Editorial Standards

Three registers, always distinguishable

Everything on this site belongs to one of three registers, and the writing tells you which: documented history, supported by records and scholarship; traditional accounts, the tradition's own telling of its saints and rites; and market lore, what collectors believe and what the trade reports. All three belong in an honest account of this field. None is disguised as another.

Attribution

Metaphysical claims are attributed: devotees hold, the tradition teaches, collectors believe. Documented history, materials, ritual procedure, and dated market figures are stated plainly. One clear attribution per claim, without hedging fog.

Sources

Thai-language sources lead: temple records and official temple media, the collector associations and their publications, established Thai references, then international scholarship. Where a fact cannot be verified to that standard, it is not published. Prices carry a currency conversion and a date, because a market figure without a date is a rumor.

What this site never does

Lokavidu does not issue authenticity verdicts on individual objects; that work belongs to Thailand's certification bodies and judged competitions, and readers are pointed there. It does not claim efficacy for any object. It does not facilitate trade, list objects, or connect buyers and sellers. It does not use Buddha imagery as decoration.

Language

Amulets are rented, chao in Thai, never bought, and the vocabulary of veneration is kept even in market coverage. The glossary documents the field's terms in a consistent house romanization.

How this site is made

Articles are researched, drafted, and verified through an editorial process directed by the founder, with AI assistance in drafting and fact-checking under human editorial direction. Every published claim passes the sourcing standard above, machine-checked for format rules and human-directed for substance.

Corrections

Verified corrections are made in the text, the updated date changes, and substantive corrections are noted at the foot of the article.