Singapore is known as the law-and-order jewel of Asia. But scratch the surface and you'll find a culture of superstition, corpse oils, talisman shops, & black magicians who will curse your enemies.
Great piece. I think this sort of *honest and unsanitized* documentation of street-level culture is sorely missing today. As an LKY fan, I'm even more impressed by the hurdles he and his allies overcame to build a first-world city state out of old Singapore now.
A bit of idle wonder: how close are the cultic practices around Phra Ngang to the Kali worship of India? Is there a direct connection, or is it a typical case of potluck syncretism that that part of the world is known for? Would love for you to do the full article tracing the origins of that spirit and it's worship.
Also, I certainly want to read that thousand more tangent which you cut. Thanks for putting this together.
Thank you for your comment. Indeed, LKY was dealing with all of this and more at the time.
I wouldn't be able to make an objective connection between Phra Ngang and Kali, to be honest. The only place it would make sense is in the subjective practice of the killer that was discussed in the piece, who lived in a place that is influenced by SE Asian occult practices (the Phra Ngang piece) and that also has a fairly sizeable South Indian Hindu minority. Or on the altar of a modern day syncretic occult practitioner.
As far as Phra Ngang, it's definitely something I am working on. I've collected abundant notes on the topic over the years. The best sources are in Thai, both written and oral, the latter being the best.
As far as the tangent, I can send it your way by email, if that works? I also see that you followed on X, I'll give you a follow back.
Great piece. I think this sort of *honest and unsanitized* documentation of street-level culture is sorely missing today. As an LKY fan, I'm even more impressed by the hurdles he and his allies overcame to build a first-world city state out of old Singapore now.
A bit of idle wonder: how close are the cultic practices around Phra Ngang to the Kali worship of India? Is there a direct connection, or is it a typical case of potluck syncretism that that part of the world is known for? Would love for you to do the full article tracing the origins of that spirit and it's worship.
Also, I certainly want to read that thousand more tangent which you cut. Thanks for putting this together.
Thank you for your comment. Indeed, LKY was dealing with all of this and more at the time.
I wouldn't be able to make an objective connection between Phra Ngang and Kali, to be honest. The only place it would make sense is in the subjective practice of the killer that was discussed in the piece, who lived in a place that is influenced by SE Asian occult practices (the Phra Ngang piece) and that also has a fairly sizeable South Indian Hindu minority. Or on the altar of a modern day syncretic occult practitioner.
As far as Phra Ngang, it's definitely something I am working on. I've collected abundant notes on the topic over the years. The best sources are in Thai, both written and oral, the latter being the best.
As far as the tangent, I can send it your way by email, if that works? I also see that you followed on X, I'll give you a follow back.
Interesting article for sure.