The Wai Kru Muay Thai Ceremony is held annually at Wat Langkhakhao in Thailand’s ancient capital Ayutthaya.

The Kingdom of Ayutthaya ruled Siam from 1350 until the Burmese-Siamese War (1765–1767) ended its reign in 1767.

The annual event, which takes place over a two-day weekend in mid-March, sees Muay Thai practitioners from Thailand and around the world gather to pay respect to their teachers. Partakers also pay homage to legendary Muay Thai warrior Nai Khanom Tom.

In 1774, Nai Khanom Tom was a prisoner of war in Burma. The Burmese had captured him when they sacked and burnt Ayutthaya. During a religious ceremony in Rangoon, King Mangra of Burma arranged a fighting exhibition between his country’s greatest Parma practitioners and Nai Khanom Tom.

One after the other, Nai Khanom Tom defeated 10 of Burma’s best and was subsequently granted his freedom by the Burmese King who applauded the feat he had witnessed.

The legend’s statue stands at the entrance to the arena where the ceremony takes place.

The ceremony features demonstrations of traditional Muay Thai-related crafts such as Yantra writing & tattooing, Aranyik sword making, and hand binding, as well as demonstrations of Muay Thai fighting techniques, boxing drills, sword fighting, and professional Muay Thai Fights.

The Yantra writing contains symbols written in Sanskrit, an old Indo-Aryan language. They represent spiritual powers that are believed to bring about protection and good. This belief is widely shared in Thailand. The Yantra is typically drawn on cloth or tattooed on the body – known as a Sak Yant.

Sak Yant tattoos are deeply rooted in Buddhism. The tattoos consist of geometric, animal and deity symbols accompanied by Pali phrases. In Muay Thai fighters they are believed to bring about good fortune, strength, bravery, and protection. Getting a Sak Yant tattoo is always one of the most popular activities over the weekend, with queues of people waiting to sit with the bamboo tattoo masters.

In Thailand, there are several regional variations of Muay Thai. At the Wai Kru Ceremony there are performances of the various types. These are: Muay Korat (North East), Muay Tha Sao (North), Muay Lopburi and Muay Pra Nakhon (Central), and Muay Chaiya (South). Muay Thai practitioners from each region display their different techniques and Ram Muay dances.

There are also general displays of Muay Thai techniques that pop up around the sight.

Also, there is a market area selling Muay Thai equipment and souvenirs such as gloves, shorts, t-shirts, mongkols, and pra jiads. As well as a food market selling delicious Thai street food, of course.

One of the highlights of the event is the professional Muay Thai bouts, which included several exciting world title fights. The fights draw big crowds to get a great view of talented Muay Thai fighters, both Thai and non-Thai, in action. All of whom show great respect for their opponent, win or lose.

Once the fights end, everyone moves towards the arena for the Wai Kru Ceremony, which starts with an amazing display of battle drumming.

After the drums, hundreds of Muay Thai fighters dressed in red enter the arena and take their seats. The masters (teachers) then march into the arena and take their seats on a high stage.

An old battle scene from the Burmese-Siamese wars is then dramatically re-enacted. Soldiers dressed in old uniforms march through with war elephants. And a traditional Thai dance show is performed by elegantly dressed performers before the fighters walk to the stage where the masters await them. Each fighter receives a Mongkol and a blessing and shows appreciation by giving a wai three times.

The finale of the ceremony is the communal Ram Muay where all the fighters perform a sacred ritual dance to honour the masters. Famous Muay Thai fighters lead the Ram Muay perched on platforms on all four sides of the arena around the fighters. The dance is performed to traditional music performed live by musicians playing traditional Thai instruments. newshttps://www.revolutionphuketgym.com/news/wai-kru-festival/