Three great waves of sound rose from a million voices - 'Long Live His Majesty!' Tens of thousands wept. Visibly moved, King Bhumibol Adulyadej allowed a smile to crease his famously impassive features.
Flanked by his wife, Queen Sirikit, the king, 79, stood waving for several minutes to the adoring throng clad in royal yellow celebrating the 60th anniversary of his reign. For the world's longest-ruling constitutional monarch the public audience with his subjects in the heart of Bangkok was his first in six years.
King Bhumibol stood on a small balcony of the Ananda Samakhom throne hall, from where he thanked the crowds, telling them how he drew encouragement from the unity they displayed. 'This virtue is the basis of the love and harmony which makes the Thai people able to work hand in hand to protect and develop the country's prosperity,' he said.
'As long as Thais can still synchronise their thoughts, minds and behaviour for the good of the country, we can be assured the nation will continue to prosper.'
Earlier he ordered 25,000 prisoners freed to mark the occasion.
For many, his words had extra weight amid the country's unresolved political crisis - one of dozens to have engulfed Thailand during his reign, which began after his older brother died of a still-unexplained gunshot wound in 1946.