Speech of Solidarity and Verses of Resolution : หน้า 85/103

Speech of Solidarity and Verses of Resolution By H.E. the Deputy Prime Minister Somsak Thepsuthin, representing the Prime Minister Venerable Sirs, Your Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen attending here tonight from Thailand and from overseas. The Lord Buddha himself taught that the Cycle of Rebirth is indeed so long that it is hard to find a beginning, a middle or an end to it. He also taught that in the course of many lifetimes, there are none of us who have never been family to one another. It is thus the case that every human being on this planet is like the member of one global family. However, what we must not forget is that sooner or later, no matter how much we may love one another, we must experience parting. I am sure there is no one here who has never experienc- ed the sorrow of being parted from a loved one. Taking the long-term perspective, it is not once, but countless times, over the course of countless lifetimes that we have experienced the sorrow of parting in this way - however, we are unable to recall all those previous sorrows down to the present day. This Tsunami Disaster has in some way passed on a warning to we who have lived through it - that some catastrophes simply cannot be predicted - that sometimes the only certain thing is uncertainty itself - and that the only reasonable way to prepare ourselves for uncertainty is to accumulate the maximum of good deeds for ourselves and extend the maximum of compassion towards our fellow man in the short lives available to us. At the time when the devastation of the Boxing Day tidal wave struck, we in Thailand have borne witness to the overwhelming response of benefactors from our own country and abroad - driving it home that when in times of trouble, we have not been abandoned by our fellow man. On the contrary, we have worked side by side and hand in hand to overcome the hardships this tragedy has brought - struggling for a better future for the survivors and striving for a better destiny for those who didn’t make it though. Today, even though many of us may still harbour sorrow for loved ones we have lost - I’d like to encourage you to mourn for these victims in the most constructive way possible, by dedicating the merit of your good deeds for the benefit of those Thais and overseas tourists who have passed on.