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Paul Handley takes a closer look at Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn’s tattoos and asks what they could possibly mean.
As we get past the utter shock at the pictures published in Bild of Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn sporting fresh tattoos and a weirdly undersized shirt as he gets on his plane in Munich, the question of what he chose to decorate his body with, and why, is perhaps more interesting.
The Thai police says the photos were doctored, but Bild doubled down and republished them with a fresh article on the prince on Friday. I’m going to assume the powerful newspaper determined they are genuine.
We might chalk it up to the normal yearnings of a middle-aged — well, almost 64-year-old — man who already has a Porsche, a palace, and, according to the same report, a 10 million euro villa on a lake south of Munich.
But seen in the context of his expected succession to the throne, and the games of power going on in Thailand, it would be interesting to get the views of all those historians and cultural anthropologists out there. What does it mean, ritualistically, to be tattooed on the cusp of rising to such a powerful position? And what is the meaning of his choice of tattoos?
The design on his back is not clear, mostly covered by that teensy tank top, but it appears to be a Japanese- (or Chinese-) style tiger. I can’t see what he has on his arm, it’s impossible to tell from the online photos. It’s clearly not a Maori design, which is really so 1990s anyway. It looks fairly elaborate and could be, if I am correct about the the back tattoo, also a Japanese design.
And he definitely has something on his chest as well, but it is too hard to see to even hazard a guess.
What I find interesting is that the Thailand born-and-raised prince has apparently shrugged off the Thai tattoo culture all around him for, possibly, Japanese traditional yakuza style tattoos or, if I’m wrong about that, a non-Thai design, and somethng more globally popular.
I know little about sak yant, but that such tattoos can deliver protection and project power, as much as amulets. I would have thought that a prince interested in power, impressing, dominating or putting fear into his subjects, would make use of such symbols to do so.
But Vajiralongkorn doesn’t appear to feel that need, even as many politicians, powerful businessmen and top generals he comes in contact with do. I’m not sure, but I don’t remember seeing him in pictures with amulets.
Could this be a kind of declaration of separateness from Thai culture, that he is not bound by all the tradition the Chakri throne is supposed to embody? A break with all his father stands for? Or perhaps the meaning and power of sak yant has been degraded since Angelina Jolie got hers and launched Thai tattoo tourism?
Arguably Prince Vajiralongkorn, after his older sister Ubolratana (or “Julie”), is the most international of the royal family, spending generous amounts of time in Germany for more than a decade, hiking, biking and driving around Bavaria clad in sandals and skinny jeans — and getting tattooed — like everyone else. Is this just a demonstration of his global sense? Could that connect him with the younger generation of urban, globalised Thais?
Or, perhaps, does a yakuza-style tattoo carry similar weight in Thailand? (Or is it too degraded by the explosion of skin art around the world?)
There are lots of things to think about with this. Again, I’m sure all those cultural anthropologists out there have a view. Let’s hear!
Paul Handley is a journalist and author of The King Never Smiles: A Biography of Thailand’s Bhumibol Adulyadej.
Please do your research before accepting silly fake photos. Prince Vajiralongkorn fully showed both his arms (no tattoos whatsoever) at the Bike For Dad charity cycling event quite recently. These photos are widely available – indeed hundreds of photos were taken by hundreds of people on the route fully showing both the Prince’s untattooed arms. He was not wearing tung kairn (sun sleeves) to cover anything up.
You must now state publicly that you accept the Bild photos were fake. If you don’t your web site will be left looking ridiculous.
I have a recent photo in my possession that even shows the Prince in only swimming trunks at the pool with his son. No tattoos.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/thais-bike-for-dad-in-bangkok-1449835569
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You are quite right that Vajiralongkorn did not appear to be tattooed in 2015, Mike Johnson, as we saw in the photograph at the swimming pool in Germany, and the photographs from the Bike For Dad event.
However you are stumbling into an obvious logical fallacy if you believe that just because the crown prince was not tattooed in 2015, there is no way he could have tattoos in 2016. Obviously it is perfectly possible that he got tattooed sometime between the Bike For Dad event and now. Indeed, as several people have pointed out, it may be the case that the tattoos are fresh, and this is why he was wearing no shirt (it’s very painful to have clothes making contact with newly tattooed skin) and why he then borrowed a singlet from his wife, which (to put it politely) was a little too small for him.
There are plenty of people with enough expertise in photoshop to be able to determine if these photos are faked. I can guarantee you that nobody with genuine expertise will step forward to say the pictures ate fake, because they are 100% genuine. Axel Springer, the parent company of Bild Zeitung, has also released a statement confirming the photographs are genuine.
