On May 10, 1984, during his trip to Thailand, John Paul II went to the Buddhist temple of Bangkok to pay homage to Vasana Tara, the region's high priest of Buddhism. In the photo above, JPII offers a gift to the guru. During the entire interview, the Buddhist monk did not deign to stand to receive his visitor.

Later that day, in his homily of the Mass, JPII praised Buddhist 'wisdom' and 'interior purification and liberation.'