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Monday, March 26, 2007

Bangkok Post: Jatukarm Ramathep Amulets Selling Like Crazy

SALES OF AMULETS ARE THRIVING

Bangkok Post

Vendors earn more than they dreamed of in Nakhon Si Thammarat


Story by ANUCHA CHAROENPO - NAKHON SI THAMMARAT

Sales of Jatukarm Ramathep amulets are thriving in Nakhon Si Thammarat's Muang district, with many sellers earning more money than they ever dreamed of.


Duangchanok Amornsak closed down her traditional dance school in August last year and began trading Jatukarm Ramathep talismans.


She admits to making a good profit as demand for the amulets _ which are priced from 199 to 150,000 baht _ has surged. She also sells T-shirts bearing the image of the talisman, and books and pictures.


"I used to get about 10,000 baht a month as a dance teacher. Now I earn from 100,000 to 200,000 baht a month from selling the amulets," she said.


Continued



Of all the things I've written about on this blog, the one story I mentioned about Jatukarm has brought me the most traffic.

I have to admit, Thais love their magic, voodoo, amulets, and fortune teller stuff.

Literally millions of baht will be spent on Jatukarm paraphenalia. Will it make a difference? Will all the cosmic forces coalesce around this mysticism and solve the country's problems? Nope.

Now they are killing each other over these amulets. Link

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I walked into my Starbucks on Thonglor and saw people trading those Jatukam's. I went up and talked to him and by the guy's estimate he had 20,000 dollars, DOLLARS worth of amulets on the table. Mind you this is the same Starbucks where the Red Ferrari club meets every Sunday morning. So these guys are all a bunch of assholes either way you cut it. Even down country folks find inventive ways of showing off their wealth and spending it too!

Anonymous said...

So, it's all stupid becaues you don't believe in it? Better to wear a cross and pray to God?

To me, praying to God is stupid. I'm going to bet you'll take issue with that.

Fonzi said...

Anonymous number 2-

Whether it be a cross or a jatukam, what is the difference?

But I have yet to meet a Christian who was smart enough to sell crosses for millions of baht.

Maybe Christians are not that ignorant. Or maybe they are not smart enough to get in on the amulet racket.