So there is no need to worry about New Mandala being “left looking ridiculous”. You are the one who will be left looking ridiculous if you continue to insist the images are fake despite clearly not knowing what you are talking about.
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It was real, confirm from staff who work with this flight at BKK.
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Good on you Andrew. You set those royalists on fire.
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UPDATE — I have received another photograph, which leads me to conclude that Vajiralongkorn’s tats are not permanent, they are transfers. Of course, this raises as many questions as it answers… https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154159623061154&set=a.419593026153.213934.627196153
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To my eyes, the tiny shirt and the peculiarly stiff posture are evidence that the tattoos are not merely recent but rather fresh and painful still.
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No, that’s how he stands.
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Is it possible to be a body paint?
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I assume Mike Johnson was Thai Royalist because the way he claim the photo is fake was normal reaction like many stupid Royalist.
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NO, that’s how he stands.
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Wouldn’t it be equally or more logical to assume this is body paint rather than permanent tattoos?
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Die thailändische Polizei behauptet jetzt in einer offiziellen Stellungnahme, die besagten Fotos seien Fälschungen. Außerdem wurde suggeriert, Journalist Marshall sei möglicherweise Urheber der Fälschungen.
Diese Behauptungen sind unwahr.
Eine Sprecherin der Axel Springer SE stellt klar: „BILD hat die Echtheit der Fotos überprüft. Der Leser-Reporter ist nicht Andrew McGregor Marshall.“
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I guess there will be confirmation next time he puts on a t-shirt or a wife beater. He lives in Germany and unlike Thailand it’s a free country so I’m sure Bild will do a follow up after their integrity has been questioned.
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As i have a bit of a collection of tattoos myself, i may share a few points. Soon after tattooing a crust builds on the tattoo, similar to a fresh wound. That, depending on the needles used, can be thicker or thinner. Also, it depending on the aftercare, where one applies either Vaseline or a healing creme on the freshly inked skin. This leaves the skin soft, which is quite important. After several days to a week when the skin is healed the crust falls or peels off. The fresh tattoo is in the first months the brightest, and will fade over the years, depending on the ink used, quicker or slower.
Traditional Thai Sak Yant are far more painful than western style tattoos, but they heal much quicker, as not large sectors of skin are affected, but only points. Also, Sak Yant are not just applied visibly with ink, but also in oil, which is not visible. For many professions, especially in civil service and police, tattoos are not allowed. People still want to have the powers a Sak Yant will give, be they protective, aggressive (lower body), or charms. So, even if one does not seem to be tattooed, one may still be covered in Sak Yant.
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[…] The pictures of the prince are parts of two posts at New Mandala, one by Paul Handley and the other by Christine Gray. Both worth reading in the context of the Bild stories. THe […]
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[…] The pictures of the prince are parts of two posts at New Mandala, one by Paul Handley and the other by Christine Gray. Both worth reading in the context of the Bild stories. THe […]
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My bet is on non permanent tattoo stickers. He wears the tank top in order to not ruin them because they where freshly applied while he was on the plane. What else you could do on a boring time consuming flight. Maybe he plays a dad joke on his son or is on a way to a private pool party which has a little silly motto. He did this for fun.
It is just a private man caught in a private moment by a paparazzi. Stepping out his private plane and walking to his private car to be driven to his private home. He is human too and will not dress every minute around the clock as he would in a more official and public situation.
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also a member of the royal family can attract what he want and wearing tattoos as he wants – in his age he know what is flattering or unflattering for him when he appears in public.-
that this is his normal clothing show us a article in the newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung that quote the mayor of tutzing ( the cronprince new hometown at starnberger see):
the crown prince came in a white Porsche. He was dressed in a fashionable jeans with cracks and was wearing a midriff-baring T-shirt and a black leather jacket, then Botas recalls. “He was very pleasant and not at all pretentious.” Accompanied had him 20 people in eight minibuses: bodyguards, employees, women.
süddeutsche Zeitung : http://www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/starnberger-see-der-kronprinz-von-tutzing-1.3089082
The Crown Prince has often made headlines in German media – so he knows what he is doing with his public appearances…
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Paul makes an excellent point and raises fascinating questions. Speaking as a cultural anthropologist, I have no idea what the tattoos mean, because, as Nick and others point out, these things tend to be very specific.
Not my specialty. I wonder where these tattoos stand in relation to those portrayed in Susan Conway’s book, “Tai Magic” (River Books 2014).
