Sole searching: Thai man hits Buddha with flipflop after ex-wife return wish fails

CCTV footage at a temple in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat showed a Thai man hitting a Buddha statue with a flipflop after a wish for the return of his ex-wife was unfulfilled.

A local in the Ron Phibun district of Nakhon Si Thammarat, Piyapong Sutthiphakdee, took to social media to condemn the Thai man for his disrespectful behaviour after he threw a flipflop at a Buddha statue and repeatedly hit the sacred effigy with his footwear.

Piyapong shared the video of the man’s action on his Facebook account with a few words in the caption.

“I won’t complain if you don’t have a faith in the statue, so you should not insult others who believe by committing such a disrespectful act.”

The video footage captured the man swiftly entering the main hall, where he removed his flipflop and used it to strike the statue’s head. As he prepared to depart, he turned back and hurled one of his flipflops at the statue. Returning to retrieve his footwear, he struck the statue once more and shouted before leaving the scene.

The statue, known as Phor Than Sang, resides within Wua Lung Temple in the Ron Phibun district. Crafted to honour a former abbot of the temple, it holds significant reverence among residents in the area as well as those from neighbouring districts in the province.

Statue damage

This aggressive act against the statue came to light when a 67 year old local man, Narongtham Suwannaparn, noticed damage to the statue’s right eye. Narongtham prompted the current abbot to review security camera footage from the main hall, revealing the incident which occurred on March 11.

Narongtham and the abbot filed a complaint against the man, later identified as 33 year old Nantapong “Bas” Salai at Ron Phibun Police Station. Officers reported to ThaiRath that Bas absconded after the crime. Police are searching for him and are believed to arrest Bas very soon.

According to the police, Bas was a drug addict who also suffered from mental illness as a consequence of drug use. Prior to the incident, he had expressed a desire at the temple for the return of his ex-wife. Upon realising that his wish remained unfulfilled, he became enraged and sought revenge by vandalising the statue.

Locals in the area are angry at Bas and urged the abbot to pursue the case fully. Many hope for Bas to face consequences for what he did to the sacred statue.