Application of Legendary in Contemporary Thai Society: A Case Study of “Phuttha Nakorn Tham Group” Lampoon Province

Abstract

The paper studies applying legendary to the present context by using “Phuttha Nakorn Tham Group” in Lampoon province (“คณะพุทธนครธรรม” จังหวัดลำพูน) as a case study. The study indicates that “Phuttha Nakorn Tham Group” in Lampoon province applied the content from Queen Camadevi legendary and also  introduced new media of presenting the story of Queen Camadevi. The group created a new set of thought concerning Queen Camadevi by constructing new content for historical memory of the Queen. In addition, based on the newly created historical story of the Queen, the Phuttha Nakorn Tham Group also built religious objects and religious places. This makes the Phuttha Nakorn Tham’s version of Camadevi story more convincing and reliable. Moreover, the group also deliberately created the image of “Faith in Buddhism,” in this way also creating the identity of the group to be different than other groups. Interestingly, based on the new version of the Queen’s story, the group also created various religious products with the branding of “Phuttha Nakorn Tham.” Overall, it can be perceived that the Phuttha Nakorn Tham Phra Nang Chao Camadevi Group uses the strategy of applying Queen Camadevi legend in order to insert their religious identity and their social space in contemporary Thai society. If viewed this phenomenon through the framework of “creative folklore,” we can see how folk belief, legend and local history has been applied, re-interpreted and given new meaning in the socio-religious context in the Thailand present day.