Most of our connotations in the west of the "White Elephant" come from random gift exchanges during the holidays, or for the slightly more cultured from "The King and I".  The symbolism and connections of the elephant (and especially the white elephant) to Thai culture run much deeper though.

The elephant is the official national symbol of Thailand, however, its numbers have declined considerably over the years as population increases have reduced the forests and increased demand for poached ivory.  There are currently approximately 4,400 Asian elephants in Thailand.  Of those, 2,000 or more are domesticated which, unfortunately, is safer for the elephants under current conditions.  Mahouts, or owners and trainers of domestic elephants, form extremely tight bonds with these animals and often only take care of one over the course of their and their elephants' lives.  These bonds appear to an outsider to be almost be closer to a marriage than a pet and owner.

The white elephant in particular though occurs rarely through a rare genetic pigment mutation, and is considered to be the property of the royal family of Thailand.  It is believed that as long as the King owns a royal white elephant, the prosperity of the country is assured.  If anyone, anywhere, throughout the kingdom comes across such an elephant, he or she is required to immediately contact the Ministry of the Interior who, with the Bureau of the Royal Household, will appropriate the elephant for the royal family.  The animal then goes through a very strict inspection.  Every aspect must be in accordance with set standards, from skin tone, hair, tail, eyes, toenails, genitals, and the roof of the mouth and skin.  Only the most perfect elephants will be named "Royal White Elephants" and will live a privileged life as a Prince of the Royal Palace.  It is believed that the kings of the Ayuthaya period obtained no less than 19 Royal White Elephants during their reign, which accounts for their dynastic success.  Each of the "Rama" kings have owned Royal Whites including the current King of Thailand, Rama IX who possesses 10 such animals with another 6 elephants waiting to be confirmed into the Royal Family.

While of course superstition is in the eye of the beholder, it is fact that throughout the generations, the Thai kings have each acquired Royal White Elephants, and Thailand is the only country in the region to not ever fall under any form of colonial rule.  To survive the European colonial period with this kind of statistic seems to rule strongly in favor of the benefit of these honorary Royal Family members.