The original story of
the Thai boxer was found in the ancient annals of Burma. It only says
that a Thai captive from the fall of Ayudya fought before the Burmese
King of Ava, at the pagoda crowning celebration, and won royal accolade
for defeating nine or ten opponents It was nearly a century later that
the same story surfaced in a handwritten transcript of the Royal
Chronicles of Siam ( Phra Racha Pongsawadan ). The Thai version was in
the form of a nine-line synopsis. Nai Khanomtom was named in the brief
text.
In fact,
for a long time folklore and exalted chants in tribute to Nai Khanomtom
and his faithful spouse, Chor Makham, had been circulated in the old
areas around Bang Ban, Bang-Pahan and Pa Mok districts, near Phra Nakhon
Si Ayutthaya. The legend of Ayutthaya had already been born.
The
Greatest Fighter
The most accurate account, insofar as one can make it, reads as follows
:
In 1774 (
B.E. 2317 ), Burmese King Hsinbyushin ( 1763 - 1776 ) ( a.k.a. Mangra )
of the Konbaung dynasty had just completed renovation work on the golden
Shwedagon Pagoda of Yagon, for the grand monument's top had been ruined
by the 1768 earthquake. The project, which had taken six years to
complete, actually included raising the stupa to its current height -
100 meters.
To
celebrate this act of fulfillment, the king ordered a seven-day fair be
staged, with all the customary entertainment. Among the attractions were
religious rituals, acrobatics, dancing, classical drama, musical
performances, and boxing. As a prime show, Thai boxers held captive in
Burma were matched against the best of the nation, in freestyle
contests.
Nai
Khanomtom, a boxer of repute who had been taken prisoner during the fall
of Ayudhya, was brought to fight at the fair. The dark - skinned,
muscular Thai looked resilient, his mussy hair tied in a classic knot.
No one knew anything about his origin, family links or martial
background. But once the match began, the Thai fighter, displaying
amazing ability, crushed his Burmese opponent before the first round
ended. He was then matched again, but he defeated, one after another,
the Mon - Burmese foes until no one else dared challenge him. In all,
nine Burmese boxers - the best in the land - fell before the incredible
warrior.
The
monarch was so impressed with his performance as to say in praise : "The
Thai is blessed with venom on his whole body, even bare - handed with no
weapon, he can singularly outfight nine or ten men. As his lord master
was bad, so the country was lost to the enemy. If his lord were any
good, there is no way the City of Ayudhya would fall."In the end, the
Burmese king granted the Thai captive his freedom to go home, along with
a purse for the journey, plus the trophy of two lovely native maidens as
consort.
Boxer's
Day
In the 1953 through the initiative of the late General Pichai
Kullavanijaya, the date of Nai Khanomtom's brilliant victory, determined
to be March 17, was pronounced Boxer's Day by the Boxing Commissioner of
Thailand.
The
crucial date was determined on the basis that Burmese records indicated
King Mangra left Ava in mid-December, and did not arrive in Yangon
pagoda for the fair until three months later. That means the date of the
event must be sometime in mid-March. On the ancient calendar in use at
the time, it is deduced that date should fall wihtin the 4th lunar month
in the Year of the Horse.
After
thoroughly comparing the probable days and identifying the most
auspicious ones for festive events, the date March 17 was singled out
for recognition. Since then, the date March 17, 1774 has been officially
cited on many occasions as the day of glory for the national fighting
art of Thailand, and Nai Khanomtom is revered as the holy spirit of Muay
Thai. His shrine or image is often found in the boxing arenas in
Thailand, and boxers and camps honour him as their guardian angel.
Nai
Khamontom was born in 1750, in Ban Kum, Khwaeng Khunsena ( now Amphoe
Bang Ban ), in Ayutthaya province. His name Khanomtom - meaning rice
cake - was given to him by the holy monk at Wat Bikka temple ( lastly
Wat Racha Makhoe ) on the bank of Chao Phraya River, based on an
auspicious dream by his mother, Nang Ea, in which she saw two rice cakes
in a consecration platter, and picked one up to eat.
At eight
years of age, he began schooling at the temple, and showed an aptitude
for fighting arts - boxing and sword fighting. When the Burmese invasion
occurred in 1767, Pa Mok district was attacked. Nai Khanomtom and his
spouse, Chor Makham, organised the villagers to form an armed
resistance. Consequently, the boxer was captured while on his way to
alert Ayudhya of the Burmese incursion, and his loyal mate perished
during the bitter conflict. The rest was as in Burmese history. Nai
Khanomtom returned to Siam in 1776, and nothing more has been heard ever
again about the man.
Today,
the great fighter's lone statue stands peacefully inside the Nakhon Sri
Ayudhya Sports Stadium in the provincial city, his face a stern mask of
impassivity, and eyes transfixed at a bleak outlook. But, with one
clenched fist, he betrays the bitter humiliation and fierce agony
trapped deep in his heart, reminding us of his humble origins Standing
in an atmosphere in stark contrast with the extremely hostile, virtually
life and death situation of the dramatic challenge that had led to his
meteoric rise to eternal fame.
Another
memorial, a seven-meter high sculpture, heavy-metal style, of the boxer
in air - borne combat posture against foe, guards one of the main
passage ways inside the Royal Folk Arts and Crafts Centre, at Amphoe
Bang Sai, Nakhon Si Ayutthaya. The impressive art piece was inaugurated
on Aug 12, 1992.
Holy
Goddness of Pa Mok
At Amphoe Pa Mok in neighbouring Angthong province, the Wat Pa Mok
Woraviharn, a temple of over 250 years old, where standing proudly in a
side pavilion is the sacred image of Chao Mae ( Goddess ) Chor Makham,
the venerable, brave-hearted beauty of Pa Mok district, and mate of Nai
Khanomtom.
