Villagers Force Disrobed Monk to Re-ordain After Drunken Alcohol Run
The article describes a monk who left Buddhist Lent retreat, disrobed, drove to buy alcohol, got drunk, and was intercepted by villagers who recognized him. They found robes in his car, didn't believe he had properly disrobed, took him to a
Just one day after leaving the Buddhist Lent retreat, a monk known as Luang Phi Tab Taek removed his robes, drove a sedan to buy alcohol, and was intercepted by villagers who recognized him. They found him intoxicated; he claimed he had already disrobed, but the villagers did not believe him and took him to a temple for immediate re-ordination.
On October 31, 2026, reporters learned from villagers in Thapong Subdistrict, Mueang Rayong District, that earlier they had seen a bald-headed man wearing a white round-neck shirt driving a sedan to buy liquor at a village shop. After he left the shop, villagers recognized him as a monk from a local temple in Thapong and followed him in their vehicle.
Village heads Wasana Yaemglin (Moo 6), Anongkorn Pranonte (Moo 7), Assistant Village Head Sanawut Boonsuk (Moo 6), and a group of residents waited by the roadside. When the sedan approached, they flagged it down and found the bald-headed man in a drunken state. Asked if he was a monk, he replied that he had already resigned from the monkhood and was on his way to see the abbot to formally request disrobing.
However, the villagers remembered he was still ordained. A search of the car revealed robes, personal belongings, water, and dry food. They then took him to Wat Thapong Nok in Thapong Subdistrict, where Phra Kru Kitticharoenrat, abbot of Wat Chang Chon Sirirat Bamrung, and Phra Baidika Samorn Uppalavanno, abbot of Wat Thapong Nok, had him properly don the robes again before conducting a formal disrobing ceremony.
After the disrobing ceremony was completed, the man immediately drove away from the temple. Phra Kru Kitticharoenrat expressed gratitude to the villagers for their vigilance in preventing a badly behaving monk from damaging Buddhism's reputation.
