A Monk's Cremation

Wan Tong Veeboonkul

Buddhists do not believe in a permanent and fixed reality.  To them everything in this world is subject to change as well as alteration.  Impermanence and change are truths in our existence according to Buddhism.

In Buddhism, impermanence is described in four phrases:

Whatever is stored up is bound to run out.

Whatever rises up is bound to fall down.

Whatever come together is bound to fall apart.

Whatever is born is impermanent and is bound to die.

Everyday, if we look or choose to be aware there are examples as well as affirmations of the four phrases regarding impermanence.  However, it is the death of someone that we know that strongly drives into our reality the truth of the fourth phrase  "Whatever is born is impermanent and is bound to die".

A week ago, one of Duang's cousins died.  Wan Tong Veeboonkul was 72 years old.  We last saw him at a funeral in Thasang Village on October 14th.

Wan Tong Veeboonkul - far right side of this photo

Wan Tong had been a Theravada Buddhist Monk for five years.  He had become a Monk after the death of his wife.  As is very common her in Thailand, many men after the death of their wife and their children leaving to start their own families, will "take refuge" in the Triple Gem (Three Jewels) of Buddhism - the Buddha, the Dharma (the teachings of Buddha), and the Sangha (the Buddhist religious community of Monks and Nuns).

Duang's cousin had four daughters and one son who lived near him in Ban Nong Daeng near Duang's home village in Nongwa Subdistrict.

He had not been feeling well for a while - Duang said that his insides were no good.  Last week he went out for a walk and had a heart attack.  Typically when someone dies of natural causes they are cremated three days after their death.  In cases of violent deaths such as accidents or suicides, the person is cremated sooner because the spirits are unsettled by the death - in those cases the body is cremated one or two days later.  However Duang's cousin was a Monk which is an entirely different protocol.

Monks are considered and treated as a higher class of people than typical people here in Thailand.  Their social status is due to Monks being closer to liberation ("Enlightenment") than average people or even wealthy people.

I have attended over 15 funerals in six years, however this was the first cremation ritual for a monk.  To paraphrase an expression that Duang often uses when I point out something in America or Thailand that Is different from each other - "Funeral for Buddha (Monk) not same for other people"

The first difference is that a Monk is not cremated until 7 days after his death.  Secondly whereas all the cremations that I have attended were around 1:00 PM, the cremation for Monks does not start until after sundown.  Our sunset now is around 5:30 PM so yesterday's ritual did not start until 7:00 P.M. The ritual for the Monk lasted two hours whereas typical cremations that I have attended lasted around one hour.

The ritual for laypeople starts at their home with a procession to the local Wat for the final aspects of the ritual.  The Monk was kept at the Wat where he lived.

Entrance to Wat Udom Nong Daeng

Oh - the biggest difference was Monks are cremated on a funeral pyre on the Wat's grounds and not in the Wat's crematory furnace.  When I arrived yesterday afternoon for the evenings ritual, the Monk was already positioned on top of the funeral pyre.

Funeral Pyre for Wan Tong Veeboonkul

A small ornate pavilion had been erected around the funeral pyre. The pavilion was constructed from four concrete piles placed in the ground to serve as support columns.  The concrete columns served as support elements for horizontal bamboo members that in turn served as attachment points for long thin bamboo members to form a dome above the funeral pyre.

The dome framework was covered with a fine white fabric that very well could have been mosquito netting. The base of the dome was circled by a ring of  homemade ornate consumable panels - thin Styrofoam boards covered with a solid colored foil with an overlay of a different colored foil cut by hand into intricate designs.  I have watched this type of decoration being produced before but on a much smaller scale for "spirit houses" (basahts) used in Tambon Nong Roy Wan parties (Bone Party).

Ornate thin colored cloth panels, reminiscent of delicate summer curtains from my youth in New England were suspended from the dome ring and gathered at their end near the ground to form triangles along the circumference of the funeral pyre.  There was a low wall type structure created from horizontal bamboo poles and fabric covered thin Styrofoam panels.  Two openings at opposite ends of the structure allowed access to the pyre.  Leaning up against the outside  four low walls were many funeral memorial placards readily available for all funerals.  The placards often contain clocks, fans, giant ornamental watches, and sometimes kitchen utensils along with artificial flowers, garlands and custom printed banners of best wishes for the deceased along with the name of the donor.

Underneath the dome, a refrigerated coffin was resting upon a bed of logs.  The bed of logs was comprised of two layers of 9" to 12" diameter hardwood logs perpendicular to each other.  Inside of the refrigerated coffin was the typical consumable coffin containing the corpse.

Outside of the entrance closest to the pavilions where people sat to view the ritual where tables with talisman called daughans that would be placed on top of the consumable coffin by mourners before coconut water is poured on the corpse by Monks, dignitaries and family members.  Men remove the daugchans from the lid of the consumable coffin and place them inside of the coffin before the pouring of the coconut water.

