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4th May, 2005 By Karun S.   Saturday, May 5 marks the 57th anniversary of the Coronation of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great. The day is celebrated as a national holiday.
Although Thailand is now a democratic nation, the people still holds the highest reverence for the Kingdom's Royalty. This can be seen as the nation comes together on the 5th of each year to celebrate the Coronation Day of the ninth King of the Chakri Dynasty.
Although His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej assumed his kingship on June 9, 1946; he was officially proclaimed the ninth monarch of the Chakri Dynasty in accordance with the ancient royal tradition on May 5, 1950. The anniversary of this day has been observed as a public holiday ever since. Every year, Thai people rejoice and express their affection and loyalty to His Majesty the King by organizing a celebration on his coronation day. On this day, His Majesty the King also presents royal decorations to those who have made valuable contributions to the country.
Today, Coronation Day is observed by a series of religious rites lasting for three days. On the 3rd of May, the first day, a Buddhist ceremony takes place at Amarindra Vinichai Hall in the Grand Palace dedicated to the ancestors of the Chakri House. In this ceremony, scriptures are chanted and a sermon is delivered by a high monk. Then, on the second day, A two part ceremony consisting of a Brahmanic one and a Buddhist one takes place.
On the 5th of May, His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great (Rama IX) conducts a merit making ceremony, presenting offerings to Buddhist monks, and leads a “Wienthien” ceremony, walking three times around sacred grounds at the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.
It may be noted that the Siamese call their coronation by its ancient Sanskrit designation, the Rajabhiseka. The entire complex of coronation ceremonies, such as homa (sacrifice of Fire), purificatory rites, ablutions, anointment, are closely modelled on Hindu rituals, and are presided over by the Brah Maha Raja Guru.
In an interview, the Raja Guru says "My main job is to perform all the ceremonies for the royal family in the palace. I play an important role in the coronation ceremony. All the coronation ceremonies of the king in the past have been conducted by my ancestors who were from the brahmin community". Last year was the 60th Anniversary of HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej's accession to the Throne and the celebarations were on a grander scale. In an attempt to study the connection between the Thai and Indian culture, Willard Van De Bogart of Nakhon Sawan Rajabhat University observes "Wat Phra Si Maha Uma Devi (Wat Phra Si Maha Mariamman) on Silom Road in Bangkok decided to send a high Brahmin priest to India where water would be collected from the most sacred spots of India's five most sacred rivers and brought back to Bangkok.The five rivers in India where the Holy Water was taken from was the Ganges, Yamuna, Saraswati, Saryu, and Komati rivers. It struck me that even after 2000 years the spiritual powers associated with India are playing a dominant role in what will be the worlds most sanctified ceremony on Coronation Day using Holy Water from India."
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