temple triumph: Jackpot lottery win and grateful homage payoff

A visit to the famous Sawang Arom temple in Nakhon Pathom province in central Thailand turned out to be a stroke of good fortune for a 43 year old taxi driver from Samut Sakhon. After winning the lottery following a visit to the respected Ta Thong Ngiew Rai, he kept his promise of returning to the temple to pay homage and thank the revered idol.

Sawang Arom temple, located in the Khun Keaw sub-district of Nakhon Chaisi district, Nakhon Pathom province, is a bustling hub of faithful devotees and fortune seekers. The temple houses a revered idol named Ta Thong Ngiew Rai, famed for wick tears appearing in its mystical water basin. It’s these droplets that fortune-seekers interpret as lucky numbers to use for lottery drawings, and it seems to have worked for Suriya.

Taxi driver Suriya thought himself a fortune seeker and admitted that prior to every lottery draw, he would search for lucky numbers. The last time he visited Ta Thong Ngiew Rai, he asked for fortune to win the two-digit lottery. He travelled with two friends and received the number 62 from the reputed holy water basin. Following his fortune, he bought six lottery tickets and ended up winning 12,000 baht (US$348), reported KhaoSod.

Fulfilling his promise, he returned to the temple today. He found the numbers 6, 5, and 8 in the holy water to try his luck again. Suriya made a vow to quit drinking if he won the lottery this time, promising to dedicate the merits to Ta Thong Ngiew Rai and encourage his family to practice dharma.

The lottery stalls situated within the temple boundaries display the numerals interpreted from the wick tears in the holy basin of Ta Thong Ngiew Rai. For the upcoming draw on July 31, customers can choose from the magic water basin numbers 383-68 and Monday’s number 937.