Mourners Carrying Monk Robes Offerings Three Times Clockwise Around Pyre

A very important aspect of the ritual is to earn merit for one-self as well as for the spirit of the deceased person.  Merit is typically earned at funerals by offering robes to the Monks by dignitaries and immediate family members. The people earn merit for themselves and the deceased person by carrying the robe up to the coffin and placing the robe on a ordinary metal serving platter on the coffin at the entrance to the furnace.  The Senior Monk accepts the first offering followed by Monks in descending seniority until all the robes are distributed.  Typically at funerals there are 2 to 5 offerings made.  For the ritual associated with the Monk's cremation, ordinary laypeople made a cash offering in a collection box at one of the tables off to the side of the pyre.  They then took a packaged robe and carefully carried it three times clockwise around the pyre.  It seemed to me that unlike a typical funeral there was no announcing of who gave what for cash offerings.  Unlike typical funerals, poor people who could not offer cash did not offer small bags of rice.  It appeared to me that you offered what you could at this ritual and you got to walk around with the robe.  After people completed their circumambulation of the pyre, the robes were returned to the white cloth covered folding table to be used by other mourners.

At most cremation rituals there are 6 to 14 Monks in attendance.  However for the ritual involving a Monk there was about 34 Monks participating.

At 7:00 PM the ritual commenced.  The start was initiated by the ringing of a bell - sounded like the ringing of a steam locomotive bell.

A senior education official did the "Master of Ceremony" duty - announcing and keeping things organized in accordance to the supervision of another one of Duang's cousins - an Abbott at another local Wat.  Both the education official and Duang's cousin are common participants at the local funerals.

The Start of the Ritual - School Official Shows Sign of Respect for the Deceased

A big difference in this ritual as opposed to a typical funeral was the offering of robes to the Monks.  Besides the sheer number of robes that were offered, there was a different way to offer them.  A dignitary or family member would be called, go up to the table of robes, take a robe on a gold colored pressed metal ornate raided bowl, and carry it to the area just inside of the pyre area.  Once the person had place the bowl with the robe on a table next to the coffin. a Monk would walk barefoot about 20 meters from their pavilion to accept the offering.  Each Monk said a chant before accepting the offering.

As part of the ritual. laymen removed the refrigerated coffin from the pyre and set it off to the side.

After the coconut water had been poured over the corpse and the daugchans placed inside of the consumable coffin, laymen punctured the bottom of the coffin to drain away the liquids in the coffin and to facilitate the cremation of the corpse.  They then placed additional long logs that had been stored off to the side of the funeral structure.  The logs were placed to form a large and dense teepee around the consumable coffin. The pyre was then doused with naphtha rather than the typical diesel fuel to start the fire.

As a Monk entered the funeral structure with a candle and started the pyre fire, fireworks were launched into the black sky.  Typically three are launched to scare away any malevolent spirits that might interfere with the release of the deceased person's spirit.  For the Monk's ritual there were several fireworks shot into the sky - it was difficult to count because each firework had several secondary explosions once it got up to elevation.  I was busy taking photos but I would estimate roughly 24 explosions and colorful bursts.

Like all funeral rituals, the symbolism of turning away from the materialism of this world, candies and foiled wrapped coins were tossed to the eagerly awaiting crowd - especially the children.

The cremation ritual last night took two hours to complete.  Typical funeral rituals take one hour once the coffin arrives at the local Wat.

Whatever is born is impermanent and is bound to die.

Camping Out

My ambition and goal is to show extraordinary people doing ordinary things.  In so doing, I wish to show how different people can appear, to provide a glimpse of other cultures, to celebrate the diversity of mankind, and to demonstrate that despite our appearances we are so much alike.

Living here in Northeast Thailand and being married to an ethnic Lao Loum  woman, I am fortunate to have many opportunities to accomplish my goal.

I have mentioned to friends that photography is a great deal like life itself; you have to make the best and most of the opportunities that are presented to you.  You have to have the capability and mindset to adapt and take advantage of unexpected situations and conditions.

In the environment that I now live in there are many cultural events, religious rituals, religious events, and many normal daily activities of the local peoples which provide opportunities to witness, photograph, and strive to meet my photography goal.

The Ubiquitous - "Monks Participating in Tak Bat Ritual" Photograph

Many of my photographs involve Theravada Buddhist Monks, quite often Samanens, Novice Monks.  I am intrigued by the juxtaposition of Buddhist Monks albeit novices and quite often these young "holy" men behaving like the young boys that they also are.

Samanen Joking

Samanens of Tahsang Village Making Pop Guns

I try to observe, understand share the different aspects of monastic life of the Theravada Monks.  Being a Monk involves a great deal more than walking around each morning to get your one meal of the day and meditating.  Just as with life outside of the Wat - things are not always what they first appear to be; there are the ways that things are supposed to be and there is the way that things are.  I like to show how and what things are in my world.

