The man who was beaten to death by an enraged mob after he destroyed a Hindu shrine had a history of mental illness, and authorities were investigating whether he had ties to Muslim extremists. Thanakorn Pakdeepol, 27, broke into the Erawan Shrine in downtown Bangkok and shattered a golden four-headed statue of Brahma with a hammer. During an autopsy, doctors found Arabic characters tattooed on his back and arms. The discovery prompted police to launch an investigation into whether the attack had a religious motive. Two street sweepers were arrested for beating Thanakorn to death.
The shrine, located next to the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in the middle of an upscale shopping district, has long been a prime tourist destination in the capital. It draws thousands of Thai and foreign tourists daily. The shrine was originally built in 1956 to ward off bad luck during the construction of an earlier hotel, which was later torn down.
My wife and me were there in Bangkok last month in February to pay my respect to the deity. We were talking about the history of the deity back then but never had we expected it to suffer such fate. I wonder where have the spiritual entity gone to after its statue (jinshen) was destroyed.
No comments:
Post a Comment