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Published on November 6, 2007

Thousands of yellow-clad Thais flocked to both sides of the river yesterday to witness 52 barges - including four royal ones - participating in the Royal Kathin Ceremony.

The procession, involving 2,098 men, was one of the highlights of this year's celebrations for His Majesty the King, who has reigned for 60 years and will be 80 years old on December 5.

The procession started from Vasukri Pier at Sam Sen and concluded at Wat Arun, the Temple of the Dawn.

On the Suphannahongse Royal Barge was HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, who took part in the procession on behalf of His Majesty the King.

As the procession moved past Siriraj Hospital, where His Majesty and his elder sister HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana are receiving medical treatment, every barge paid respect to the revered royal members.

The Crown Prince's royal consort Her Royal Highness Princess Srirasmi, his daughters HRH Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana and HRH Princess Bajra Kitiyabha, and his son HRH Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti watched the procession from the Royal Thai Naval Institute.

In order to get the best view, members of the public began taking up places along the river in the early afternoon. Some of the most popular spots included Pin Khlao Bridge, Suan Santichaiprakarn and the bank under the Rama VIII Bridge.

"This is my second royal barge procession. I have brought along all of my family to witness this grand event. After this, we plan to visit Siriraj Hospital to offer our good wishes to His Majesty," said Thongmee from Angthong province.

"I wanted to see the real thing instead of watching on TV. I intended to watch from Wat Arun but I couldn't get there because it was blocked. So I decided to come over here," said 71-year-old Samai Simthin, who went by herself to Pin Khlao Bridge to view the procession.

Jacques Myers, accompanied by his wife Barbara, was so delighted to get a glimpse of the royal barge procession that his eyes welled with tears.

"It's so beautiful and so powerful," Myers said.

He and his wife visited the riverside Siriraj Hospital to sign get-well messages for His Majesty yesterday and quickly bought tickets for seats on the riverbank in the hospital's compound. Each of the limited seats cost Bt100.

For hundreds of years, Thai kings have taken part in royal barge processions for the Royal Kathin Ceremony, Coronation ceremonies or pilgrimages to important religious sites. The Ayutthayan kings journeyed by barge from Ayutthaya to the Shrine of the Lord Buddha's Footprint in Saraburi as part of the Royal Kathin Ceremony.

According to the Rama IX Art Museum, King Boromtrailokanat of Ayutthaya made decrees on the use of the royal barges. During the 11th lunar month, a race was to be held between two of the major barges - "Samatthachai", the king's barge, and "Kraisonramuk", which was used by the queen. A victory by the queen's barge would signify fertility and abundance, but if the king's barge won, the populace could expect hardship and famine. Thus, in the actual event, the "Samatthachai" normally yielded to the "Kraisonramuk".

King Naresuan the Great, the warrior king who liberated Ayutthaya from Burmese rule, was believed to have travelled to southern Burma in a royal barge procession. His "Suphannahongse" barge set off bearing a golden Buddha image that contained a holy relic enshrined under the name "Phra Phichai" - "the Buddha of Victory".

The front part of the battle formation followed the royal barge. When King Naresuan led his forces to counter a Burmese force led by the viceroy of that country, a naval battle formation led by the "Suphannahongse" carrying the Buddha of Victory was again in the lead.

In the 17th century, King Narai the Great of Ayutthaya made several river journeys in royal barge processions arranged in the four-line "Phet Phuang" configuration. The royal barge was at the centre of a formation that consisted of more than 100 other barges.

An account by Nicholas Gervaise, a French envoy to the court of King Narai, describes the stunning spectacle of a royal barge procession of over 200 vessels. The barges, in pairs, were propelled by well-trained oarsmen attired in red with hoods, arm-bands and knee-bands that flashed with gold. The oars, also gilded, were raised and lowered simultaneously with choreographed precision. Each time the oars touched the water, a traditional boat song, praising the king's majesty and power, was chanted to provide the necessary rhythm.

One classic example of such a song was composed by Prince Thammathibet during the late Ayutthaya Period. Its verses describe the character, beauty and uniqueness of the royal barges in procession, and it has served as a model for boat songs composed during the centuries since.

The Nation