Singaporean Ho fails quest for “lucky nuts’

NAKHON PATHOM: Singaporean businessman Ho Kee Wong, 52, made the journey to Wat Sawang Arom in Nakhon Pathom in central Thailand hoping to rent a lucky peanut with five nuts inside the same pod – but was turned away empty-handed.

Ho was hoping to emulate fellow Singaporean construction material trader Lee Yern Wai, 55, who struck it rich after acquiring one of the temple’s lucky “five-in-one” nuts.

Mr Ho said the remarkable story of Mr Lee was well known in Singapore.

Two years ago, bankrupt and with no money to invest, Mr Lee had traveled to Thailand in pursuit of holy objects that could make him lucky again.

A tour company took Mr Lee to Wat Sawang Arom, where he met a monk known as “Ajarn Pae”.

Ajarn Pae gave Mr Lee a five-nut peanut, telling him to keep it and worship it. This type of nut was very rare in Thailand and was said to make whoever possessed it lucky in business, Ajarn Pae told Mr Lee.

Nuts in hand, Mr Lee became increasingly successful in his various ventures, according to Mr Ho. When he went to a casino, he was extremely lucky, winning hundreds of thousands of coins.

Mr Lee told his friends his luck was because of the five-in-one peanut, which he kept on a pedestal and worshiped.

When Mr Ho heard the story, he scoured the markets in Singapore for more five-nut jobs – but to no avail.

Determined to get his hands on one, he flew to Thailand with Malay friend Riharn Ohroon to visit the temple.

The pair met Ajarn Pae, offering him 2,000 baht to rent one of the nuts. They also searched the stalls near the temple, but were disappointed to find nothing better than four-in-ones.

Ajarn Pae told the pair that five-in-ones were rarer than gold. In 20 rai of peanut trees, you might find just one of them, he said.

He added that 20 years ago, a pupil had donated five of them to the temple for safekeeping, saying they brought whoever possessed them great luck in doing trade. Ajarn Pae told merchants in the area that he would buy the special nuts from them for 50 baht each.

Eventually Ajarn Pae acquired about 70 of them. Today, he has about 50 left after giving some away to pupils and people who had done good works for the temple.

They were not for sale, Ajarn Pae told the two hopeful foreigners. The villagers all knew they were lucky and anyone who found one either kept it or sold it to the temple, he added.