Isaan Funeral - 24 October 2009 (2552)

Saturday, 24 October, we went to see Duang's younger brother perform in a small village north of here towards the Lao border. He is an entertainer and puts on Mahlam Lao shows in the area. He is carrying on the family tradition from his father who used to perform shows and later taught many of the current local performers. Mahlam Lao shows are performed to celebrate many events an occasions. We have attended shows that celebrated engagements, weddings, New Years, fund raisers for Wats, the start of the Rainy Season, the end of the Rainy Season, handicraft fairs, Monk Ordinations, "Thank You" from local politician, one year anniversary of a wife's death, - just about any and all reasons, justifications, or excuses to get together and have a party. Yesterday's event was a new reason for us - a funeral. A village man had died three days ago. He was cremated at the local Wat earlier in the morning before our arrival at 10:00 A. M. Breaking from tradition, his family was having a party to celebrate his death rather than waiting a year. Many Lao Loum people wait for the first anniversary of the decease's death to have the party. This wait gives them time to earn and save money to pay for the celebration. The man's children had the money readily available so the celebration was held on the same day as his cremation. The stage for the show was set up on a vacant lot across the street from the man's home. Three large awnings were set up in the man's yard and two awnings set up in the next door neighbor's yard. I suspect that the neighbor was also a relative as is pretty much the case throughout Isaan - families live close to each other. The village street between the two houses and stage was filled with vendors selling ice cream, soft drinks, and cooked foods. Further down the street and off to the side there was a "Jolly Jumper" type amusement for the children to enjoy. The show started off pretty much as typical - some rocking music and go-go girls dancing. After about 5 songs, the show entered into what I call the traditional phase. During the "traditional phase" of the shows, the music is old time Lao. The rhythm is supplied by a wind bamboo mouth organ called a "khene". The khene makes a sound similar to harmonica and accordion and in my opinion - a little bit of bag pipe thrown into the mix. There is not much a melody to the songs but a definite hypnotic beat and rhythm from the khen. A singer accompanies the khene and sings traditional Lao music - folk music. the music is sung in a long drawn out style with many single words song out across a wide range of tones somewhat like yodeling. The music is definitely not for everyone's tastes. I enjoy its primitive tribal nature as well as its sense of linking to the past. The songs appear to fall into two basic categories - laments of a dispossessed people living far from their family, a lost kingdom and culture, or lost love, the struggles of day to day living off of a poor land; the second category is free verse between a male and female singer with sexual intonations. Today, apparently due to the reason for the celebration, there was not any free verse bet wen a male and female singer. The traditional music was limited to the laments sung by the female singer of the show. During one of the sadder songs, the youngest daughter of the deceased man, danced in her grief with a framed photograph of her father. She had come back to Isaan from Bangkok where she works. This is very often the case in Isaan. To earn a living and to help support their family, young men and women leave Isaan to perform menial labor, heavy labor or to service the adult entertainment industry in the big cities outside of Isaan. This daughter had not seen her father everyday and had not taken care of him all the time so in her grief there was most likely some remorse as well as guilt. In Isaan, the youngest daughter is expected to care for her parents. In return for this burden and obligation, it is the youngest daughter who inherits the parent's property when they die. There are strong social pressures for the youngest daughter to "take care of her parents". The deceased man loved to dance and particularly liked the song that his daughter was dancing to. The song was requested and dedicated to his memory so that she could make a personal goodbye. The song was about dying and all the people being sad at death but wishing him well so that he could rise and care for the people who had died before him. As the youngest daughter danced some relatives came up to join her for a while. They were giving her emotional support and telling her not to be sad because all people die. In Buddhism, death is seen as much as a beginning as an end. With the end of this life, there is the opportunity to start of a new life - hopefully a better life. It is the optimism of a possible better new life that the people celebrate and focus on. She was the only person that I observed to be noticeably grieving. After the traditional phase ended, the show was like any other mahlam lao or mahlam lao sing performance - rocking music, go-go dancing, heavy drinking, and people dancing up a storm. Everyone was enjoying themselves immensely. People of all ages participated in the event. It was a family event. After awhile, I ended up at the dead man's home. Underneath one of the erected awnings, men were assembling "basahts". Basahts are like spirit houses. These were made out of bamboo and banana stalks. Men had taken large banana stalks and peeled them to create strips of material that could be cut into decorative and ornate pieces to adorn the houses that are made out of woven fresh bamboo strips. There were two of these "houses". One was for the dead man and the other was for his wife who had died prior to him. Inside of each of the basahts, sticky rice and other food items were placed for "Phii" (spirits, ghosts). On the table alongside of the bashats were offerings to the Monks such as sahts, tea kettles, candles, soap, matches, and pillows. Offering these to the Monks along with money would earn merit for the deceased people to help them on their journey to the next life. Merit will also be earned by the people who contribute to the offerings. Later in the afternoon the basahts as well as offerings were carried on the men's shoulders in a procession to the Wat. The procession was typical for Isaan - loud music, dancing, and drinking whiskey or beer. It was a celebration like any other more traditional recognized in the West as for happier events. The basahts will remain at the Wat outside of the buildings for about a month. The offers will facilitate the acceptance of the departed into the spirit world. After the basahts have decayed to some point, the Monks will take care of disposing of them. It may appear intrusive for a stranger who is the only foreigner at this type of event, who is a Christian and not a Buddhist let alone an Animist, to be walking around taking photographs. It may appear to us that way but not to the Lao Loum people. The man's family took me by the elbow and brought me closer to take photographs of anything that I wanted to. They were concerned about me having something to eat. People kept offering me beer and whiskey. I did not feel like a stranger or any bit uncomfortable for long. They readily and willingly answered all questions that I had - of course Duang had to do a great deal of translating! I am constantly amazed and surprised at the openness and friendliness of the Lao Loum people. Towards the end of the afternoon, there was another religious ritual. The deceased man's family went up on stage and kneeled down facing the people. Two large photographs of the man and his wife were held so that the people could see. A large metal tray of food and drink as well as candles and some plant offerings were also on the tray. These were to help the man on his journey up. The relatives were praying as the female singer and khene player performed a traditional Lao funeral song. Once in a while, some of the people in the audience went up to the stage to offer condolences and money. It was a very touching and fitting tribute. My brother-in-law then performed a requested song dedicated to the deceased man. After what we thought was going to be a typical show but turned out to be another insight into the rich tapestry of Lao Loum culture and life, we returned home. Today as I finish this blog, I will go out and wash the new truck. After driving out to Tahsang Village the other day, the truck needs cleaning however according to Duang, the truck could not be cleaned for three days after it was blessed. I can't complain - it wasn't like when we moved into our house and had to wait for it to be blessed before we could ...