In the context of the succession, nothing the prince does is private. Millions of people’s lives are linked to his whims and his behavior. Royal bodies are not like other bodies.
What we know for sure: the significance of the tattoos, like the serial wives, is by no means trivial.
The consequence of extreme royal privilege in Siam has been to make the most public things private on risk of death and imprisonment. One strange outcome of absolute power and wealth wielded by these royals is making prostration traditions visible abroad — in Germany. At least his predecessors knew to fake it and guard context while on international tours and the like. The public/private line with royals is much different in England and Japan.
If he’s coming from Thailand, the key is which monk or tattoo artist created the design and dared to touch the Royal person.
That person’s affiliations, i guarantee, are key.
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This hot royal tattoos issue raised lots of interesting arguments and opinions..from my point of view I think he the prince is just like many Thai wealthy kids (even he is 63 years old) who have gotten spoiled from all the privileges – life is so easy…don’t have to work..it must be boring for them if they do nothing.. the only thing they would do is entertain themselves with all such exciting and new things, especially outside the Thai spotlight and rules! Who care what he wears or even being naked…but what raises the problem here is…. the stupid Thai authority threatening people with the article 112 …he should know if he doesn’t want people talk and gossip about..then don’t do it like a pop star! For his future position..I don’t think he cares much about his monarch reputation…it seems like he will be just a puppet as the head of state of a group of military and some of his father’s councilors….I am afraid he will still remain his life style all his life…doing serious tasks (like his father sweating profusely) are not a spoiled kid style!
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You can not stop the party boy going to a party…it’s pretty much too late to change a 63 years old man so let the party boy enjoys the parties…the sister, the beloved daughter of daddy, and his guards will do the management job behind!
Recently the sister just moved in (not sure if she is really live in) to a new house in the remote upcountry like Udonthani…I think this is a part of political strategies…she will be the most important key to maintain the power in Thai society after the king dies! They know most of Thai people still revere the king now and in the future and plus her picture of down to Earth (looks like ..like upcountry fellows) will save the monarchy.
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As Bernd points out, the prince probably knows exactly what he’s doing unless his judgement is totally compromised for some reason: drugs, alcohol, orgy, jet lag. What doesn’t quite add up is why the guy’s pants are hanging off the rotal derrière. That is almost the most disturbing part of the picture, even more disrespectful to the people who serve him.
I met many people who served the king and royal family very sincerely. One can’t help feel for them — like the fully clothed royal servants at Srirasmi’s birthday party. In my experience, they were polite, modest, reserved people.
In any event, knowledge and intelligent discussion have been so long suppressed, it’s time to let the lid blow. When the political lid blows, as it surely will, one wonders how many royal servants (not politicians) will go down as collateral damage, like the innocent palace servants (except for what they had seen) who were executed for King Ananda’s death.
L’etat, c’est moi. This is the explicit claim of Thai royals.
Royals Gone Wild, here or anywhere else, can have a devastating effect on the lives of ordinary people. And this definitely looks like it fits the bill.
What’s extraordinary to me is, as Paul points out, is the timing. And as Bernd points out, as evinced in Bike4Dad, the prince knows publicity and protocol, so WTF is going on? Is Vajiralongkorn like Trump, where overgrown ego meets historical turning point incidentally produces hilarious or incongruous results — Trump’s orange face and rant at the Ohio convention — or is this deliberate in some sense?
The similarly casually dressed wife at side indicates … ?
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With the exception of sailors, tattoos were once the preserve of convicts, bikers, bohemians and other outcasts from society. Today, forty percent of millennials have tattoos. Although they are no longer shocking to Westerners they still have some negative associations in Asia.
Sak Yant tattoos are a form of occultism, not a form of body art. To practice occultism in this way, for wealth, sex and power, is considered to be extremely disreputable and contrary to orthodox Buddhism.
So perhaps these royal tattoos are a compromise in terms of rebellion; enough to offend the family but not enough to offend the population at large. Alternatively, he may just like these particular designs.
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It’s very difficult to see the details of his arm tattoo, but it is possible to see some detail of the tattoo on his back, and – apart from the fact it’s colorful – I don’t see any reason to conclude that it’s Japanese in origin. To the left of the singlet, there appears to be what looks to me to be half the face of Hanuman. Hanuman most definitely belongs to the sak yant tradition, and is considered a very powerful amulet of power, conferring bravery and good luck, and projecting humility. In the absence of a high-resolution photograph, this is conjecture, but it’s the best I can do. I can’t find anything of anthropological credibility on this subject, but as one website on the subject of sak yants puts it, “Bearers of Hanuman yants are protected from danger as well as becoming fearless in the face of adversity.”