The Monks are people's fathers, brothers, sons, and friends.  They are ordinary people who have chosen an extraordinary way for their path to enlightenment and liberation. 

The past week was a special ritual out at Luang Por Pohm Likit's Wat outside of Udonthani in Ban Maet.  For awhile a new sala, worship hall, has been under construction.  It has been completed now with tiled floors, corrugated metal roofing, and religious murals painted on the one full wall of the structure.  However, the sala does not have a Buddha statue for the raised area where the Monks sit to participate in rituals and to eat their one meal of each day.

On February 1, 2558 BE (2015 AD) there was a ritual to cast a 500 KG Buddha statue for the new sala.  The previous day was a day of intense preparation for the actual pouring of metal the next day.  Besides local officials who were to participate in the ritual, there were many visiting Monks, some from as far away as Chiang Mai - at least an eight hour drive from Ban Maet.  To participate in the ritual the Monks arrived early.

Luang Por Pohm Likit has a vey small and humble structure where he sleeps with no room for guests.  On the Wat grounds there are two very primitive huts for Monks who maybe studying or visiting - room for two Monks but not sufficient for the approximately 12 visiting Monks.

What to do?  There are no accommodations in Ban Maet.  There is no Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Motel 6, or Motel 8 in Udonthani but plenty of other hotels.  Not that it matters - in general Monks do not stay in hotels.  They stay at local Wats when traveling.

No problem - the visiting Monks brought their own sleeping accommodations to stay out in the forest with Luang  Por Pohm Likit - they brought their own tents.

Monk Tent City

There were actually quite a few tents set up at the Wat.  One area set up for the Monks was isolated by a fence constructed by suspending plastic green nursery cloth from bamboo poles, bamboo stalks (I can't bring myself to call a grass a tree), teak trees, and other trees.  Another area, near the bathroom/wash facilities of the Wat was filled with small single person tents for the women who were participating in the two night religious retreat and rituals conducted with the Monks. The final area off to the edge of the grounds was occupied by the 10 person statue casting crew.

A Bhikkhu Walks Over to His Encampment

The younger Monks, the Novices, set up their tents closest to the wash facilities and next to the hut that the young samanen from the nearby family uses.  The more senior Monks, Bhikkhus, had their tents located further into the bamboo thicket and away from the younger Monks.

Young Monk's Camp - Washed Robes Drying Out

After eating their one meal of the day, the younger Monks retreated to their tents - one would think that they would seek the solitude of their tent to either study or to meditate.  I am not sure if that is the way that things are supposed to be or not - the reality is that they were inside playing video games on their cellphones.  Boys being boys once again and perhaps the reason the older Monks sought more isolated areas for their tents.

Samanens After Eating Their One Meal of the Day

 

After Duang had completed her meal with the other lay people, we returned to our home for awhile to rest before returning in the late afternoon.

It had been an interesting visit out to the Wat and I had seen something that I had not expected or imagined - Monks camping out.  Reflecting back, it makes absolute sense but too often we do not allow ourselves to think or imagine what we are not familiar with.  I was fortunate to experience first hand another aspect of life as a Theravada Buddhist Monk.

Car Blessing

Luang Por Pohm Likit Blessing Duang's Car

Recently we purchased a Ford Fiesta from our friends.  Transferring registration into Duang's name involved the fairly typical tasks of the previous owner paying off the outstanding loan balance, getting Duang's name on the car registration book, and getting Duang's name on the current insurance policy.  Last week we went to the Land Transportation Office outside of town and signed some papers as well as paid some nominal fees to register the car in our province.  We were told to return tomorrow, Tuesday, to complete the process - inspection and getting new plates .... and pay some additional fee.

There was also another process involved in obtaining the vehicle.  We had to get the car properly blessed.  The blessing was to be performed before mealtime by Luang Por Pohm Likit out at his temple.

Duang had me drive the car to just outside of Luang Por Pohm Likit's hut.  I had to open all the doors as well as the trunk and leave the engine running for the ritual.

Our friend, the Monk, came out of his hut and took a statue of Buddha and a large round glass ball from an ornate metal bowl that he had previously placed on the remnant of a plastic chair.  The metal statue of Buddha was an obvious object for a Buddhist ritual blessing but the glass ball has other implications.  The ball was like a super sized marble that we used to play "marbles" with, in the time long before smart phones and tablets.  Those marbles were highly prized and referred to as "purees".  This would have been a very highly prized a long time ago in a far away land.

Many of the believes and rituals here in Isaan are not pure Buddhism but a vestiges of former practices of Animism, Brahminism (precursor to Hinduism), and Hinduism.  The glass ball, lukel, is associated with the Naga (serpent ruler of the water underworld).  Apparently the glass orb symbolizes the eye of the Naga.  Belief in the Naga is very strong today in Lao People's Democratic Republic, Northeast Thailand, and Cambodia.

