A Thai man sparked a sensation across social media platforms in Thailand when he introduced a Buddha amulet merchandising machine to raise funds for temples in isolated areas. A well-known Thai monk opposed the concept, saying selling amulets by way of vending machines is disrespectful.
News of the Buddha amulet vending machine went viral on Thai social media a few days in the past after its founder, 33 yr outdated Chayakorn Ittisarn, put in the machine at a shopping mall in the central province of Suphan Buri.
Chayakorn revealed in an interview with an area information agency in Suphan Buri that he and his relations loved making benefit and were additionally Buddha amulet collectors. Motivated by a desire to help financially struggling temples, the idea of a merchandising machine sprang to mind for Chayakorn.
Chayakorn explained that he wanted his merchandising machine to solve the difficulty of counterfeit amulets among collectors. He ensured that the entire amulets in his vending machine had been real. He and his household personally sourced the amulets from numerous temples and revered monks to include within the machine’s stock.
Chayakorn added that a part of the revenue would also go to temples in remote areas the place monks wrestle to cowl requirements like tap water and electricity.
According to Chayakorn, the Buddha amulets are priced between one hundred and 500 baht, with each merchandise accompanied by detailed information concerning its composition and place of birth.
Thai TikTokers shared videos of Chayakorn’s Buddha amulet merchandising machine on their accounts drawing consideration from many Thai amulet collectors. The collectors praised Chayakorn for his inventive ideas which could remedy the problem of buying faux amulets in Thailand.
A well-known Thai amulet collector, Nanthaphan Saenko, also referred to as Tang Phra Suphan, expressed his pride in Chayakorn’s revolutionary thought in an interview with ThaiRath. Nanthaphan stated…
“I am stunned. It is cool that he (Chayakorn) might give you this concept. I am proud of him. It is a new enterprise model, however a few of the previous generations could not perceive it because they are saying that the amulets are related to grace and power shouldn’t be in a machine. The world is changing. I prefer it. The solely concern is the pretend amulet. The machine ought to offer only genuine ones.”
Despite the positive suggestions, a extensively known monk, Phrayom, from Suan Kaew Temple in Nonthaburi province near Bangkok, opposed the thought. Phayom said…
“The Buddha amulets are sold like medicine and mackerels. The priceless amulet will become invaluable. No more grace. No extra magical power. This is simply about enterprise. The amulet falls from a shelf to the ground when ordering. This is an extreme amount of. It doesn’t help develop people’s thoughts and minds in any respect.”
Many netizens agreed with Phrayom, resulting in a backlash against Chayakorn and his vending machine. Consequently, the shopping center decided to withdraw the machine and urged Chayakorn to reclaim it.
Chayakorn explained that he invested more than a hundred,000 baht into the machine and solely made ten gross sales. Cinch revealed he’s careworn over the controversial concern however emphasised that he would proceed working the machine as a end result of he has good intentions..