The story
that goes with the image is that on June 18, 1998, the holy abbot of the
temple, Phra Pamok Khamunee(Viwattana Thidhapemoh), had an encounter
with the spirit of the legendary woman, bidding him to re-create her
image, so as to help the villagers. Awakening from the dream, the
Reverend promptly obliged, and the noble task was soon realized through
donations totalling 42,000 baht. Ever since the saintly image has been
taking prayers and thanksgiving from worshippers daily. The shiny gold
leaves offered by villagers masking the deity's face stands out as
cogent evidence of their profound faith and trust in her.
Warrior
Blood and Spiritual Houses :
In 2003, as part of an all-out programme to thoroughly document
historical sites and monuments relating to muaythai and its obscure
past, the author visited Ayutthaya and its neighboring areas four times,
and made a number of significant discoveries. On Aug 22, through
interviews I established that the police at Amphoe Sena had no knowledge
at allof neither Nai Khanomtom nor Wat Bikka, but it was said that Bang
Ban might be pertinent to our project. Roadside enquiry took me to Wat
Chulamanee, one of the 69 temples in the district. While the initiative
seemed to be getting nowhere ( with the abbot being absent ), we took a
break beside a main road junction close to a police station. Suddenly,
the entire picture changed.
Burmese Source
The original story of the Thai boxer was found in the ancient annals
of Burma. It only says that a Thai captive from the fall of Ayudhya
fought before the Burmese King of Ava, at the pagoda crowning
celebration, and won royal accolade for defeating nine or ten opponents.
Two villagers, upon being informed of our purpose, led us to a location
in Ban Kum village, near Chao Phraya river. Together we identified the
spot, once a pier now defunct, where natives used to board boats to
travel up - river to Wat Bikka ( Wat Racha Makhoe ). The temple has long
been demolished and any relics left behind are completely covered by
dense overgrowth on the entire riverside. Not contented with this
finding, an ad-hoc boat trip was quickly arranged, and a guided survey
of the terrain on the banks eventually put the team right on the
waterfront where Wat Bikka once was.
The
temple was completely gone, and all that had existed is now mostly
buried in the river. Nevertheless, the expedition managed to recover
three stones from the concealed debris, and made a photo record of the
discovery. A visit was made to the location in Ban Kum, - around Soi 1
and 2 - where Nai Khenomtom used to live. The area was approximately
twelve kilometers from Ayutthaya City District. Just before the party,
left, we learnt from local villagers, that the muaythai legend was in
fact survived by a great grandson, Anag Ekasorn ( 31 ), who is a
policeman. This was absolute miracle! He was the obvious priority for my
next trip to Thailand. There he was, in the heart of Ayutthaya, looking
rather impressive in physical attributes, was humble and polite. Perhaps
due to his known noble blood, or it was the effect of the mystifying
aura of Ayutthaya, seeing the man fully attired as the fighter of old,
it did give one a subtle, if not too powerful, feeling of an encounter
with a legend reincarnate. Anag has never fought muaythai, he said, but
only six times in boxing. A special ceremonial ritual - brief yet solemn
- actually preceded the photographic session.
By
further exploiting the opportunity, two more temples within Bang Ban
district were identified as having featured in the life of Nai Khanomtom.
Ancient Wat Tah Heuy, and Wat Mai ( 350 years old ), both sitting on the
border area of Ayutthaya and Angthong provinces, opposite the modern Wat
Thanom temple at Amphoe Pa Mok across the Chao Phraya, are now in
complete destitute. The great boxe r used to visit the old temples in
his youth.
Old Date
on New Calendar
One problem concerning that date, however, has emerged. Historically,
1774 was the year in which Burma's golden pagooda was completely
renovated. There is no dispute here. Thai historians, such as Lt.
General Ruamsak Chaikomint ( History of War / Art & Culture Extra ?1998?
) , have put forward a case that the event actually occurred near the
end of B.E. 2317, based on a time-link with the nineth campaign of
Burmese General Thugyi against northern Thailand. The campaign -
confirmed dating B.E. 2318 - was preceded by the royal boxing match at
the Yangon fair, so the evidence indicates. The ambiguity lies in that
the Thai Buddhist calendar, which was in use since ancient times, sets
the new year on April 1. The last quarter of B.E. 2317 should therefore
fall outside 1774 on the western calendar. All seems to indicate that
1775 was the correct year.
A current
debate within Thailand's boxing community is that Nai Khanomtom might
not be the supreme fighter he was widely believed to be, since Phaya
Pichai Dab Hak ( Lord of the Broken Sword ), the known champion in the
last days of Ayudhya, had never tasted defeat. By that fact, Nai
Khanomtom could not have been the best, so it was argued.
A proper
analysis of the facts attached to this theory should convey a contrary
conclusion. Phaya Pichai ( 1741 - 1782 ) was at his peak as a boxer in
1762. That achievement provided the platform enabling him to aspire to
senior military ranks. By 1767, when Ayudhya fell, he was a knight with
the title Luang Pichai Asa, before being promoted later to royal
bodyguard and military commander, Phya Siharaj Dejo. His days as a boxer
were realistically over by then.
Nai
Khanomtom was only aged 17 at that time, seven years from the epic
battle in Yagon before the Burmese King. He was at a mature 24-25 into
the fight. The Thai way of things in those days would suggest that Nai
Khanomtom was already a famous boxer in Ayudhya between 1767 and 1774, a
pre - condition for him to qualify for the challenge in Burma