Monk Runs Lukel Over Car as He Chants

The Monk walked around the car in sort of an inspection.  He then rubbed the lukel over the car with his right hand while holding the metal Buddha statue in his other hand.  Several times he stopped in a location and appeared to be chanting as well as meditating.  After he had completed his circumambulations and contemplations, Luang Por Pohm Likit entered the car.

Once inside of the car, he checked out all the instruments.  He raced the engine several times and wrapped additional sei sin (cotton string) around the steering column.  He also hung from the rear view mirror the pumalei (floral garlands) that we had purchased along the route to the wat.  He then dipped his fingers into a small "lip balm" type metal container and placed the paste like contents using his finger tips on the headliner over the driver's seat.

Water Blessing of the Car

The monk exited the car and fetched a Monk's food bowl which contained water along with a stiff reed brush.  Luang Por Pohm Likit then walked around the car chanting and sprinkling water over it with the stiff brush.  Duang and I were also sprinkled with the water as part of the ritual.

After Duang and I had received the water blessing, the car blessing ritual was completed. I then shut off the engine and closed all the doors.

Thailand is the second most dangerous country for driving.  I have seen many bad accidents and uncountable number of near accidents in the time that I have stayed here.  It is very dangerous and like the wild west out on the roads.  Motor vehicles and motorbikes are blessed - I am not sure if the blessings provide any protection, however with as dangerous as the roads are around here it is wise and prudent to take any and all precautions to be safe.

Wai Khru Ceremony, Wat Bang Phra

A Devotee, overcome by his tattoo animal spirit, starts off for the podium

Last month we attended a special cultural and religious event at Wat Bang Phra in Nakom Pathom - the Wat Bang Phra Tattoo Festival.  On March 15th the Wai Khru Ceremony was held.

Our visit to the temple the evening before the Wai Khru Ceremony is documented in the following blog entry:

http://hale-worldphotography.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-night-before-wai-khru-wat-bang-phra.html

The Wat Bang Phra Tattoo festival is about renewing the energy and power of special magical tattoos, Sak Yant, for which the Monks of Wat Bang Phra are famous.

http://hale-worldphotography.blogspot.com/2014/03/sak-yant-tattoos.html

The Wai Khru Ceremony is a ritual with Animist origins and subsequently influenced by the spread of Brahmanism from India,  The point of the ceremony is for people to pay respect and homage to their teachers.  Here in Thailand Wai Khru ceremonies are conducted for schoolchildren to show thanks, respect and to show honor for their teachers.

Muay Thai fighters before the start of each match will perform a Wai Khru Ram Muay ritual:

http://hale-worldphotography.blogspot.com/2013/01/wai-khru-ram-muay.html

to demonstrate their respect and pay homage to Buddha, their teachers, and their country.

Often performers of Thai classical dance, Krabi-Krabong martial art, and Thai classical music will perform a Wai Khru ritual, although not as elaborate as a Wai Khru Ram Muay before performing to pay respect and to make homage to their teachers as well as to the deities that patronize their arts. The tradition extends to Go-Go dancers at clubs throughout Thailand - a Wai Khru ceremony is held before the club opens each day. Many individual dancers will perform a quick Wai Khru before taking to the stage for the first time each day..  My brother-in-law also performs a ceremony before the start of each of his shows.

During our visit Friday evening, we learned that the tattoo festival would start at 9:00 A.M. at Wat Bang Phra.  I expected that the festival would be an all day event so we planned on arriving just before the scheduled start of the festival.  We arrived at 8:55 A.M. to find just about all open spaces, other than some walkways (runways?), filled with people sitting on plastic sheeting placed upon the parched and dusty ground.

Wat Bang Phra - Just before start of Wai Khru Ceremony

We had entered the grounds just to the left of the elevated shrine where the senior Monks and Tapawkao were located.  Many Monks were seated on chairs off to the left of the elevated shrine.  There was a small square area about 25 meters on each side that had many young men, some rather large and muscular - many wearing uniforms of local ambulance services and some martial arts clubs. We stopped at the edge of the seated people and the standing men.  Duang immediately said that she had to go to the bathroom and for me to stay there.  As she was leaving, I could hear some growling and snarling from various locations throughout the mass of people - Monks excepted.  These were devotees who were becoming possessed by the animal spirits of their magical tattoos.

Quickly, possessed people commenced rushing, charging, crawling, flailing, and hopping from the crowd towards the front of the elevated shrine.  At first it was typically one at a time, but you could feel the excitement as well as the frenzy building.

Devotee Becoming Possessed As His Tattoo Becomes Recharged

 

I got to shoot a little bit of video with my movie camera but quickly went to just still photos of my prime camera. Duang was nowhere to be seen to take care of my camera bag which was just as well - things were getting physical rather quickly where I was standing.

