Having chosen as a gift not a ceramic elephant, but a stone statuette of Buddha, get ready to hear from "experts" in the near future that an image of a Buddhist god cannot be exported from Thailand. And when you hear - do not be upset, everything is not so scary.
According to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Thailand in Moscow: "95% of the population of Thailand profess Buddhism, the remaining 5% profess Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and other religions."
Leaving Thailand, many vacationers are wondering what to buy so unnecessary in memory of smiling Thais, sunny days and colorful Buddhist temples. The assortment of most souvenir shops: the pantheon of Hindu gods, phallic idols, Buddha figurines, crafts made of ceramics, stone, wood, coconut, gypsum and shells. Information about tough customs conditions for the export of images of the main god of Buddhists has been actively discussed on the Russian Internet for a long time. Two or three years ago, these were the real rules posted on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand. Excerpts from these rules, loosely translated into Russian, are posted in the sections about Thailand in most Russian tourist resources.
To understand the essence of the question "is it possible or not", it is worth starting by clarifying the official point of view of the state structures of Thailand on the export of Buddha images that do not belong to antiques.
Exporting Buddha images according to the letter of the law
Please search the following government sites that are related to the topic of exporting Buddha images:
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand;
- Ministry of Culture of the Kingdom of Thailand;
- Department of Fine Arts of the Kingdom of Thailand;
- Department of Customs of the Kingdom of Thailand;
- Department of Religious Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand;
- Embassy of the Kingdom of Thailand in Russia.
The English and Russian versions of these sites do not contain information that it is prohibited to export Buddha images from the country. On the website of the Department of Customs of the Kingdom of Thailand, you can see two lists related to the topic of import-export across the border of the Kingdom of Thailand. In short, the first list prohibits the transportation of the items indicated in it, and the second restricts the transportation by additional verification and registration procedures.
List of prohibited items:
- materials with obscene content;
- pornography;
- items with the national flag of Thailand depicted on them;
- drugs;
- counterfeit money, coins and jewelry;
- fake and official royal insignia;
- pirated media products;
- counterfeit goods, fakes of well-known brands.
As you can see, not a word is said here about Buddha images and any other religious images that are strictly prohibited for import and export outside Thailand.
List of restrictions on transportation:
- Permission from the Ministry of Fine Arts of the Kingdom of Thailand is required for the import or export of antiques and works of art.
- To import weapons, ammunition, explosives and pyrotechnics, you must obtain a license from the Ministry of the Interior of the Kingdom of Thailand.
- For the import of cosmetics, provide confirmation of the safety of products for human health.
- For the import of flora, fauna, fish and aquatic animals, a permit from the Department of Nature Conservation, the Department of Agriculture or the Department of Fisheries is required.
The cultural value of an object is its significance for the entire world community, or for a particular country, ethnic group of a specific thing or work of the author.
The first item on this list is vaguely related to our question. And it does not apply in any way to souvenir products: figurines, paintings, medallions and other crafts that are not cultural values, but are sold in every souvenir shop in Thailand.
On the website of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Thailand, in the section "For tourists" there is the following information: "The export of Buddha images, with the exception of personal amulets, as well as objects of religious worship and antiques, is prohibited without the permission of the Department of Fine Arts of the Ministry of Education." The embassy does not have any links to the original source or a more detailed description of the export conditions. And judging by the rate of the baht to the ruble, which is also indicated here on November 1, 2010, we can conclude that the information on the site is outdated.
It turns out that none of the official state Thai and Russian resources has an up-to-date, accessible document, which would clearly spell out restrictions and prohibitions on the export of Buddha images. All other information that appears in the results of search queries: export conditions, size and age of products, the presence of receipts and stamps - all these are echoes of rules that are not now freely available, or maybe they are not at all.
But there are a lot of comments from tourists who quite calmly carry any images of Buddha in their luggage and hand luggage, without encountering opposition from the authorities. With rare exceptions, when to determine the age of the product, the customs officers invite an expert, making you anxious. Or they confiscate a souvenir for some official reason. For the sake of peace, it is worth asking in advance when buying a receipt from a gift shop. Simple - just in case.
Buddha is not a decoration, but a shrine
In the Kingdom of Thailand, any confession is equally respected, despite the dominant position of Theravada school of Buddhism. The good-natured attitude of Thais towards the people around them is inherent in their upbringing, in their religion, in their centuries-old traditions. But no one will like it when your shrine is mutilated for the sake of selling it abroad as a home decoration.
The main reason why Thailand passed the very same law to severely restrict the export of Buddha images is the wave of theft and vandalism that has swept all over the kingdom over the past thirty years. Due to the increased demand for Thai antiques, thieves entered temples and holy places, took away small images and figurines, and sawed off the heads or hands of large statues. That is why the protection of Buddha images has become legislative.
Whether it is a statue or a painting, the Thai sees them as a shrine and an object of worship, rather than decoration. Therefore, most Buddhists would prefer to receive a picture or a statue of Buddha from a monk in a temple by donating a small amount.
Some Thais can be seen shopping for medallions with images that look like Buddha. These medallions are luxuriously decorated and attached to chains of real or fake gold. If you look closely, you can see that these amulets do not depict Buddha, but one of the popular Buddhist monks. Such amulets are in use among the poorly educated citizens of the middle and lower strata of Thai society. A similar situation is observed in Russia, when people far from true Christianity adorn themselves with elaborate golden crucifixes. Among Buddhists, it is considered unacceptable to buy holy items, therefore the Thais veil the process of acquiring medallions with the term "exchange". Technically, it turns out that they are not buying, but exchanging miniatures for money. Enlightened followers of Buddhism will not buy amulets and images of Buddha, and they will never use the resulting images as jewelry.
Imagine you bought a new apartment or built a house. They invested a lot of money in the interior decoration, and the walls in the living room were covered with Spanish mosaics. Pottery is not a cheap pleasure, it looks great on its own, but something is missing in the room. The finishing touch, zest, an object that attracts the eye and speaks eloquently about the owner of the home. And here's the question: will you go to an antique dealer to buy some exotic crucifix and decorate the wall with it? Most likely not, unless you are a deeply religious Christian. Looking at the crucifixion, you understand who this person was and what he became for millions of people. Exactly the same sacred, very serious connection exists between the Thai and the image of the Buddha.
Even if we assume that the export ban law does exist, it is obvious that it is not strictly enforced. For what reasons - this is the business of the Thai government. But if you really want to pay tribute to who the Buddha was and what he brought to people, go to the temple. Make a donation there, receive a Buddha image as a gift and remember at least one of his sayings about the life that awaits us in another world.
