Chow Yam-nam
Chinese: 周欽南
Thai: กิมน้ำ จิรรัตนพิเชษฐ์
Born(1937-06-19)19 June 1937
Pattaya, Chonburi, Thailand
Died17 August 2013(2013-08-17) (aged 76)
Other namesBak Lung-wong (白龍王)
Children4
Websitewhitedragonking.com

Chow Yam-nam (Chinese: 周欽南; Thai: กิมน้ำ จิรรัตนพิเชษฐ์; 19 June 1937 – 17 August 2013),[1][2] known publicly as Bak Lung-wong (Chinese: 白龍王; lit. 'White Dragon King'), was a Thai Taoist and living saint.[2][3] He was known especially for his alleged ability to bless people into becoming highly successful celebrities in Hong Kong.[4]

Early life

Chow was born to Chinese parents in Pattaya, Chonburi, Thailand on 19 June 1937. His ancestors came from Chaozhou, Guangdong, China.[2][4] Prior to his religious work, he reportedly repaired electronics, fixed bikes, and was a hawker.[3][2][4]

Spiritualism

Most sources say Chow saw the spirit of a white dragon king when he was 13,[3][5] while other stories point to a nearly fatal car accident when Chow was in his 20s[5] or a dream when he was in his 40s[2] as what set him on his spiritual path. Regardless of its origins, Chow, a disciple of Daode Tianzun, whose mount is a white dragon,[6][5] reportedly received the dragon king's enlightenmenment in the 1980s.[2] He subsequently took on the name Bak Lung-won (literally "the white dragon king")[7] and was thereafter regarded as a living saint.[2][3]

Chow taught himself palmistry, fung shui, and soothsaying[5] and built up a following. In the 1990s, he received a donations from two Hong Kong businessmen, allowing him to build the Bak Lung-wong Temple in his hometown of Pattaya in Thailand.[2][4] The temple, where he would spend the rest of his life, opened in 2007. Hundreds of people, all wearing white in a show of respect, began queueing outside the temple beginning at 4am in the hopes of witnessing Chow's prayers. After burning 17 sticks of incense, visitors were permitted entry.[2][6] One-on-one meetings were rare and short, oftentimes only 5 minutes, but his disciples could join him in group prayer in 15-minute sessions.[8][6]

In addition to giving important spiritual guidance, Chow also gained the reputation of being able to bless people into becoming successful celebrities in Hong Kong.[4][7] Among those who met with him were Jackie Chan, Richie Ren, Shu Qi, Andy Lau, Leon Lai, Carina Lau, Wong Jing, Sammi Cheng, Miriam Yeung, Show Lo,[7][2][9][10] and Peter Lam.[5][4] Tony Leung, Eric Tsang,[7] and Shu Qi[11] are known believers of Chow.

Upon request, Chow blessed the 2002 film Infernal Affairs and advised the crew to change the name from The Departed to something using only three Chinese characters (Infernal Affairs in Chinese is 无间道). Prior to the start of production for Infernal Affairs II, he recommended moving filming up to August rather than early September.[12][9][5] In 2003, singer and actor Leslie Cheung requested an audience with Chow but was rejected, as it was "not the right time." Following Cheung's suicide, Chow expressed his sadness as well as his belief that Cheung was possessed by ghosts and was unable to fight them off.[5] In 2008, Edison Chen and Gillian Chung separately approached Chow for guidance following the anonymous release of sexual photos.[9][13]

Later life and death

In 2010, Chow was admitted to a Bangkok hospital[2][8] with influenza-related pneumonia.[4] He died from bronchitis on 17 August 2013.[7][3] He and his wife had 4 daughters.[14] Chow's daughter Pet succeeded him and took on the name Yellow Dragon King.

References

  1. ↑ "ปิดตำนาน "ตำหนักหลวงปู่มังกรขาว" White Dragon King temple". Manager Daily (in Thai). 21 August 2013. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "泰國白龍王病重" [Thailand’s White Dragon King is seriously ill] (in Chinese). Apple Daily. 25 July 2010. Archived from the original on 25 July 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sun sets on day of the White Dragon". The Standard. 19 August 2013. Archived from the original on 18 August 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Eastweek magazine vol 342 Aug 01, 2010 pg 50-54.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gagliardi, Jason (27 July 2003). "Into the dragon's lair". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 "凡間活仙白龍王" [Mortal Living Immortal White Dragon King] (in Chinese). The Sun. 21 March 2006. Archived from the original on 22 September 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Hsia, Heidi (22 August 2013). "White Dragon King passes away". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  8. 1 2 "白龍王病危？　王晶：危險期已過" [The White Dragon King is critically ill? Wang Jing: The dangerous period has passed] (in Chinese). Now News. 25 July 2010. Archived from the original on 25 November 2010.
  9. 1 2 3 "白龍王：禁欲會長紅 華仔拒認朱麗倩" [White Dragon King: Abstinence President Hong Hua Zai refuses to recognize Zhu Liqian] (in Chinese). Sina Corporation. 19 January 2010. Archived from the original on 25 January 2010.
  10. ↑ "成龍今年走死運 靠白龍王翻身" [Jackie Chan's bad luck this year depends on the White Dragon King?] (in Chinese). Liberty Times. 6 March 2007. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  11. ↑ "Was Shu Qi's marriage predicted by renowned Thai medium White Dragon King?". Her World. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  12. ↑ "白龙王指点 无间道开运" [The White Dragon King gives guidance on Infernal Affairs and good luck] (in Chinese). NetEase. 1 July 2003. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  13. ↑ "秘密飛泰參拜白龍王　陳冠希"望天打救"" [Secret Feitai pays homage to the White Dragon King Edison Chen and "looks to the sky for help"] (in Chinese). China Review News. 29 February 2008. Archived from the original on 5 March 2008.
  14. ↑ Gagliardi, Jason (27 July 2003). "Into the dragon's lair". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
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