It turned out the people that were standing behind me were like "shock troops" - they stopped the advance of the possessed people and calmed them down by rubbing their ears and, if particularly possessed, lifting their bodies off the ground which was rather effective in breaking the spell.

There was a contingent of foreigners who were moving about and getting in position to take close-ups of the faces of the possessed devotees.  I did not join them - they were younger than 64 years old, in better shape them me, and almost all of them did not have a 22 pound backpack of gear on their back. 

Possessed Devotee Elevated Off the Ground to Break the Spell

I quickly realized the perilous position that I was in - possessed people were racing towards my vicinity from 180 degrees.  Depending upon how I turned myself some of the action was going on behind my back.  I decided that the best protection was to go on the offensive and to forget about taking photos.

I put all my gear into the backpack and started to face the crowd trying to determine where the next assault would come from.  I made sure that I was always behind the first line of blockers - I became a partner to a very large and muscular Thai wearing US Army fatigues (I suspect Army surplus - I have even seen Vietnamese young men in US Army fatigues near the Chinese border).  The Thai guy would take the brunt of the charge high, and I would either go in for the possessed person's ears or in rough cases I would go in low and raise a leg off the ground while others went for the other leg.  Go for the person's ears?  Yes - rubbing the ears helps snap the possession.  I added my own personal touch - I pulled on their ear lobes three times while chanting "Sah Sah" This technique seemed to be rather effective - pulling three times to signify the three gems of Buddhism - Buddha, The Teachings of Buddha, and the Sanga (Buddhist religious community).  "Sah Sah" being what you say to people, usually children, to calm them down.   I imagine the shock of have a falang (foreigner) pulling on your ear lobe three times and hearing him telling you to calm down was enough to break just about any animal possession that morning.

Once the possession was broken, the devotee would wai (raise the hands in a praying position and nod his head) to the people who got him out of his possession.  This indicated gratitude and respect for their efforts.  Having been dispossessed once did not mean the devotee was done for the day.  Many people would become possessed several times.  There was one guy that we dealt with three times.  I don't know if his tattoo spirit was that powerful or if he just had a proclivity towards getting possessed.

This man did not get possessed while his tattoos were charged with energy

Several times there were charges by 5 to 10 people at the same time.  Clouds of dust flew up into air from the pounding of feet on the dusty ground.  Some of the possessed people did not stay within the bounds of the established walkways through the crowd - they would end up taking the overland (over body?) route through and often over the seated people.

Some, very few, of the possessed people were female.  Possessed females seem to present a challenge to the ceremony.  The possessed women typically were possessed by crawling type animal spirits - slow crawling spirits.  The possessed women were stopped in the walkways by a couple of men, usually older men, long before getting to the area of high energy in the front of the shrine.  They had their ears rubbed and snapped out of their possession.

When not actively working on getting someone out of their possession, the shock troops nervously surveyed the crowd to determine where the next assault would most likely come from.  In the end, I helped with about 12 to 15 possessed people with only one slight glancing blow or grab to the groin.

While all this was going on there was some speaking, perhaps reciting of a prayer, from the elevated shrine.  The possessions seemed to taper off and stop on their own at which time everyone sat down or took a knee while some chanting was done by the Monks and Tapawkaos on the elevated shrine.

When they had finished their chanting, I saw a couple of Monks appear at the front of the raised shrine holding some fancy fire hose nozzles.  These were not the 2-1/4 inch or 6 inch high pressure nozzles that you attribute to fire protection systems in building or hydrant systems.  The nozzles and associated hoses were more like the portable water fire extinguishers of years gone by - perhaps a 1/2 or 3/4 inch hose.  The nozzle appeared to be tapered brass decorated with white braided rope, to me it was reminiscent of the fancy nautical knot displays made by sailors when I was a young boy.

Upon seeing the nozzles and the grinning Monks, the crowd - seated and standing went berserk,  Everyone got up and rushed to the front of the raised shrine to receive the blessing of the holy water.  Being so close to the shrine to begin with, I was quickly caught up in a human wave propelling me forward.  I received a good spray or two of the holy water but was struggling with all my might to keep on my feet.  The force of all the people from all areas of the crowd was propelling me forward and on top of other people's feet. I knew that I could not stop being swept along but I had to struggle to keep from going down and perhaps trampled.  I have been in that situation once before - exiting a soccer game in Curitiba, Brazil when four young men created a panic by rushing, and pushing through the crowd.

I was caught in the crowd and wanted to get out badly.  I noticed up ahead there was an area that seemed to offer protection - an area created by the extension of two staircases from a shrine building off to the left of the mass of people.  Just like getting caught in an ocean rip tide, I knew that I would only wear myself out resisting the mass of people behind me.  Just as you are supposed to do in a rip tide I commenced working my way across the crowd mass to the sanctuary of the building.  It was still a struggle to maintain my feet beneath me but I started to make some lateral progress.  With a great deal of physical effort and many apologies along the way - I made it to safety.

