Kumanthong

Kumanthong

Kumanthong is a statue which is revered in Thailand by Animists and Buddhists. The statue is believed to bring luck and fortune to the owner, if properly revered. Kuman or Kumara (pali) means “young boy” young girl would be “Kumaree” (Kumani) ; thong means golden. Kuman thong (alternatively spelled as "Kumarn,or Kuman).. It would also be accurate to class the practice of keeping Kumanthong as an essentially animist practice. The genuine Kumanthong which was revered and created in Ancient times according to traditional method, by Adept practitioners of Saiyasart, was made by surgically removing the unborn fetus from the womb of its Mother. The body of the child would then be taken to a cemetery for the conduction of the Ceremony to invoke a Kumanthong. The body is roasted until dry whilst the Mage chants incantations of Magical kata. In the case of making a female spirit child, the effigy is not called Kuman thong, rather “Hong Pray”.

Some Kuman effigies will be soaked in Nam Man Prai,^[1] which has extract of a dead child or a person who died in violent circumstances or an unnatural death. This is much less common now, because this practice is now illegal if using fat from human babies for the consecrating oil. There are however still some authentically made amulets appearing. Some years ago a famous monk was thrown out of the Buddhist Sangha for roasting a baby. He was convicted, but later continued to make magic as a layperson after his release. The practice of creating Necromantic effigies of a Kumanthong comes from age old tradition in Siam. Thai folk have made Bucha to Animistic spirits and ghosts since time immemorial. The original Kuman thong came from children who died whilst still in their mothers womb. The Magic makers would take these stillborn babies and adopt them as their children.

From what information has been gathered from ancient Thai manuscripts about how to make a Kuman thong, it appears that the correct method is to remove the dead baby surgically from the mothers womb, and take it to undergo the proper ceremonial ritual; The baby must be roasted until dry. This must be completed before dawn, and should be performed in a cemetery. Once the rite is completed, the dry roasted Kuman should be painted with Ya Lak (a kind of lacquer used to cover amulets and Tagrud with gold leaf), and covered in gold leaf. This is the real reason why this effigy received the name of “Kuman thong” (which means “Golden Baby Boy”).