Kathmandu Funerals

A Corpse, Prepared for Cremation, Is Carried Along the Banks of the Bagmati River

Pashupatinath located on the outskirts of Kathmandu along the banks of the sacred Bagmati River and close to the international airport is Nepal's most important Hindu temple. It is also one of the most important pilgrimage sites in the Hindu world.  The temple is dedicated to Shiva, specifically his incarnation as the Lord of the Beasts, Pashupati.  Pashupati is considered to be the national deity of Nepal.  Ninety-five percent of the people who die in Kathmandu are cremated at Pashupatinath.

Being a Non-Hindu, I was not allowed to enter the main temple.  However, I had visited Pashupatinath specifically to observe and document the open air cremations conducted along the banks of the Bagmati River and the Sadhhus.  Non-Hindus, after paying an entrance fee, are allowed to access the areas of the cremations, Shiva shrines, and hillside.

Living in Thailand and being exposed to the Buddhist rituals and attitudes towards death, I have become interested in the ways and traditions in which people deal with the final days of loved ones.

Since I started living in Thailand ten years ago, I have attended more funerals than in all my previous 58 years.  Visiting Pashupatinath was my first opportunity to witness and experience the Hindu funeral ritual.

Son and Priest Perform Ritual for Dead Parent

After a short walk from the entrance to the site, I came upon the east ghats along side of the Bagmati River - a short stone throw from the ghats on the other side of the river where cremations were being performed.  Ghats are the stairs that lead down to the river.  Often the term, ghat, is used to describe the stone platforms built on and among the stairs upon which the funeral pyres are constructed.

Typically the body being cremated is a person who died at home only a few hours earlier.  When a Hindu dies it is a common practice to cremate the body either before the sunset or sunrise following the death.  Cremation is held as soon as possible after all family members have the opportunity to view the body.  Customarily the body is brought to holy grounds for cremation.  Hindus believe that the soul quickly leaves the body upon death.  To help facilitate the soul on its journey, the cremation is performed as promptly as possible to ensure there is no temptation for the soul to linger on this side of the world. 

