Destruction of Phra Phrom Statue

Date: March 21, 2006 • Location: Parthum Wan, Thailand

A man smashed the statue of Phra Phrom at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok, Thailand, with a hammer, and was subsequently beaten to death by bystanders.

Phra Phrom is the Thai representation of the Hindu creator god Brahma. In modern Thailand, Phra Phrom is often worshipped outside of Hindu contexts by regular Buddhists, and, like many other Hindu deities, has usually come to represent guardian spirits in Thai animist beliefs, which coexist alongside Buddhist practices. He is regarded as the deity of good fortune and protection. The concept of Brahma is also represented in Buddhist cosmology as Brahmā or Mahabrahma, the lord of Brahmaloka, which may also be represented as Phra Phrom.