Thailand’s official national lottery, administered by the Government Lottery Office, draws prizes every first and 16th of each month. Popular among Thai citizens, but also boasting an underground gambling scene that’s deeply embedded with illegality and organized crime, Thai lotto remains legal and draws large crowds to watch bimonthly TV broadcasts of prize drawings.
Searching for lucky numbers can become an all-consuming hobby. Some players take their cue from tragedy – the license plate numbers of vehicles involved in devastating accidents; plane crash casualty figures; or local news articles featuring oddities such as six-legged turtles or extra appendages on lizards born to villages nearby. Others seek guidance from spirits; those most sought-after numbers often relate to those who have endured great trauma or loss.
Sukhumvit Soi 77’s shrine dedicated to Mae Nak, a young mother who died giving birth, draws a large crowd. People pray for Mae Nak’s divine intervention – whether for an exam grade, passing an interview, or lottery luck. Mae Nak is said to provide advice in the form of a small clay pot filled with numbered ping pong balls.
Most often, however, luck comes in more subtle forms: from fruit splatter patterns and candle wax drips, dice, dice games, or coins flipped on horses. Locals also employ an unconventional variation on traditional tea leaf reading known as “esiimsi” or siam si (echiiymchii), whereby they shake a cup filled with bamboo sticks marked with numbers until one falls out and that number becomes the winner’s number.
Other devotees of esiimsi make pilgrimages to Suphanburi’s Sawang Arom Temple, where it is said that holy water basin can foretell winners. According to its owners, their ancestors brought this practice from China two centuries ago, with devotees believing “Phoem Phueng,” or guardian spirit of lottery draws being carried in her basket and watching over proceedings at this temple.
Though the official prize for single number lottery draws may only be several million baht, some Thais remain hopeful of claiming more. One man from Chiang Mai province sold his motorcycle in order to buy a winning ticket and was devastated when it turned out not be his day; when this wasn’t successful either he wrote to family members informing them that it had been his final hope for a better life and so threw himself off a bridge instead of giving himself up as being lost cause.
While most Thais recognize lottery gambling is gambling, many see it as a legitimate means to raise funds for charitable causes and the poor. According to government minister Nualnoi Treerat, lottery sales generate four billion baht annually for charity while providing employment for many individuals who otherwise would have gone without work. Thailand is now working toward turning its propensity for gambling into an asset rather than a potential source of slush funds.