One of the first raised stone platforms that I encountered on the east side of the river was the site of a special ritual.  Cremation are held as soon as possible after all family members have the opportunity to view the body. In past times this was easy to comply with since families remained largely intact - tied to the land or village.  However today families, of all castes, are often separated by miles, kilometers, mountains, national borders, rivers, lakes, and even oceans.  There are thousands Nepalese Hindus living and working in countries such as Bhutan, the Middle East, and further afar.  Often they are not able to promptly return upon the death of a family member.  In such circumstances, the cremation is conducted, and the family member returns when they can to perform a special offering to honor the departed person.

I stopped and witnessed such a special offering ritual.  According to my guide, the man's father or mother had died and had been cremated.  The son had been unable to attend the cremation, he had returned now and with the assistance of a Hindu priest was making a special offering.

The man had shaved all of his hair from his head except for a small tuft at the upper backside of his skull.  He had also modestly removed his shoes, socks, pants, undergarments, and shirt and placed a loose white garment around his waist.  White is the color of mourning for Hindus rather than black.

The ritual was quite involved with many bowls, and containers.  Marigolds, water, rice, incense, plant leaves, and paper money were involved.  The marigold petals, rice, and water were at various points during the ritual sprinkled onto the head of the mourning man and flicked into the air.

It was a very moving and interesting ritual - a ritual that I did not understand, but a ritual that I will learn more about when I return to Nepal someday, someday soon.

Corpse is carried by males to the cremation site.  Rice is sprinkled on the pyre.

The caste system no longer exists in Nepal.  It was made illegal in 1962.  That is the way things are supposed to be and then there is the reality of the way things actually are.  Although the caste system was legislated away in 1962, there are clear and strongly defined economic stratification as well as class distinctions in Nepal society today.  These distinctions and stratification can be witnessed even in the cremation of bodies at Pashupatinath.

The Bagmati River is crossed by two pedestrian bridges.  South of the bridges, is where the common people are cremated.  North of the bridges, where the royals were cremated, is where the rich are cremated.

The body on a bamboo litter is carried around the pyre three times

Bodies to be cremated are carried by men on stretchers or handcrafted bamboo litters from the north to the south where the appropriate pyre platforms are located.  The bodies have been washed and prepared for cremation elsewhere.  They are wrapped in white except for the head.  An easily removable cloth covers the face of the deceased.  Garlands of marigolds cover the body.  Marigolds, saffron yellow, are considered pure whereas the corpse is considered to be impure.  The cremation, a ritual of fire, is a purification rite.  After the corpse is carried three times clockwise around the funeral pyre, the garlands are removed and used to decorate the funeral pyre.  The body is placed on the funeral pyre with the head pointed north - north, the direction of the dead.

Female relative pays respect

The cremation ritual is lead by by the eldest son.  If the eldest son is not available, the next oldest son will perform the duties.  If the deceased person did not have any sons, the responsibility will pass over to the eldest male relative on the patriarchal side of the family.  Daughters or any other females do not perform the ritual.

Eldest male relative, most likely son, supervises the ritual

As part of the cremation ritual, the eldest male places a rice ball, pinda, is placed in the mouth of the deceased to provide nourishment to the spirit for the journey from this this world.

Offerings and fire are carried around the funeral pyre

As part of the ritual, family members circle the body and place offerings of sandalwood kindling on the body.  Holy water from the Bagmati River, just beneath the cremation platform, is sprinkled by hand over the deceased person's body.

Holy Water from the Bagmati River is sprinkled upon the body

Cremation worker builds a funeral pyre

Eldest male relative completes building the funeral pyre

The eldest male, typically the son, completes the construction of the pyre on top of the body and lights the funeral pyre at the mouth of the deceased person.  It is believed that the spirit leaves the body through the mouth.  Starting the cremation fire at the mouth ensures that the spirit is purified as it exits.  Once the fire has commenced straw dampened with water from the river is placed upon the pyre to create a cloaking smoke of the cremation.

