The Singing Monks of Isaan

Monk Singing His Role As A "Father" - At This Point A " Dead Father" In A Dream

I have had the elements of this blog organized in my mind for almost a month now.  The combination of a desire to complete editing and post processing all the photographs associated with this blog entry along with some inexplicable reticence to finalize the blog have delayed me until today.

Today, as it turns out, was worth waiting for.  As you can tell from the title this blog entry is about singing Monks - Buddhist Monks.  Most people are familiar with the chanting of many sects of Christian Monks.  Back in the 1960's there was a famous "Singing Nun". On the cable news today there was story about an Italian Monk who has signed a recording contract.  Buddhist Monks are renowned for their chanting.  On the Internet you can find many videos and mp 3 recordings of Buddhist Monks chanting.

Buddhist Monks singing?  I suspect that not many people are familiar with Buddhist Monks singing.  If you research on the Internet you will undoubtedly quite easily find that Monks are not supposed to sing.  Well there are many things that Buddhists as well as Buddhist Monks should or should not do. The practical application and inclusion of local customs and practices make defining Buddhist practices in short universal statements difficult.  Think in terms of a house - the foundations of homes are basically the same.  The functions of a house are the same.  However there are many different appearing structures built upon a foundation to serve the function of a house.

I have written several times about rituals or elements of rituals that although they were performed by Buddhists and in some cases in which Buddhist Monks participated, they were not part of Buddhism.  The  tying of strings around the wrists of laypeople, the sprinkling of holy water on laypeople, the wearing of amulets, idols, talisman  and use of fireworks are all vestiges of earlier animist and Hindu beliefs and practices to the local cultures which are Buddhist today. Buddhism is an an tremendously tolerant "religion" in that these practices are not condemned but assimilated and accepted into the Buddhist practice for they give the local people confidence and inspiration to continue along on their Buddhist path.

Last month we attended a special merit making event in Tahsang Village for some of my wife's relatives.  The special merit making ritual is difficult to describe in a few words - it is essentially a big party to mark the death of a relative.  The party is not to celebrate the death per se but it is an occasion to assist the spirit of the departed on its journey to its next life by making offerings to and for the spirit as well as the local Monks.

These events are quite common here in Isaan.  Theoretically these events are held around one year after the person has died.  But the reality is they are held when the family can financially afford to pay or finance them.  For the event we attended last month, Duang's Aunt was holding the event for her husband who died 10 years ago and for her mother who died 20 years ago.  Due to the cost of such events they are some times combined with another occasion which requires a big "celebration".   In the case of  Duang's Aunt last month, her son was also becoming a Monk.  The event lasts all day and all night with it completing the next day.

We arrived in the morning to participate in the offering of food to the Monks and cutting of Duang's nephew's hair in preparation to becoming a Monk. In the early afternoon  three throne like chairs were set up underneath the main canopy.  These golden intricately carved wood chairs are used for Monks to sit cross legged upon while reading or lecturing the scriptures.  However on that day, I learned that they are also used for another purpose - for Monks to sit in while they sing.

After the chairs had been set up, three Monks that I had never seen before arrived.  These Monks brought their own microphones, amplifiers, mixing boards, and computers.  They even had a young man to set it up for them.  I knew that I was about to learn something new.

From Duang, I learned that these Monks were from another village and they go and put on a "show" for people.  The "show" turned out to be a morality play - a play about life and Buddhist family values.  One Monk played the part of a father.  The second Monk played the part of a son.  The third Monk, the youngest played the part of the mother.  Most of the performance was song with dialogue providing transitions between the songs.

According to Duang we were witnessing "Nangmakao".  A performance usually takes 4 hours. Due to the need to parade through the village as part of the Monk Ordination ritual later in the afternoon, this performance was cut down to three hours.  It is a story about a mother, father, grown-up son, and grown-up daughter. The daughter is "no-good" in that she talks bad to her parents and does not take care of her parents.  "Take care" involves financially, and materially supporting your parents. It runs the gamut from giving them money each month to cooking and cleaning as necessary to keep your parents well.  In the Lao Loum culture the burden of this is the responsibility of the youngest daughter but expected of all the children.  So in this story the daughter is especially bad - not respecting and taking care of her parents and not doing it as the youngest daughter.  The son on the other hand is a good person.  He takes care of his parents.  The songs deal with what the daughter does not do and should do.  The songs from each family member's perspective deals with their sadness and disappointment that the daughter does not have a "good heart".

