Poi Sang Long Ritual - Day One

We arrived in Maehongson around 1:00 P.M on Monday 30 March. Upon checking in at the hotel we obtained a printed brochure regarding the schedule of activities for the four day festival. According to the hotel clerk and the recently printed brochure, there were no activities until the next morning. After the boys were to have their heads shaved at their homes they were scheduled to get dressed up in their finery at the Wat followed by a parade through the town.

Since we had not had lunch, we drove into town to eat and check on another source of information for the festival. We went to a restaurant noted for its tour services as well as its food across the lake from the Wats. This being Thailand, things are not always as they are initially described or scheduled. This is why I now make it a habit to double and triple check things - just to be sure or often - to get it right. So it was regarding the festival - the boys were scheduled to have their hair cut followed by having their head being shaved at the Wat at 2:00 P.M.!

We lingered over our lunch and soft drinks before walking over to the Wats on the other side of the lake. Lake is a rather generous term for the body of water in the middle of town. It is about 200 meters in diameter. The air around the Wats was filled with the sound of clanging cymbals and drum beats. It was obvious that something was going on or would be going on - eventually. The cymbals were banged in a staccato three beat grouping. The drumming was not in any noticeable rhythm that I could detect.

A stage had been built in front of the Wat on the temple grounds. Some people were occupied placing colored bunting on the stage. A canopy had been set up underneath one of the large trees on the temple grounds. Underneath the canopy, several young Monks, around 16 years old, were busy banging gongs and clanging cymbals. These young Monks would later take part in the hair cutting and head shaving ritual of the young Shan boys who would be ordained as Monks this year. They are following Buddha's son, Prince Rahula's path in becoming Monks at an early age. Removal of their hair symbolizes renouncing worldly possessions and goods - in old days long hair was symbolic of royalty.

An older man was busy walking around and dancing as he exuberantly played a drum. Some of his enthusiasm apparently came from alcohol as well as religious zeal. The drum was very unique instrument. It was about 6 feet long with an approximately 30 inches diameter drum head. There was a resonating chamber at the other end of the drum tube. The drum was suspended from the player's shoulder by a long saffron strap. The sound produced from tapping on the drum head with fingers was very similar to a bongo drum but a little more bass.

Other men as well as an elderly Monk were busy producing bamboo strips and weaving them into lattice works. The lattice works were later used to decorate some floats for the parade. The men and Monk took split pieces of bamboo and used a long knife to split narrow strips off of the bamboo. The tile floor of the canopy was covered with shavings and strips. The people used their bare feet to hold the lattice in place as they used their hands to weave additional strips into place. As they worked the clash, clang, and pounding of the music continued unabatted only being interrupted in sporadic interludes of increased frenzy. There were times that I got the impression that it was a sort of jam session but with only cymbals, gongs, and a single drum the range for creativity was quite restrictive.

Around 2:00 P. M. nothing different happened. We asked around and were told that it would be at 2:30 P. M. As 2:30 P. M. approached the music continued. The men continued their activities. Nothing else was started. We were told that the ceremony would actually start at 4:00 P. M. A little before 4:00, some of the younger Monks arranged forty plastic chairs into a large u shape in front of the Wat. This was a hopeful sign but also a sign that nothing was going to happen at 4:00 P.M. Around 4:15 P.M., the Head Monk, the Abbot, came out and seemed to take charge of the preparations. This was a very very good sign. At the same time, pickup trucks started to arrive with young boys, family members, and more cymbal, gong, and drum players. The volume and intensity of the music increased greatly. There was definitely an air of excitement and anticipation throughout the area.

At 4:30 the ceremony actually got started. A young boy was seated in each of the plastic chairs - 40 boys in all. Each boy was surrounded by his family. After a little speech from the Abbott and a blessing, the ceremony started. The first part of the ceremony was cutting the boy's hair.

The boys wearing their colorful super hero or cartoon tee shirts and short pants sat rigidly in their chair. These boys were about to take a very important step in their religious and temporal life. They were now the center of attention and the representatives of their family. Although these boys were seven to fourteen years old, it was obvious that they were trying their best to bring honor to their family. It was also entertaining to see some moments when the boys were busy being boys such as sharing their hair clippings with their friend, or grimacing at the irritation from their shorn locks.

The boys sat with a large lotus leaf in their lap. Using regular scissors, relatives take turns snipping off locks of hair and placing them into the lotus leave. It is considered an honor to cut the hair and the relative order in which a person cuts the hair is indicative of the respect as well as esteem that is held by the family for the participant.

The Abbot patiently made his rounds ensuring that he cut some hair from each of the young boys. Many people were mingled amongst the family members photographing or filming the ritual. I was a little surprised how few foreigners there were at the event. I estimate that there were no more than 25 foreigners. The impact of the world economy on Thailand's tourism industry was very apparent on this trip. The local Shan people were very accepting and gracious at the outsiders photographing and filming their special event. As is the case at all of these religious events, people's manners are very good.

After family and friends had their opportunity to cut some hair, it was time to shave the boy's head. Prior to shaving the boy's head, family members usually a mother of grandmother poured water on to the boy's head. Some waters were scented with flowers or perfume. There was no shaving creme, gel, or foam in sight. A couple boys had some soap rubbed into their hair. It was during the head shaving portion of the ritual that the demeanor of the boys changed. It could almost see in their face a look of seriousness and in some cases trepidation. These feelings were visibly mitigated by the close and tender attention given to the boys by their family and the Monks. It was a special ceremony that reinforced family, religious, and community ties.

The shaving of the heads was a time consuming effort shared by men, women, and Monks. Just as in the case of the hair cutting, the Abbot made his way along the lined up chairs to shave a little of each of the forty young heads. The other Monks of the Wats joined in to help shave the heads. It appeared that the Monks shaved about one-half of each head with the remainder done by family members.

After their head had been completely shaved, inspected and accepted the boys were washed off with buckets and bowls of scented and unscented water. Many boys had a pomade of powder and water applied to their newly bald heads. The boys retired to the inner areas of the temple complex to spend the night and await the next step in their ordination the following morning. Snippets of hair and shavings were gathered up and removed by some younger Monks.

The forty boys, soon to be Monks, had completed the first step in demonstrating their renunciation of their worldly possessions by having their heads shaved. They had started their individual journey in following Prince Rahula's footsteps.