The Wai Khru Ceremony - the blessing and recharging of the magic tattoos had taken, to my surprise, 1-1/2 hours.  The area of the ceremony was quickly vacated and cleaned up.  A great many of the people remained at the Wat to be tattooed, purchase souvenirs, make merit, eat and drink.

Once safe, I tried getting a hold of Duang.  I was carrying my cell phone specifically in case we became separated.  It took about twenty minutes to get her on the phone - the system was apparently overloaded - I could not even make a call let alone her answering my call.  Eventually we reunited in the temple.  After Duang went off and brought back a nice refreshing ice cold Pepsi, while I enjoyed my drink and got my heart to calm back to normal, Duang worshipped at the shrine.  We then headed back to the area where we had witnessed Tapawkaos tattooing people the previous evening.



Young Man Contemplating the Sak Yant that He Is About to Receive

Many people were being and waiting to be tattooed by two Tapawkaos in area where we had watched the night before.  In rooms located at one side of and above the area, other Tapawkaos and at least one Monk were also tattooing people.

We saw many of the same people that we had seen the night before.  Many people were busy distributing food and drinks.  It turned out that all food and most of the drinks were free, donated by people in support of the event and temple.

At one end of the room, a Monk who spoken to me the evening before, sat and was giving a special blessing to men who came to him.  He was rolling what appeared to be a small roll-on container of oil on the head and forehead of the men kneeling in front of him.  I had not seen that type of blessing before.  I asked about it and Duang told me that it was "special".

Getting A Special Blessing

I was definitely glad that we had arrived and visited the Wat before the Wai Khru Ceremony.  The Wai Khru Ceremony was definitely a life experience and I will witness it again some day.  Having experienced it once I would not bring so much equipment and pay more attention as to where we set up for the ceremony as well as arriving much earlier.  I definitely would visit the Wat the evening before and recommend it to anyone planning on attending the festival - visiting the night before provides a more complete experience.

Did I get a tattoo?  If I were to get a tattoo it would definitely be a Sak Yant or something similar - ancient roots, culturally unique, mystical, and traditional even to the extent of its application.  Yes I would be concerned about the reuse of needles on several people without normally acceptable cleanliness and sterilization techniques, and the use of a common ink well for all people being tattooed. But I did not get a tattoo for the following reasons.

In getting a magical tattoo, Sak Yant, there are eleven rules that are supposed to be followed by the wearer.  There are some slight variations from Monk to Monk as well as Master to Master.  Basically the rules are:

1.   Do not eat star fruit, pumpkin, or any other gourd type vegetables
2.   Do not be a lover to any married people
3.   Do not say bad things about somebody's mother
4.   Do not eat food from a funeral or wedding buffet
5.   Do not eat leftovers
6.   Do not duck under a washing line or an overhanging building
7.   Do not duck under a certain type of banana tree
8.   Do not cross a single headed bridge
9.   Do not sit on a ceramic urn
10. Do not let a woman lay or sit on top of you
11. Do not brush up against the blouse or skirt of a woman especially when she is having her period.

I possibly could ignore the health risks of the tattooing process perhaps even rationalizing that the alleged snake venom in the custom made inks neutralize viruses.  However I can not rationalize getting a tattoo with special rules knowing that I would fully break at least three of the eleven rules.  For me doing so would betray and trivialize the admiration and respect that I have for the tradition.

2 March 2014 Theravada Buddhist Funeral Ritual

A new gallery on my personal photography website is now available for viewing

This 17 photograph gallery is created from selected photographs that I took at a Theravada Buddhist funeral out in the countryside earlier this month.

http://www.hale-worldphotography.com/Other/2-March-2014-Buddhist-Funeral/38126809_89DVf6

Building A Sala

Sand Is For Concrete and It is for Playing Too

They say that time waits for no man.  Two days ago I found that time has moved on and left me behind - behind in writing a blog entry about building a sala for Luang Paw Pohm Likit, the Forest Monk.

While others may ponder the answer to the question of what came first the chicken or the egg, I am often contemplating the question of what should come first - a blog entry or more photographs.  I had an idea to write a blog entry about the sala, worship hall, for the Forest Monk.  As it turned out to be I have become very busy with taking photographs of two funerals, elementary school field day, fabric weaving, and two trips to Lao so the blog did not get written.

Current Sala for Wat In Baan Mat

A Sala is an open pavilion that shelters people from the sun and rain.  At a Wat, the Sala is where merit making rituals are performed.  The offering of food to the Monks takes place in the sala as well as funeral rituals.

The current sala for the Wat outside of Baan Mat is very primitive.  It consists of a bare concrete slab that is sheltered by a thatched roof that is supported by 3 to 4 inch diameter tree columns and a lashed bamboo roofing sub-structure.  The thatched roof apparently was not waterproof so there is now a large plastic advertising banner draped and lashed over the thatched panels to improve the weatherproofing.  At one end of the sala there is a raised bare concrete platform the width of the pavilion where the Monk sits and off to his right on the raised area is a shrine.

