THE COMMITTEE overseeing National Thai Language Day is planning to distribute His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s literary works to libraries and schools nationwide.
The decision was made to celebrate the late monarch’s literary contributions and to mark his royal funeral.
His Majesty passed away peacefully at the age of 89 on October 13, plunging the nation into deep grief.
The committee, chaired by Culture Minister Vira Rojpojchanarat, met yesterday to plan activities to honour the late King. “Among His Majesty’s literary works are the ‘Story of Mahajanaka’ and the ‘Story of Tongdaeng’,” Vira said.
The minister also called on students to compose poems or write messages in honour of the late King, as his ministry is planning to compile such pieces for the archives.
“We have gathered more than 10,000 messages and 500 poems to date,” he said.
He also said that publishers would soon be invited to join a fair to sell books penned by His Majesty. The monarch had keen interest in the Thai language and supported its conservation. On July 29, 1966, he attended a meeting on the language at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Arts, and later the government named July 29 as National Thai Language Day.
Separately, the Fine Arts Department sent officials to Sanam Luang to inspect the site for the construction of the royal crematorium. The department said it needs to have further discussions with the government before choosing the exact location for the crematorium.
Meanwhile, Sanam Luang was continued to be full of black-clad mourners yesterday, and in order to accommodate the huge flow of people, the authorities have built a new bridge across a small canal to provide easy access.
Thousands of people from across the country have been heading to Sanam Luang to pay their respects to His Majesty and perhaps be a little closer to him. His Majesty’s body rests inside the Grand Palace, which is right next to Sanam Luang.
Since the palace can only accommodate some 30,000 mourners per day, the rest have to pay their respects from the other side of the palace walls.
Also yesterday, more than 100 mourners began cycling to the Grand Palace from their home province of Ubon Ratchathani. They plan to queue up in front of the Grand Palace to see if they can get an opportunity to prostrate in front of the King’s body.