Well-known Buddhist monk denies any links with iCon Group
Phra Medhi Vajirodom says his sermon was taken out of context and that he and other monks had never endorsed the company or its alleged pyramid scheme
A well-known Buddhist monk has denied ever endorsing iCon Group, which is suspected of luring people into buying products under the pyramid scheme.
Phra Medhi Vajirodom, who publishes sermons under the pseudonym of V vajiramedhi, denied all connections with iCon Group in a Facebook post on Tuesday morning.
In the post he said that he was speaking for himself and all the monks who have ever been invited to deliver sermons at the iCon Group.
He also apologised for making people misunderstand that he supported the businesses of the iCon Group.
Phra Medhi said this misunderstanding stemmed from a sermon he delivered at the iCon Group early this year. He was invited to share his thoughts on the “key to success” in line with Buddhist principles.
The monk said his sermon lasted for more than an hour, but someone had just lifted one sentence, which was meant to be ironic, to accuse him of encouraging people to join the iCon Group.
In his sermon, the monk had said that he believes four principles can be taken from the Tripitaka to gain success – diligence, morality, good friends and balance in life. He said he had told the attendees to be patient and learn to wait for the right chance to get rich.
He said that to put his thoughts across to the audience, he had ironically said: “If you have no patience and don’t want to wait, but want to get rich immediately, then the only possibility is the iCon Group.”
Phra Medhi said most people understood his message, but someone just lifted this sentence to claim that he was endorsing the iCon Group.
In his post, the monk also said that he had been monitoring developments surrounding the iCon Group and thought there were several irregularities.
However, he said, since the firm was carrying out its businesses openly and had Thai celebrities working for it, he and other monks who were regularly invited by the company to deliver sermons thought it employed transparent business practices.
Phra Medhi said the iCon Group had earlier invited monks to deliver sermons or hold prayer ceremonies at the company’s office every month.
He said the iCon Group’s executives often went to his temple in Chiang Rai to invite him and to offer scholarships to the poor students under the supervision of his temple. He said he had plenty of photographs with them.
Phra Medhi said all the monks who had delivered sermons at the company’s headquarters had gone there with an honest intention after being invited and none of them were involved in the iCon Group’s businesses.