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Give the poor CP a break !! He’s simply modernising Royal dress codes. This is long overdue – not only re. Thailand, but just about every other boringly conservative monarchy attire also. Let’s face it : the only other Royals ANYWHERE who have shown ANY contemporary fashion sense have been 1) Princess Diana, and 2) the CP’s brilliant fashion-designer daughter Srivannasiri. Congratulations to the CP for dressing in contemporary style. It’s a lot better than when Britain’s Prince Harry dressed as a Nazi !!
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I don’t think the Crown Prince is at a fancy dress party is he?
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No Harry’s only pretending to be a Nazi Chris. His real job is radio signalman in the UK military. Bombing the fuck out of foreigners and recruiting young uneducated Brits for BP.
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I guess what we are raving about: in the context of the recent purchase of the multimillion dollar German villa, are these abdication tattoos?
Or merely the latest expression of a middle age crisis?
Or just another expression of extreme prerogative and rebellion?
One thing’s for certain, unlike Trump, the CP rarely speaks.
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Brilliantly worded analysis, as always from you Christine. But is it correct ? The CP always turns up for his official duties, when required. And unlike others – eg. Boris Yeltsin – he has NEVER turned up drunk, or off his face. These sorts of suggestions are simply slander from his enemies, as is the suggestion he’s physically unfit – now pretty categorically proven untrue, as evidenced in the Bike4Dad. People like you and Paul Handley post brilliantly – but bias and prejudice mar your analysis. In Handley’s case eg. his ridiculous claim that the King NEVER smiles.
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Everyone’s getting so obtuse and complicated re: the Thailand Crown Prince and his new tattoos and slovenly demeanor. When the obvious explanation is that he is in a perfectly normal state for someone who is totally blitzed-out from a 12 hour orgy of drugs/alcohol/sex (if he’s arriving in Germany then during the plane ride from Thailand, if he’s leaving Germany, then at his hotel or villa in Germany). No exactly “Buddhist King” material. Lucky for him it is a criminal act to say anything derogatory about him in Thailand.
Regarding the comment that he is just a private man doing private things in his private life, that is complete and total nonsense given the Crown Prince’s impending ascension to the Thai Throne, presently occupied by a Sacred Person/Buddhist King who is also the living re-incarnation of the Hindu God Vishnu on Earth.
And, not to be overlooked, about to gain absolute control over the fifty billion dollar Crown Property Bureau, one of the largest fortunes in the world.
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Occam’s Razor — except tatto always mean something personal
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You accept they are holding the original Fufu, who died in early February 2015 – as well documented by AMM?
Then the Prince later appears at Bike For Dad on 11 December 2015, and suddenly the tattoos have disappeared from his arm/s. How?
There is no mention on the Fufu Wiki article about a Fufu mark 2 is there? If there is, perhaps AMM should update the Wiki.
Maybe sticker tattoos as someone suggested. I prefer Photoshop, but from the chronology the only graceful way out for AMM is to agree that it might at least be sticker tats if not Photoshop.
The validity of these Bild photos turns on whether it’s original Fufu or a new Fufu mark 2.
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Get over yourself. Click on the links to the Bild articles, translate them, look at the other pictures there and give it a rest Ellery Queen.
FYI, attempting to drag out the one time this guy managed to behave as anything other than a buffoon in public and portray that as the new normal is not helping your dubious argument.
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They are holding Fee Fee, not Foo Foo.
And yes, this is a serious comment.
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Dear mr.or mrs. Thai royalist, aka “Mike Johnson”, please sign with your real thai name so as for us to understand better your grotesque defending of this derelict figure, thank you.
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Damn! I want him to turn out the old king’s toadies BEFORE fucking up totally. He’s making his run too early.
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A new photo from another location has just been published by AMM. So the tats are real, if possibly temporary.
The phrase “farang kii nok” somehow has less meaning now.
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q:Andrew MacGregor Marshall
EXCLUSIVE — A new photograph of Thailand’s crown prince Vajiralongkorn, heavily tattooed and wearing a crop-top. This was taken in a Munich mall last week.
Note that the tattoos are not the same as in the photographs taken at Munich airport — the arm tattoo is shorter than at the airport, and he has a tattooed belly in this photo, which he did not have at the airport. So the only plausible conclusion is that these are not permanent tattoos, they are fake tattoos, probably transfers.
