A man is dead after suffering severe burns inside the Watt Buddhacheya Mongkol Buddhist Temple in Lake Ridge, Virginia.
Prince William County police said they responded to the scene on Thursday and were directed by temple members to a bedroom housing the body of a 48-year-old man who had sustained serious burns.
At the time, police indicated there were no signs of foul play.
Newly surfaced details have revealed that the monk, identified by the temple as Chi Nguonthe, had self-immolated.
Sarath Oung, president of the temple, told the Prince William Times that another monk on the grounds had seen Nguonthe light himself on fire. After self-immolating, Nguonthe walked back inside the temple, where police later found him.
Nguonthe had been with the temple for three years. He was from Cambodia. Officials are still working to determine the reason behind Nguonthe’s self-immolation.
Self-immolation has long been associated with Buddhism, and is widely noted as an extreme act of protest against religious and political persecution.
The official cause and manner of death are still pending by the Virginia state medical examiner’s office.
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