Smoke begins to rise from a funeral pyre 

As the funeral fire starts dampened straw is added to the pyre

Pashupatinath cremation scene

Eldest male washes and dismantles the bamboo litter

Smoke from wet straw rises above funeral pyre

Cremation worker tends the pyre

Relatives sit vigil as body is cremated

Ghat located north of the two pedestrian bridges is prepared for a wealthy person DSC 3019

West ghats are cleansed with water from the sacred Bagmati River DSC 3030

Each cremation is but a part of the mosaic of life along the Bagmati River.  Next to ongoing cremation rituals, the funeral workers, members of the lowest caste, build the pyres out of logs in preparation the next cremation that will happen with certainty. For cremations, where the mourners the mourners have left other than for some male relatives maintain a vigil, other funeral workers tend to the fires with long poles to ensure that all the remains are consumed by the purifying fire.  The two pedestrian bridges are jammed and lined with people - Nepalese as well as foreigners witnessing it all and photographing it all.  Behind the pyres, in the areas accessible only to Hindus, people can be scene entering shrines and temples as part of practicing their faith. The hillside on the east side of the river is covered with tourists congregating about the Sadhhus who are to found amongst the shrines to Shiva.  Further up the hillside, families are enjoying the view of it all from an overlook while enjoying snacks and beverages from the refreshment stand.  Life continues with the players all playing their roll of the moment and often oblivious to the others.

 I will return again to Kathmandu to witness and document the Hindu funerals but more importantly, to better understand the details and nuances of the ritual.  My wife will accompany me this time and I look forward to sharing with her the source of many of the rituals that she practices in her Theravada Buddhist faith.  Although she is Buddhist, her faith includes many Animist as well as Hindu precepts and practices.

All though we are often oblivious to each other and the ways along with beliefs of others, it is through travel that we will discover and commence to understand that we are actually all connected.

What Becomes of Cremains In Isaan

In a person's life there are many questions, some that will never be answered.  They say that there is no such thing as a stupid or even a silly question.  However, some questions have more importance and significance than others.

Fifty-one years ago, in 1965, Jimmy Ruffin, in his hit song "What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted?" wondered about what happened to people who experience a common condition for people of all ages, backgrounds, economic status, and cultures.  I don't know if he ever got an answer or if there is even an answer to what becomes of the broken hearted.  I do know that from the lyrics of the song, he had the proper attitude and an adequate coping mechanism - "I know I've got to find some piece of mind, I'll be searching everywhere, Just to find someone to care"

Here in Isaan, I have attended 18 funeral rituals.  Up until the last funeral ritual, September 10th, my personal experience ceased with the smoke rising from the cremation furnace with all attendees departing the Wat for the family home for some more drinking and eating. It has often crossed my mind as to "What happens to the cremains of the beloved departed?"

Bone Washing Ritual

My next involvement or experience with the departed or more specifically the remains of the departed, was at Songkran when the family would gather together to wash the bones of the dead.  During the bone washing ritual, small bone fragments that are stored in a small container called a ghoat are rinsed with water in a special ritual.

The amount of bones retained by the family is a small amount and does not contain ashes from the cremation of the body.  I knew that the cremation process had to produce more bone fragments than were stored in the ghoats and definitely a significant amount of ash.  I asked Duang about it and she had told me that the other bone fragments and ash were buried on the Wat grounds.

It was not until two weeks ago, that I got to experience as Paul Harvey used to say "the rest of the story"

With the exception of Monks, the bodies of people are typically cremated around 2 or 3 PM.  The next morning starting at 7:00AM the cremains are retrieved by the Monks often with involvement by family members.

Following Duang's advise, I got up at 3:30 AM and arrived at the Wat inside of Thasang Village around 5:00 AM - before the Monks had woken up.  I arrived so early that even the Wat dogs had not woken up yet!  It was pitch black outside so I had to very cautiously walk across the mud from my truck to the concrete landing of the stairs leading up to the bot (ordination hall).  After awhile the Wat dogs woke and sensed my presence.  They were not pleased at all and aggressively let me know as well as the nearby villagers.  Wat dogs do not have a reputation as  bad as their cousins - junkyard dogs but they can be intimidating.  I hurriedly opened the metal gate across the stairway, quickly shut the gate behind me and ascended the stairs to the bot.  From my safe perch on the porch of the bot, I looked down upon the gang of Wat dogs and gave them the evil eye as the sky lightened up in the east with the rising sun obscured by heavy threatening cloud cover.

Around 6:00 AM the Monks arose and upon reassuring the Wat dogs that all was alright in this world, peace and calm returned to the Wat.  I vacated my sanctuary in the bot and joined the Monks at ground level around the crematorium.  I learned that the ritual would commence at 7:00 AM.

