Thailand: Holder of the Kingdom, Strength of the Land

(4 of 10)

partaking more from the cup of corruption than is normal even in the Thai tradition of doing business cum government, harvested close to $140 million, kept some 100 "minor wives" (i.e., mistresses). The King, in contrast, is something of a Buddhist puritan, as well as being totally devoted to his Queen—a monogamousness almost incredible in Siamese monarchs. His grandfather, for example, had 92 wives.

But then a good many things have changed as royalty has evolved over the centuries in Thailand. Obligatory prostration before the person of the King has long been abolished, and though no Thai would think of touching the King or Queen in normal circumstances, it is unlikely that they would let either of them drown—as happened to a 19th century Queen of Thailand. The royal barge sank after a collision, but no one dared offer a helping hand. When occasionally it was necessary to execute a royal personage, he was put inside a red bag, to avoid touching him, and beaten to death with a sandalwood stick wrapped in silk. Ordinary sentence of death in modern Thailand is meted out by machine gun following sentences of the courts. But with Buddhist reverence for life and typical Thai indirection, the condemned is concealed behind a curtain on which is painted a target—and it is the target at which the state's machine gunners fire.

Packing a Lunch. Under Sarit's successor, Premier Thanom Kittikachorn, Bhumibol is more than ever the throne behind the power. He and Sirikit, working as a ceremonial team with all the pageantry that Thais love, take every opportunity to identify themselves with Thailand and its progress. Whether it be the dedication of a new dam or highway, the ancient ceremony of the first spring plowing, or the certification of a newly found royal white elephant (an auspicious omen in Thai mythology), Bhumibol uses each event to emphasize the rich heritage and unity of his nation. (One discontinued tradition: feeding white elephants from the bare breasts of young women.) Nearly every Thai household boasts a picture of the King. American information officials in Bangkok long ago concluded that USIS funds could not be better employed than in spreading the likeness of His Majesty.

On Chakri Day last month, celebrating the founding of his dynasty, Bhumibol set some sort of ceremonial record. First he was presented with a new car for state functions, a yellow Mercedes 600 limousine. As the day progressed, the monarch presented graduation swords to 68 police officers, unveiled a new statue of King Vajiravudh, who was Rama VI, handed diplomas to 868 graduates of two universities. Then, because it was also the anniversary of Bhumibol's first musical composition, some 1,400 Thai musicians put on an all-night concert of his works. The King stayed until 2 a.m., joining in at intervals on the saxophone with his own Royal Band—a congenial group of Thai sidemen, who four times a week broadcast over Aw Saw, the palace radio station.

Slacks & Sneakers. His notion of nation building is by no means all panoply andante. Their Majesties make frequent forays into remote areas of Thailand. The King often drives his own Jeep and carries their lunch in a pack on his back. On these sorties, Queen Sirikit appears to be one of the few world beauties who look delicately lovely in slacks and thick rubber sneakers. And it has not affected her