Father Thommanom was a Buddhist priest who renounced his faith after witnessing wartime atrocities when the United States bombed his homeland of Cambodia. Instead, he secretly turned to Hindu gods that he interpreted to be warrior kings, gods of blood, fire, and power. In moments of rage, he found the only calming influence to be a picture of Angkor, the ancient temple of Cambodian kings that would "rise from the blood-soaked earth of Angkor…to bring Cambodia's rage to the world…to spin fortune's wheel…to butcher the butchers!". Emigrating to America, Thommanom found work at a Buddhist temple in Los Angeles.
