Buddha-Wood Zarkoperfume 2016 Parfum-Serum

A little out of breath, the young Dek wat set down the heavy, metallic containers - carefully, as his master had instructed him. The old man smiled at him and gestured invitingly with his bony arm for him to sit down. Hesitantly, the boy approached. He had only been a member of the temple community for a few days. He had to be a ‘Dek wat’, or ‘temple child’, for at least four years before he could become a novice and, after another one or two years, a monk. Accordingly, he held great respect for the old man, who had devoted decades of his life to the teachings of Buddha.

For a long time, both knelt side by side before the tall, wooden figure, and the boy kept looking up, moved. The face of the statue was, when viewed from below, almost intimidating with its broad cheeks and full lips. From a greater distance, however, it appeared kind and serene.

Finally, he dared to break the silence:

“Master?”

“Yes, my son?”

“What do we have planned for today? What valuable things are in these containers that I should even go to the big city for earlier?”

“Wood preservative, mixed with a bit of varnish. A special blend - it’s exclusively concocted by OBI in Phuket for all temples and shrines throughout Thailand. And with this stuff, we’re going to coat the good piece right down to the last groove. We do this twice a month. What do you think, how have we managed to keep this fellow safe through the centuries in this climate? Let’s go!”

The rest of the day, master and student spent carefully painting the statue from top to bottom with ‘OBI Buddha-Wood Special’. The piercingly sweet synthetic haze made the boy feel a bit dizzy. Through a light fog, he saw the blissfully serene expression on the old man's face, and he had the vague thought that he might have just discovered the reason for the enduringly peaceful smiles of some monks.