Thais bid last farewell to beloved HM King Bhumibol

BANGKOK, Oct 26 (TNA) -- The hundreds of thousands of black-clad mourners have gathered around the Grand Palace since Wednesday with a strong intention to pay last tribute to beloved His Majesty late King Bhumibol Adulyadej who passed away last year after 70 years on the throne. An estimated 200,000 Thais had gathered around the Grand Palace and the Sanam Luang ceremonial ground to bid an emotional farewell to the world's longest- reigning monarch, known as "father of the nation." His Majesty late King Bhumibol has passed away on October 13, 2016 at Siriraj hospital. He was 88 and would have turned 89 on December 5 that year. His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun, his son, who wore full military regalia, has presided over a merit-making ceremony at the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall to start Thursday's royal cremation ceremonies for the late King. His Majesty the King Maha Vajiralongkorn has arrived at the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall inside the Grand Palace where the royal funeral urn of the late King is placed. Religious rites have performed for moving the Royal Urn to Phra Yannamas Sam Lam Kan, the Palanquin with Three Poles. The Royal Urn then moved out of the Grand Palace through the Thewa Phirom Gate and into the first royal procession of honour. The procession will head to Wat Phra Chetuphon where the Royal Urn has placed on the Phra Maha Phichai Rajarot, or the Great Victory Chariot, which will be waiting in the second royal procession. The procession started after the Royal Urn was placed upon the Great Victory Chariot by the Naga Conveyor, or Kroen Bandai Nak, in front of Wat Phra Chetuphon. The procession is proceeding to the Royal Crematorium at Sanam Luang covering a distance of 890 metres. His Majesty the King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn took part in the procession. The second procession of honour has transported the Royal Urn to Phra Meru Mas, the royal crematorium, at Sanam Luang ceremonial ground. After arriving at the royal crematorium, the Royal Urn will be moved to Rajarot Puen Yai or the Royal Gun-Carriage which was in the third procession. The carriage was used to carry the Royal Urn on three counter-clockwise rounds of the Royal Crematorium. The Royal Urn was later placed in the royal crematorium which was constructed at the Sanam Luang ceremonial ground. The structure is designed specifically for the funeral rites for a king, based on ancient royal traditions. Standing at 53 metres high, the edifice sits on a three-tiered, square shaped base with a staircase on each of the four sides, each side measuring 60 metres wide. The royal crematorium comprises of nine structures designed in the style of Busabok, an elaborate pavilion throne tapering up from the base into an ornately decorated tiered roof topped by a spire. Of the nine Busabok, the principal Busabok sitting on the top tier of the royal crematorium's base has a seven-tiered, spired roof, housing Phra Chittakathan, the catafalque for enshrining the royal urn made of sandalwood. At 4.30pm, His Majesty the King Maha Vajiralongkorn will return to the royal crematorium and take his seat inside the Dharma Royal Pavilion for the royal ceremonies and religious rites. The first cremation, which was symbolic one, will be held at 5.30pm, attended by royal family members and other dignitaries, including distinguished guests from other countries. They will lay sandalwood flowers to bid their last farewell to the late King. The second and actual crematorial ceremony will be performed at 10pm in a ceremony presided over by His Majesty the King Maha Vajiralongkorn attended by kings and queens, princes and princesses, foreign dignitaries and representatives and government officials. It also will be witnessed by people around the crematorium grounds and via a nationwide broadcast. In Bangkok and all provinces nationwide, 85 replicas of the royal crematorium and 878 pavilions have been built for mourners to lay sandalwood flowers to pay their final respects to their beloved King. Most of the replicas and the pavillons were packed with the mourners. Festivities to pay a final tribute and farewell to the His Majesty King Bhumibol and to mark the ending of an official mourning period include public performances, such as the khon masked drama, puppet shows, and orchestras. They will start at 6pm today and run through 6am on the following day. The collection of royal relics will take place on October 27 at 8am at the Royal Crematorium. On October 28, a merit-making ceremony will be held for the royal relics at Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall. On October 29, the royal relics will be moved from Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall to be enshrined in the Heavenly Abode in Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall. Later, on the same day, at 17.30 hr, the royal ashes will be enshrined at two temples, namely Wat Ratchabophit and Wat Bovoranives. After the Royal Cremation Ceremony, an exhibition will be held at Sanam Luang for 30 days, from 1 to 30 November, where people will be able to learn more about the ceremony. The exhibition will feature arts and culture regarding the Royal Crematorium and related structures. (TNA)