This still leaves open the question of why Vajiralongkorn is wandering around Munich in a skimpy crop-top sporting fake full-body tattoos. Maybe he is just enjoying himself. Having fun is not a crime.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154159623061154&set=a.419593026153.213934.627196153&type=3&theater
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perhaps everyone should just accept that his real life takes place in Germany and not in Thailand …..
… and this since many, many years.
… and it´s not the life most thai´s want to see…..but it´s his life…
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his outfit is absolutly en voque : http://oystercoloredvelvet.com/fashion/crop-tops-for-boys-show-up-during-london-mens-fashion-week#.V5O2RfxkjIU
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Quite right bernt. Just because a man has reached a certain age it doesn’t mean he can’t keep up to fashion. I remember when his father appeared in a pink suit we couldn’t wait to be seen in our new pinks.
I expect something similar now it won’t be long before we see ‘good people’ everywhere in the new fashion.
I’m 10 years older than the prince and tried out the new fashion at the meeting market this morning and received many admiring glances.
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nobody buys a house for approximately 12 million € and renovated it for more millions to then not to live in it – so also no thai crown prince..- it seems that he will not change his style of life……….
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pics are real , tatts aren’t .
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as an observer of the royal butt in the kingdom of the fit and the fat, this is much more Srirasmi than Suthida
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I totally agree with Herb B and Bernd Weber – the CP has set a new fashion standard. I once chanced upon David Beckham somewhat similarly attired, in Ratchaprasong’s Gaysorn fashion mall. The women went wild. This could be as big as the Beatles !!
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To sum up:
Can’t really see the tattoos.
Can’t tell what they mean.
Don’t know if the tattoos are real or fake.
Real insight!
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An item only interesting for tabloids. Do these pictures make hem more or less popular? Very unlikely. Do these pictures influence his chances to the Thai throne? Very unlikely. Then what is this about and why does a man who calls himself a ‘serious’ royalty journalist share these pictures on his Facebook? In the past, we already read so many stories about (crown) princes all over the world who had love affairs and bastard children. A serious journalist laughs about it and goes on with his work
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Abdication tattoos or Twitter tattoos?
To borrow phrase from Peter Berger “Ways of Seeing,” the gaze is male. This is true of tabloids whose cameras leer at naked women, of movies and television cameras that sweep bottom to top when they are walking away, of traditions like construction workers harassing women on the streets of New York, of the CP’s notion of pornography in which an adoring, naked female or females worship him. In this case, the prince himself is feminized by the camera gaze due to the his chosen mode of undress or dress as much as by the tatts. The tattoos and dress make him more like than unlike his companion, which makes you wonder what’s going on in their relationship. Her posture here and on shopping trips in Germany is more confident and open, otherwise she seems stiff and afraid in photos of her performing ritual duties at his side.
Given his unfettered privilege, he’s inadvertently feminized himself for the camera, which appears to be shocking the bejesus out of even the most cynical observers. Given his propensities, one thinks this may be his definition of a hyper-masculine male borrowed as borrowed from pornography or some red light district.
One commentator ventured that he knows perfectly well what he’s doing vis a vis the press. Getting speeding tickets, keeping restaurants open and empty while the owner awaits the arrival of the royal entourage – those are prestige markers, clear signs of male prerogative. They aren’t going to start a revolution in Thailand. As another commented, he’s perfectly disciplined when he’s performing his civic duties.
Given this new German habitat, is he the new Kim Kardashian, like, you know, pioneering a hip new mode of dress, building his brand? Or is he simply drunk, stoned on drugs and/or getting off an airplane after the usually transportation orgy with a stewardess, or stewardesses?
Given the other video he and Suthida shopping together in similar dress and tattoos, the Occam’s razor explanation of them getting off the plane does not quit. He has certainly transposed traditional prerogatives of Thai kings onto a modern, capitalist landscape.
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Whatever – the anti-Prayut uprising has now begun, led by eight year olds and macaque monkeys !! : http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/1043613/macaques-sow-poll-strife
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just to point out, its not a small shirt, its a singlet that hes pulled up. Thais do it all the time to keep cool, altho not usually in polite circles
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Hey! Tattoos and odd dress are red meat to the anthropologist!
Bernd Weber wins the prize, so far. http://oystercoloredvelvet.com/fashion/crop-tops-for-boys-show-up-during-london-mens-fashion-week#.V5O2RfxkjIU
Given that they appear to change in the pictures supplied by Bild and Andrew, what’s up with those tattoos?
Do transparent tattoo shirts, indeed, exist?
What I found shocking in older photos of the CP and Suthida shopping together in Munich was the unabashed use of kneeling servants in European public space — prostration and the like being something that King Chulalongkorn supposedly abolished at his coronation, specifically for the farang audience.
