VIDEO OF OUR ENCOUNTER WITH ELEPHANTS IN THAILAND
AND AT THE NONG NOOCH VILLAGE ELEPHANT SHOW:
Very recently we spent three
days amidst many elephants in Thailand. For a few hours on each of these days,
we were amidst several elephants as you can see in the attached pictures and
video. On the first day, it was at the Sriracha Tiger Zoo, Chonburi, and the
second day it was at the Nong Nooch Village, Pattaya, and on the third day, it was
at the Safari Park, Bangkok. The remarkable Elephant Show in the video is of
the one at the Nong Nooch Village. However, we did not get to see White (Pink) Elephants,
which are available only with the royals.
The elephant has a
symbolic and religious meaning for Thais. Elephants are so ingrained in Thai
culture that they are recognised as a symbol of national identity. For hundreds
of years, these great creatures have stood alongside Thai people in pursuits
such as war, labour, transportation, and more recently, tourism. The elephant
is the National Animal of Thailand and it appears in many official seals.
The elephant figured in
the Siamese Flag until the early 1900s (Siam is the old name of Thailand) and
now it is found on many provincial seals and on Bangkok’s seal it shows the
Hindu deity Lord Indra riding an elephant.
Here are some interesting
facts about these magnificent animals:
Queen Maya, the mother of
Buddha, had a dream that she ascended the heavens and was greeted by a great
white elephant bearing a lotus flower before it disappeared into the right side
of her belly, and thus the Queen knew she had conceived.
The Hindu God, Indra, the
King of Heaven, rides a three-headed elephant named Airavata. Lord Indra is
also a protector deity for Buddhists, and also the patron protector of Bangkok
(shown in Bangkok Emblem).
The elephant is also a
symbol of justice and loyalty. An archaic Siamese tradition involved a person
to be punished being placed in a Rattan Ball and kicked by an elephant, if he survived
he was forgiven if not, justice has been served. Loyalty because it has always
been associated with the Thai struggle to maintain their sovereignty from the
might of neighbours.
The White Elephant is the
symbol for Kinship (Buddha+Indra). By Royal Law, all White (Pink) Elephants in
the Kingdom belong to the King, and their presence must be made known to the
King upon their discovery and identification. To spot a white elephant during a
King’s reign is a sign of a prosperous reign, and Kingdoms have gone to war to
seize control of these rare elephants.
There’s a yearly festival
to honour Thailand’s elephants. Each year, ‘Surin Elephant Roundup’ pays homage
to Thailand’s elephants and gives thanks for the role these mighty creatures have
played in the development of Thailand over the years. All of the province’s
elephants are recalled for the event, including those that now live in other
parts of the country. There’s a huge parade, with hundreds of elephants,
followed by a gigantic buffet breakfast. Fruit and vegetables are laid out on
long stretches of tables for the elephants to feast upon. There are then
several days of elephant demonstrations at the stadium.
In the year 1900, the
number of elephants in Thailand was estimated to be around 100,000, but just
over a century later, that figure had been dramatically reduced to around 6,000
– 7,000 with almost half of that number domesticated and the remainder living
wild in National Parks. With the longevity up to 70 years in the wild, this
should not have happened to the population of Elephants.
It is estimated that
there were once more than 350 species of elephants in the world. Today we only
have two of them left – the Asian and the African species.
Asian elephants and
African elephants are different. Asian elephants, the type found in Thailand
are like Indian elephants and have several big differences with their African
cousins. African elephants are usually significantly larger and heavier than
Asian elephants. The two species of elephants have different ear and head
shapes, and there are differences between their tusks, trunks, and toenails.
The skin of an Asian elephant is typically smoother too. Furthermore, only male
Asian elephants have tusks, whereas both male and female African elephants may
have these ivory horn-like overgrown tusks (teeth).
Nature's great masterpiece, an elephant; is the only harmless great thing, and humanity has made it an endangered species and
very soon it may become extinct.
In conclusion, I would
like to end this article with a Thai saying that says a marriage is like an
elephant – the husband is the front legs, that choose the direction and the
wife the back legs, providing the power and support!
VIDEO OF THE AMAZING OPEN SAFARI ZOO AND PARK,
BANGKOK:
HERE ARE MORE
VIDEOS OF ANIMAL AND BIRD SHOWS IN
THAILAND:
AMAZING
DOLPHIN SHOW AT SAFARI WORLD!
SRIRACHA
TIGER ZOO & TIGER SHOW!
A CLOSE
AND CHEERFUL ENCOUNTER WITH OUR ORANG-UTAN COUSINS!
AN AMAZING
BIRD SHOW! AT SAFARI WORLD:
AN IMPRESSIVE
CROCODILE SHOW!
No comments:
Post a Comment