Far End of Current Sala

The end of the pavilion that is raised has some polyethylene nursery cloth (sun and bird protection) attached to the pavilion columns to provide additional weather protection.  Apparently the weather protection was not completely adequate because a sloping sheet of recycled corrugated metal roofing has been suspended over the shrine to deflect any rain from it and on the outside four large waterproof election signs have been attached to bamboo poles to serve as a quasi wall beyond the nursery cloth.

Excavation for Footing and Materials to Mix Concrete

At the end of January the construction of a new sala was started.  Holes for the columns of the structure had been excavated and the workers were in the process of pouring the footings for the columns.  I had spent my working career involved in the construction of heavy construction facilities as well as a few commercial facilities around the world so the building of a new sala piqued my curiosity and revived memories of times gone by - visions of projects past, present, and yet to come?

There is no worry about frost and subsequent frost heaving for a foundation here is Isaan.  Earthquakes are also not a concern in this region.  High winds are also not an issue here.  With the absence of these considerations the excavations for the footings were shallow and dug by hand.

Reinforcing steel for the footers utilized smooth small diameter bars rather than the larger diameter deformed concrete reinforcing steel (rebar) that I am accustomed to.  The workers only used one mat of reinforcement per footing rather than the two mats that I had experienced.  It appears to me that the reinforcement add to the sala's footings contributes mainly to distribution of the heat during curing of the concrete than to increasing the load bearing capacity of the footing.

After the footing had been poured and cured, the workers placed a section of reinforced concrete pipe on the footing in the excavation - putting a round concrete ring in a square hole - it can be done and quite easily if you pay attention to dimensions.  I have no idea what the purpose of adding the concrete pipe to the column foundation served.  Through Duang, I asked the "Big Boss" why they were adding the concrete pipe when they could save labor and money by just pouring the foundation against the exposed earth?  I didn't get an answer and Duang told me "Thailand not like America" which translates into "things are different" and "don't ask any more questions".

To control dimensions and orientations, the workers had set up batter boards outside of excavations and outline of the new structure.  This being Thailand, the batter boards were bamboo poles rather than  finished lumber.  Strings were pulled from nails driven into the bamboo holes to establish center-lines or offsets as required.  Elevations were established using a very simple device - a water level.  A water level is a flexible transparent hose filled with water.  The height of one end of the tube is adjusted so that water level at one end of the open ended tube is adjusted to match a predetermined elevation.  The water level at the other end of the tube will match that predetermined elevation.  By repeating the process many items can be set at the same elevation.

Through the use of tubing, string, nails, and bamboo poles the workers had a system to ensure that the columns would be set properly for a square and flat building without the use of sophisticated, delicate and expensive surveying equipment.  The workers were building the sala the old fashioned way - using very old methods.

On Wednesday we arrived at the Wat at 8:30 A.M.  The morning offering of food to Luang Paw Pohm Likit typically starts around 10:00 A.M. but prior to offering food on Wednesday there was to be a special ritual of setting the first two columns of the new sala.  It had been determined by the Monks that the opportune time to commence setting the columns was "09:00 12 February 2557 For this special occasion, there were 8 Monks besides Luang Paw Pohm Likit.  I recognized some of the Monks from the Buddhist school and Wat in a nearby village where we had attended a funeral ritual earlier this month.

There were also more lay people than is typical on any given morning.  Building of a sala earns merit for the participants - extra incentive no doubt to the adage "Build it and they will come"

Woman Places Offerings of Coins and Leaves In Excavation

Offerings to the Spirits - Coins and Leaves (the fresh leaves inside the excavation)

As formal preparations were made for the ritual, people at their own pace went from excavation to excavation making offerings.  The offerings were coins and fresh leaves.  This has nothing to do with the official practice of Buddhism but as I have written several times before "there are the ways things are supposed to be and the way that they are".  Many aspects of Buddhism as practiced here in Isaan are actually remnants of the previous dominant religions in the area - Hinduism and even further back - Animism.

The offerings are made to the spirits - the spirits of the land, the spirits of the garden, and the spirits of the home.  The offerings are also made in the name of the spirits, the spirits of departed family members, so that they too may earn merit from this special occasion.  The coins are offered to bring good luck and good fortune.  The leaves are offered as reminders of the impermanence of this life.  There was also a plate of food offered to feed the spirits.

I was somewhat surprised to see that most of the excavations did not have the section of reinforced concrete pipe placed inside of them. It is possible that no more sections had been placed since my observations of two weeks ago.  There was also no longer a stock pile of reinforced concrete pipe laying around the site. Perhaps they actually listened?

While people were making their individual offerings, others were busy preparing offering that would be placed on the actual columns to be set.

