Demons wear Covid-19 face masks at Buddhist 'hell garden' in Thailand

Demons wear Covid-19 face masks at Buddhist 'hell garden' in Thailand

The statues inside a Buddhist 'hell garden' have been given face masks to encourage visitors to protect themselves against the coronavirus pandemic.

Footage shows the religious monument at a temple in Ang Thong, central Thailand.

It includes graphic depictions of sinners being punished in the afterlife.

Several of the demons are wearing face masks, widely believed to protect against Covid-19 transmission.

While some of the 'sinners' have also been given them.

Buddhists believe that sinners who commit evil will encounter such punishments in the afterlife before they can be reborn.

The temple garden is divided the area into three zones including the Buddha's journey, the Heaven and the most graphic section - the Buddhist hell, also known as Naraka.

The temple manager Treenet Mekraksakit, 76, said they want to urge the visitors to be aware of the 'new normal' in the tourism industry.

He said: "The pandemic has changed the ways of many things including tourism and the temple wanted the visitor to be aware of this new way.

"So we have covered our ghoul sculptures with face mask so visitors will be reminded that they should wear them as well." Buddhists believe that sinners who commit evil will encounter such punishments in the afterlife before they can be reborn.

Temple hell gardens are divided the area into three zones including the Buddha's journey, the Heaven and the most graphic section - the Buddhist hell, also known as Naraka.