Differences over the “kowtow” having played a pivotal role in the British Opium Wars in China.
These items have very specific cultural meanings. Given the above, it would appear that the new royal dress is but expression of a continuing, acute middle-aged crisis to show off the CP’s hot bod.
Since the dress and tattoos are overt sexual symbols, they would seem to bespeak the ongoing partaking of traditional privileges of Siamese kings, expressed in public, rather than private: Or rather the CP insisting that all space for him is private unless he specifies otherwise.
British royals insist likewise, for the most part.
The photos are expressive as well of a keen interest in consumerism rather than, say, national development or the poverty of many Thai people. And, the switch-up of gender conventions addressed in the fashion link — men baring their middles rather than women — would seem to be both encouraged and echoed by the current wife, which is some of what makes the picture so disturbing.
Don’t wives try and set the brakes on their husbands’ middle-aged crises?
Scratch that. Not the trophy wives of powerful men.
Better that he kept to the speeding tickets, engaging with a private harem of airline hostesses, and ignoring restaurant reservations as signs of privilege and sexual prowess.
Oliver Wolters is turning in his grave — and laughing.
Except for diplomat Prince Charoon’s 1920s adventures with the speeding ticket in Switzerland, which he attempted to elevate to the level of international crisis through the League of Nations — oh, and adultery with the wife of a Frenchman — Thai princes in the past tended to behave with more circumspection in European capitals (see Stefan Hell’s “Siam and the League of Nations” 2010: River Books Press).
Chulalongkorn, for one, insisted upon it, because a lot was riding on this with regard to national identity. R V attempted to suppress western reporting on royal polygamy — “the Anna Leonownes problem” — for the same reasons.
Professor Thak’s July article in Sojourn (31/2), “Through Racing Goggles: Modernity, the West, Ambiguous Siamese Alterities and the Construction of Thai Nationalism,” offers an interesting point of comparison.
Could Prince Vajiralongkorn’s behavior be latest, albeit cringeworthy, expression of identity of the Western Oriental Gentleman (WOG)?
These pictures do have enormous political and cultural significance. One young Thai woman living abroad, previously very pro-royal, was so shocked it turned her against… so it’s not just me or others of a certain, formerly more hip generation who are shocked. The idea, of course, would be to have free discussion among Thai about the significance of this.
Oh, right, that’s why we post here.
Since this picture was significant enough for Thai police to take a western journalist’s Thai wife into custody for suspected LM, pushing the limits of the latter to near breaking point, one has to wonder about the impetus behind the comment suggesting that the post somehow endangers Paul’s credibility as a “serious journalist.”
By definition, the study of royals entails analysis of popular culture and tabloid reporting. Of fashion, even. (Think Kate Middleton and Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn of Thailand.)
Since Andrew has more recently taken the heat for discussion of Thai royalty, it’s interesting to see the point at which the thread turns against Paul personally for inviting cultural analysis of a picture that is, indeed, shocking to many farang and Thai.
At the same time, on another, related thread, one commentator suggests that research and writing on Thai royals does not require ahem cojones.
What does not require cojones is supporting the status quo: royalty, the prostitution industry, and the junta within Thailand.
These topics are taboo, for a reason.
And cojones, unfortunately, is what this is about.
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Alternately, it could simply be the Crown Prince’s insistence of parity with British royals, who insist that anything outside of official duties is “private,” along with indifference to the effect of such pictures on national identity or, indeed, his subjects.
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Christine Gray certainly knows how to wring agonisingly lengthy and supposedly learned observations out of a relatively trivial incident, but she needs to do her research in a more thorough and scholarly way. King Chulalongkorn’s decision to abolish prostration was in fact published in the Royal Gazette in 1875, seven years after he became King. It was addressed to his subjects, not foreigners, and is well worth a read.
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Um, 1873?
And the difference between a written order, royal practice, and his command to courtiers to rise at his second coronation In November 1873 in front of amazed farang, diplomats, missionaries and the like? http://www.newmandala.org/chulalongkorn-abolished-prostration/
The question is why Bhumibol’s children, nearly 150 years later, insist on a prostration or some version therein in public, including in Germany while shopping. Like Prayuth at Bike4Mom.
The Royal Gazette piece is indeed worth a read.
Why you think this would be trivial in light of current political questions is a puzzlement.