Duang arrived with a car full of people - the Monk and her friends from the Wat near our home.  She was shortly joined by her son, daughter and their families as well as family members and friends.

The ritual started with the Abbot of the Wat opening the doors of the furnace and checking things out.  Everything was apparently in good order, so he instructed Duang's son to proceed.  Duang's son used a long metal handled hoe to push the ash and remains through the grating of the heavy metal cremation bed down through the furnace to a couple sheets of recycled corrugated metal at the base of the furnace.

With the help of his sister's boyfriend, Duang's son pulled the cremation carriage out from the interior of the furnace.  With stiff handcrafted brooms and under the supervision of the Abbbott, they brushed ash and dust from the carriage onto the floor of the furnace and then down the natural draft duct to the corrugated metal below.  Ash and dust wafted into the air forcing the young men to occasionally back off to catch their breadths and clear their throats.

Luang Tong Points Out Some Missed Ash

With the carriage and topside of the furnace acceptably clean, the young men and Monks descended the stairs of the furnace, walked around to the base at the backside of the furnace.

Duang's son pulled the sheets of corrugated metal covered with his father's remains from underneath the furnace through the natural draft opening at the back of the furnace.

Using some large freshly fashioned chopsticks cut from some nearby bamboo, the Monks sifted through the ash and still glowing embers of the funeral pyre to recover bone fragments.  Once the Monks had selected and set aside the largest fragments, family and friends took up positions around the corrugated metal to complete the search for bone fragments.

Family Recovering Bone Fragments From Cremains

The recovered bone fragments were placed off to the side on top of a recycled piece of the fine plastic mesh that is placed upon the ground to recover rice kernels during the threshing process.  There were not that many bone fragments and they were all rather small - under 5 to 6 inches long.  Readily identifiable fragments were vertebrae, ulna, radius, ribs, a very small skull patch and a ball joint from a knee, elbow, or ankle.  The collected bones and mesh were formed into a ball and dipped 5 times into a plastic bucket of water.  The five dips signify the moral code of five precepts that Buddhist laypeople take:

     Refrain from harming living things
     Refrain from taking what is not given
     Refrain from sexual misconduct
     Refrain from lying and gossip
     Refrain from taking intoxicating substances

After the bones had been washed they were carefully and reverently placed inside of an ordinary plain clay pot and covered with a white muslin cloth secured with a sacred string (sai sin) wrapped three times around the neck of the pot - three times being symbolic of the three gems of Buddhism - "Buddha", "the Teachings of Buddha", and the Buddhist Religious Community (Sanga).

The pot of bones were then taken and presented to the Monks who were seated in a single line on sahts placed upon the ground off to the side of the assembled family. The bones were presented by an uncle who besides having been a Monk earlier in his life also received additional special training making him a "tapakhao"  Started with the Abbott of the Wat, and then the visiting Monk, Luang Tong, each of the Monks poured water into the pot containing the bones. The act of pouring water in this case was not to cleanse the bones before them.  The act of pouring the water was the act of transference of merit to the departed spirit.

After the last Monk had poured water on the bones, a Brahman performed an offering ritual to the Monks.

The clay pot containing the bone fragments as well as water from the Monks was brought to the area where the family was seated on sahts placed on the ground.  The water was decanted from the clay pot into another container.  A woman selected specific fragments from the pot for placement in a ghoat next to the pot and eventual interment in a tat on the Wat grounds.



Selecting Fragments To Be Stored in the Ghoat

 At this point, the family placed many small yellow candles amongst the ashes and embers remaining on the recycled corrugated metal sheets.  The offering plate from the just concluded ritual with the Monks was also placed on the metal sheets.

Duang's son and some other male family members went off to the edge of the Wat grounds behind the furnace and dug a small hole in the area where deceased people's last possessions are burned as part of the cremation ritual.  The clay pot with bone fragments was placed into the hole followed by the ashes and embers from the metal sheets.  The contents of the offering plate were then placed into the hole followed by the pouring of drinking water from a plastic bottle.  The hole was then filled with dirt.  The ritual was over.

A mystery of the Universe had not been solved but for me, my question of what becomes of cremains here in Isaan had been answered.  As for Jimmy Ruffin's question of what becomes of the broken hearted ... I have been there and done that.  The answer is their life moves on, their life changes, and if they are fortunate, they do find someone who cares along with peace of mind.

