Thai Buddhist monk hosts funeral for himself as lesson about death

A Buddhist monk made headlines in Thailand when he invited residents in the northern province Phittanulok to a funeral… his funeral. The abbot at a local temple is alive and well, but wanted the ceremony to send a message to his followers that death is normal and just a part of life.

The funeral at the Pothiyan Temple followed traditional Thai Buddhist practices. A coffin with a fake body made from a banana tree was even burned in the temple’s crematory. 55 monks did Buddhist chants and prayers as the coffin was sent to the crematory.

Locals dressed in black. A sign was had the monk’s name, Sunthorn Rojanakhun, with his birth date, 23 October 1968, and his “death date,” 23 October 2048. (He expects to die at age 80.)

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Sunthorn’s funeral was intended to normalise the thoughts of death. He added that now there is no need for a funeral when he dies as locals have already celebrated his life. Those who attended the funeral also each got 5 kilograms of rice as a gift. Some residents told the media that they plan to buy lottery tickets with numbers matching the abbot’s age.

SOURCE: Thai News Agency