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So a lot of interesting and fun comments and ideas. What though this all really generated was the new photo Andrew obtained which provided evidence that the prince is regularly using giant tattoo stickers, and also habitually wearing that undersized tank top (or singlet). That raises another set of questions, but needs the psychoanalysts out there to answer. Yes it’s kind of weird, but I can sympathise a little…I’m close to his age, and sometimes think I should have a tattoo… and maybe a slim woman half my age on my arm. But I’m also around people, including by dear wife, who would let me know what is excessive, what looks ridiculous and embarrassing, at least in my family and my social circles. Even if it is temporary.
So what’s going on with this guy? Is someone telling him this is ok? Or is it just going native, assuming no one back home will see it? Or he just doesn’t care?
And what does it say when he is photographed strolling around Bavaria looking like this, and very openly boarding a plane like this, but back home the police call the photos doctored, and the websites with them are blocked? Is this just a contradiction, paranoia by the image protectors? Or a way of informing the priviliged Thais who can access such pictures what the future king looks like and feels like?
Or as I asked before, is this a declaration of independence from stifling traditional Thai culture, a message to expect some kind of modernizing effort when he is king?
Or, as someone has suggested, there is a message that he is happy to stay in Germany and do his own thing?
I don’t know, but maybe we will get more photos and stories to better understand the enigma of Prince Vajiralongkorn.
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Ha ha. Usually you can rely in your kids to tell you when you look ridiculous. That ain’t gonna happen here.
Ironically, the scholars and journalists who revealed the extent of the Crown Properties helped enable this type of behavior. Unlike the older generation of Mahidols, this prince has no need to insist that he is a modest and frugal person.
Like Kate Middleton, however, he appears to be recycling some of his favorite clothes.
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The difference is that the announcement at the palace was to a very restricted audience of notables, Thai and Foreign, whilst the announcement in the Royal Gazette was addressed to all his subjects, although one has to doubt how many actually became aware of it. Even so, such an announcement surely undermines Christine Gray’s claim that the decision to abolish prostration was specifically for the benefit of a farang audience.
Apologies for not expressing my thoughts more clearly, the “trivial incident” I referred to was not the abolition of prostration, but the appearance in public of a middle aged man dressed rather oddly.
The reasons for the reintroduction of prostration have been well documented, the process began several decades ago and indeed I doubt if it ever died out completely.
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Did they ever try training macaque monkeys to prostrate themselves ? Monkeys can be taught a lot of things, eg. Nim Chimsky was taught language. Though how Chimsky – or a Fufu / Feefee canine Chimsky – would have handled Thai Royal language is anyone’s guess, at this stage. An imperative need for more research !
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Chris Beale, you’ve clearly forgotten about Thongdaeng, who prostrates, remains quiet around the king, and understands rajasap as well as the people’s language. A perfect example for the nation, according to the king’s book.
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Dead Cat. Just wondering if Vajaralongkorn has a publicity advisor. David Cameron has PR guru or two, and is now infamous for his use of the “dead cat” routine. Hillary Rodham Clinton uses her close friend Max Blumenthal to act as a press stooge (according to Wikileaks leaks) to write stories with specific words added: “Hi Max can you fit in the word Muscular” says Clinton’s secretary to Max Blumenthal. “will do” says Max. It all to do with PR, click bait and truth avoidance, when bad scenario’s are predicted. Just a thought…..
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Correction: It was Sidney Blumenthal, not Max Blumenthal (who is Sidney’s Blumenthal’s journalist son) that was used as a Clinton stooge. Simply outrageous these people are governing nations, and defended by most of the MSM.
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Anthropologist Ilse Hayden wrote a fun and fascinating book that addresses the British monarch’s two bodies, public and private, and is quite relevant to the above discussion.
“Symbol and Privilege: The Ritual Context of British Royalty” (1987, Univ. of AZ). $.01 on Amazon.
Historian Matthew Phillips is working along similar lines in his work on modern Thai ritual.
Roughly speaking, the Thai equivalents are the Hindu-Buddhist concept of the monarch as a god-king (Devaraja); the Buddhist version of the king as a Dhamma-Raja (King of Dhamma); and its colloquial expression of the king as a “supposed angel” — “supposed” because only men of superior virtue, like an extraordinary monk, can “know for sure” about the king’s true level of merit.
This is one reason the Ninth Reign in the mid-20th century took steps to get rid of uppity monks like Phra Phimonlatham from Khon Kaen. PrP, abbot of Wat Mahathat, former associate of Pridi and Phibun, launched a meditation movement that was rival to the Thammayut movement patronized by the Palace. For this he ended up defrocked and jailed, accused of homosexuality and being a communist.