Pouring of Coconut Water; Pouring of Water

Prepared Green Coconuts

After a relatively long spell, we attended three funerals in the past week.  To some it may seem that I may be chasing funerals for photographic opportunities.  That is not true, family obligations and community obligation to attend funerals gives me plenty of photography opportunities.

Funerals here in Isaan, Northeast Thailand, amongst the ethnic Lao people are milestone life events.  The Theravada Buddhist funeral ritual is  comprised of many rites, traditions, and offerings - all intended to free the spirit of the deceased person, prepare the spirit for the journey to a new world, and help the spirit to come back to a better life upon reincarnation.

The ritual is a combination and adaptation of rites from the Animist, Brahmin (pre-Hindu), and Buddhist belief systems.

Preparing Green Coconuts for Funeral Ritual

One of the last rites of the ethnic Lao Loum (Lowland Lao) funeral, just before rolling the consumable coffin containing the body into the cremation furnace, is to cleanse and purify the corpse by pouring fresh green coconut water over it.

Off to the side of the cremation furnace, while the Monks and laypeople are participating in merit making rituals in the sala, worship hall, a man or sometimes men prepare green coconuts to pour the water that they contain on the corpse.  Using heavy sugar cane knives, the people take three to four slices off of the bottom of the thick fibrous husk of the coconut.  This allows the coconuts to sit flat on the ground and ultimately on the concrete floor of the platform to the doors of the furnace.

After the bottom of the coconuts are flattened. several slices ate taken off the top of the coconut to expose the top of the actual nut buried beneath the husk.  The point of the knife is then used to open up a small hole from which the water will exit.  The prepared coconuts are carried up the side stairway to the furnace platform and placed off to the side of the head of the coffin.

The Abbott along with Ex-Husband of  the Deceased Woman About to Pour Coconut Water

At the conclusion of merit making ritual in the sala, the senior designated Monk leads the Monks up the front stairway to the head of the coffin.  Laypeople remove the tin light weight cover from the consumable coffin.  The senior Monk inspects and supervises the preparation of the corpse for cremation.  At his direction, the string bindings at the wrists, ankles, and waist are severed using either a sugar cane knife or sickle.  The cloth, typically either a wash cloth or hand towel is also removed fro the face of the corpse.

The senior Monk then pours coconut water over the body starting from the head down to the feet.  He is followed by other Monks from the local wat or wats.  The Monks who follow the senior Monk share coconuts between themselves to ensure that each is able to pour coconut water on the body.

Part of the contingent of Monks are male members of the immediate family.  On the day of cremation, sons, some nephews, grandsons, and some uncles will have their heads and eyebrows shaved to become Monks for the day.  The relatives, earlier in the day, had gone through a simplified ordination ritual to be able to participate as Monks to earn merit for themselves and more importantly for the deceased person.

Closely following the Monks are members of the immediate family - each pouring some coconut water on the body.  Some family members will gently and lovingly rub the water over face while wishing the spirit good luck on its journey and subsequent rebirth.

Cleansing the Spirit with Coconut Water

When there is no longer any coconut water available to pour over the corpse, ordinary water is scooped out of a nearby bucket using a bowl or a glass to pour over the body.

Pouring Ordinary Water Over the Body

The pouring of coconut water is a very important aspect of the Lao Loum funeral ritual.  It is believed that since the water is contained in a nut surrounded by a thick husk from high up in a tree, the water is considered pure - unlike the water from the ground. The coconut water is believed to cleanse and purify the spirit for its journey to another world.

From my 8 years of exposure to the ethnic Lao culture, I would say that the banana plant, bamboo, sticky rice, and the coconut are essential to Lao Loum society.  The pouring of coconut water over the corpse is symbolic of the hope that the spirit will be reborn in a place that is fertile and with sufficient water to grow rice.  Since coconut water is enjoyed by many of the Lao Loum people and is recognized for it thirst quenching ability, the pouring also is symbolic of nourishing and refreshing the spirit for its journey.

Pouring of ordinary water also symbolizes the wishes of the people for the spirit to be reborn in a fertile land suitable for rice cultivation.

For the Buddhists, there can be no life without first death.  The funeral ritual and the Theravada Buddhist attitude towards death reinforce and affirm the beliefs of  impermanence and the opportunity to help the departed in their journey to enlightenment.