Lay People Prepare Offerings of Banana Stalk and Sugar Cane

The offerings to be attached to the columns were different.  The first column offering was a woven vase shaped bamboo basket containing a banana tree stalk and a pumalai (floral garland) of fresh chrysanthemums bound together with saii sin (white cotton string).  The second offering was also a woven bamboo basket but shaped like the baskets used to store trapped fish in the water when fishing.  This basket had a stalk of sugar cane and a pumalai of the yellow chrysanthemums - all bound with saii sin.

Hauling the Selected Columns To Location for Setting

After the people had finished putting the offerings together, one of the Monks came over, took the offers, and brought them to where the two selected columns were laying on the ground with all the other columns.  The columns were lifted by a truck crane and placed on the back along with the offerings and driven the very short distance to where they would be set.  The columns were off loaded and placed on the ground along side their respective foundations.  Under the supervision of another, more senior, Monk the offerings were placed and secured around each column with a thick saii sin.

As the Monks chanted and the people either knelt or assisted the crane, the columns were lifted and set one after the other.

Monks Connected to a Column By Saii Sin

Rigging the Second Column for Lift

Setting the Second Column

In writing this blog today I noticed that the first column was not actually set until around 09:15.  I questioned Duang about this and she reassured me that it was OK.  The best time to start was 09:00 but that it was OK to set at 09:15 - just not 10:00 or 11:00.  Thailand is known as a land of tolerance and I guess that means tolerance in scheduling of work activities even of a religious nature.  It is part of the charm that I find so interesting and fascinating here.

The Forest Monk, Luang Paw Pohm Likit, did not supervise the setting of the columns or lead the ritual.  He wandered about the area and acted as a host.  According to Duang, you don't preside over the building of your own temple.  It makes sense now that I think of it.  To preside over and lead the ritual would be to demonstrate want and desire which Buddhists strive to free themselves of.  With the other Monks carrying the religious load, Luang Paw Pohm Likit is freed to only accept the offering from the people of the new sala.

As soon as a column was set, workers scrambled to brace it with long bamboo poles.  The four bamboo poles were attached to the column with pre-cut double twisted  iron wire. The bamboo braces kept the columns from falling over in the wind.  It was at this point that I became concerned.  No I was not concerned about the safety aspects of the work that they were doing or their lack of personal protective equipment.  I was concerned about the location of the columns.  The batter boards had been dismantled before setting the columns.  There were no scribe marks on the footings to indicate the required center lines for each column.  No one was taking any measurements or sightings either by eye or instrument to ensure the proper location of the columns to each other or to the overall planned structure.  Actually there were no plans - blueprints or plans of any color.

After several inquires and expressions of my concern, through Duang as my interpreter and my pantomime, I kept getting the same answer  "No problem, set all columns, then Big Boss come and take care, make everything 100%"  Hmm OK but ... I had forgotten "Thailand not like America"

After the columns had been set, the people and Monks returned to the adjacent existing sala to have the daily merit making ritual of offering food to the Monks.  There was a vast quantity and variety of food for the day.  I joined the gathering, after the Monks had selected their food, to have my second of three meals for the day - a delicious bowl Ratna (Lat Na) - Thai thick and wide noodles in gravy with mushrooms, and seafood sausage.  When it was time for the Monks to leave, the senior Monk gave me two bottles of Coke and one water that he had been given but was not going to drink.  It came in very handy for the remainder of our day.

While people were making merit and eating,  the workers were moving the remaining columns for the sala the old fashion way - bamboo poles and plenty of people

Transporting Pre-Cast Column to Its Foundation

As we prepared to leave, we offered a ride from the Wat into Baan Mat to three elderly women who had walked out for the rituals.  They were happy to take the ride for the road is now very dusty and  the temperature was in the low 90s F.  As they placed their bags and baskets in the pickup bed, I pointed to the pickup bed and said "10 baht" and then pointed to the back seat of the cab and said "20 baht" - they knew that I was joking and started laughing.  Every one got in the back seat and told me "Thank you, good luck to you, Money come soon to you"  After Duang translated I turned my head around, looked back at them and said as I pointed to each one "Yes I know money come soon, 20 baht, 20 baht, 20 baht ... 60 baht total!"  Duang translated but it wasn't really necessary ... they understood and were laughing their heads off.

We dropped them off in the village no more money than I had started with but so much richer for the experience.  The people here have a wonderful and very large sense of humor which makes living here as a foreigner who can not speak the languages, Thai and Lao, so much easier because humor is communication that everyone understands and appreciates.

Today  was a special religious day.  Duang went to the Wat to observe the holiday.  Luang Paw Pohm Likit and several of the others asked where I was and why I had not come - the Big Boss was on site making everything 100% for the columns.  They were laughing that I had made a big deal about the other day and then when it was to be done, didn't show up. They did say that I needed to come out tomorrow morning to see.

Yes, humor ... you have to be able to take as much as you give to truly appreciate it ... and to be appreciated.