A more interesting question here is whether the prince wears an amulet, and if so, of which monk? Amulets and tattoos both offer protection against evil spirits. His Majesty, one would guess, does not wear amulets. Instead, Palace insiders hand them out as special marks of favor.
In the old days, the essence of LM was guessing out loud about the obvious — the extent of the Crown Properties.
Now?
Rapid advances in communications and social media — the lightning speed at which images such as the above can be transmitted and dissected — demand that monarchies keep abreast of these changes, and, like television in an era past, use them to their advantage if they can.
If they cannot do so, they risk losing their magic.
One must ask: What is the current intent and purpose of that magic? How adept is the Crown Prince and/or his handlers at managing ritual and social media?
Judging from Bike4Mom and Bike4Dad, quite.
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Polo – thanks for reminding me about Thongdaeng. But sadly this great master of the art of prostration is dead – is he not ? THAT is ONE reason I did not mention him. The other reason is : that my comments were CLEARLY about the CP, and his stream of loyal dogs. Glad to see Madam Feefee is now there as consolation for the terrible loss of Air Chief Marshall Fufu.
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Has this focus on the CP been a distraction from the referendum ? Very interesting, that for the first time, some Thai mainstream media is now focusing on links between the wide democracy struggle and deep South troubles – eg.http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/1047717/charter-campaign-on-religions-a-lie. And THIS at the very same time Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is making efforts to revive her father’s federalist vision, via renewed dialogue with the Wa Army.
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I was in Thailand last year during the funeral for the past Supreme Patriarch. The CP was the lead royal in those ceremonies, which involve some quite close contact with the remains of the deceased … as well as a grueling number of hours on public display. It did not seem like the sort of gig he would choose for himself, and I wondered at the time if he might have been forced into that role and if part of the motivation for so forcing him would have been to put him face to face with death. But there are other explanations of why he was there?
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Abdication tattoos?
All attempts by pro-royalists to change the subject, decree the subject trivial, or attack the messengers to the contrary, I showed the pictures to a Thai businesswoman who has been resident in the United States for decades, and she was shocked, almost physically ill. She was more than aware of the sexual peccadilloes and the porn, acts of entitlement while on Thai soil, etc., but she was shocked and in disbelief: at first denying that the picture was genuine, then saying that the Thai people would not accept a king they could not respect.
This reaction was similar to that of a young Thai woman living in the UK, a Bhumibol loyalist who was so shocked that, for the first time, she questioned her pro-royalist beliefs.
As I wrote in my dissertation in 1986, when the sheer size of the Crown Properties became public knowledge, which it most certainly would, both king and institution would face serious questions. The sheer extent of the Crown Properties in 2016, and the Crown Prince’s property and entitlements abroad, direct reflection of the extent of that fortune, force even the most loyal subjects to ask where money comes from. Or, as the Thai businesswoman said, Whose money is this? It belongs to the Thai people, who are poor. What does that say about the reign of King Bhumibol, so visibly, selflessly sacrificing on behalf of his people?
To her, this wasn’t about the Crown Prince. It was about King Bhumibol. That’s why Matthew Phillips’ essay about the king’s carefully calibrated public and faux private presentations, modeled after British royalty, and the prince’s deliberate wreckage of his father’s life work is so critical.
The camera gaze has shifted. The prince, in this picture, is equivalent in dress to his female companion, meaning he is no longer the male subject of the camera gaze, the director, as it were, but rather the feminized object. This is not a photo of a semi-naked princess-consort crawling at his feet while the prince is fully dressed, or a naked woman sitting on his lap, adoring him sexually as in the standard pornographic poses which he favors. In this picture, he is feminized by the camera, and it is a genuine “ick” moment.
Again, as I wrote in “Wrecking Ball” on NM, modern social media have sent the Thai kingdom and it’s lese-majeste laws into shock. The authenticity of the Munich runway photos must have surely sent the Thai police into shock as well.
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Possibly one of the best comments I’ve ever read here. At last someone remembers the Prince is wearing his girlfriend’s top. The tattoos aren’t the story.
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When I showed them the pictures, my 20-something American sons told me that what he is wearing is an actual style that young men are wearing these days and not women’s clothing. The fact that so many of us old people thought at first he was wearing women’s clothing only emphasises the fact that truth is stranger than fiction and if this were fiction, you would have to be very skilled to make it up.
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Tattoos are certainly not the story. If indeed the photos are real, the CP should be seeing a psychiatrist for wearing such an outfit at his age in public. He “might” be able to pull it off if he was fit and trim, but he’s anything but. Didn’t he look in a mirror?
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