A Monk. in the role of "Mother" Cries About Her Children

As part of the morality play, the son dreams that his mother and father die.  The spirits of his deceased parents want food and money for their journey to the next life but are not able to get them.  The son, who was a good son but not a perfect son, is devastated at the loss of his parents.  He laments the times that he did not respect them and the fights that he had with his father.  The mother cries as she sings about all the times her children did not visit her and take care of her. The father is more angry in his singing and laments about how sad and how much the mother cries because of the children.  Despite the son and daughter being wealthy, the father sings that they do not want to take care of their parents apparently telling them to go away like dogs in the street to get food  This is definitely not nice in any culture - for sure!

The son wakes up from his dream and kind of reads the riot act to his sister about taking care of their parents.  The daughter turns a new leaf and starts to pray to Buddha every day and takes care of her parents like she is supposed to  do.  The son also takes care of his parents and becomes an even better son.

The songs are sung in the style of traditional Mahlam Lao but without any musical accompaniment.  The songs are sung with a great deal of warbling and tonal range.  This link is one of the songs that the Monks sang but without the instrumental accompaniment.   http://youtu.be/OnoSvHUVHGo

As the Monks performed, laypeople would approach them, and place money offerings to the Monks in the cloth bag that hung from each golden throne.  The Monks would then place "Saikaen" in the offering plate for the layperson.  "Saikaen" are braided string bracelets over which the Monks have recited scriptures and chanted over.  They are worn by people for good luck and fortune.  They are dropped on an offering plate to ensure that Monks have no physical contact with women.  For larger offerings to Monks or from a Monk, the object is first placed on a folded cloth which the recipient will then pull towards them to accept the offering.

Duang Accepts "Saikaen" From Singing Monk

At the beginning of the performance, two trays of food and drink were placed on the raised platform where the Monks had been previously seated.  The food and drink were offerings to the spirits of the deceased husband and deceased mother of Duang's aunt.

At the conclusion of the Nangmakao, a special merit making ritual was performed for the benefit of the two departed spirits.  Laypeople burned Joss Sticks as the Monks chanted about the spirits going up rather than hanging around now that they have been given food, money, and the Monks have taken care them

Merit Making Ritual for the Departed Spirits.

There was not a dry eye underneath the canopy - it was quite emotional and sad.

I earned some merit too, not necessarily in terms of the Buddhist religion, but with my in-laws when Duang noticed and pointed out to everyone that I was crying too as I was taking photographs.

It was a very moving experience.  The youngest Monk, who played the role of the Mother, gave Duang his card.  I told her that when I died I wanted them to do their singing for me but I was not planning on it being any time soon.  I also had Duang tell him that if she died before me, I would become a Monk and he and I could go to all the villages to make people cry with our singing.  We all had a good laugh.

Spirit Houses Constructed for Merit Making Ritual

The next morning the spirit houses specially constructed for the departed people along with the money offerings, rice, sahts (woven reed mats), mons (pillows) and other offerings collected from the laypeople would be paraded through the village on their way to be presented to the local Monks on behalf of the departed spirits as well as donors.

Last weekend, we attended in Nongdaeng Village another ritual for the spirit of a departed relative.  The most recent ritual was for the death of a mother 5 years ago.  This event also included singing Monks but different ones than at the December ritual.  This time there was also the full 4 hour version of the "Nangmakao".  Once again it was a very interesting, and moving experience.

Monk Singing "Father" Role of Nangmakao in Nongdaeng Village

Our grandson, Peelawat who will be 4 years old next month, seemed to enjoy the performance.  He split up his time on my lap, as I took photographs, and on Duang's lap where she instructed him in worshiping   He also got to eat ice cream and drink Coke so he was happy the entire four hours.

Peelawat learning to Chant In Pali

A Monk Singing As Part of Merit Making Ritual

Family Making Offerings to Spirit of Their Grandmother

Food Offerings for the Spirit

So although Monks are not supposed to sing, apparently the local custom in Isaan allows them to sing in order to instruct the Lao Loum laypeople the teachings of Buddha and to assist people to make merit for the departed.

This is the way that life is here in Isaan.

There is always something new to witness and learn even if you think that you have seen it all.

Things are not always the way they seem or as simple as they appear at first.

There are many levels of understanding and as you delve deeper into the details of the culture, the richer the world around you becomes and the fuller your life becomes.

There is no need for any of us to watch a "reality show", for real life is waiting for each one of us if we but open our eyes, ears, and mind.

The Beat of a Different Drum

Two nights ago, we attended a a traditional Mahlam Lao show in Nongdaeng Village located here in Isaan, the Northeast of Thailand.  The show which started at 21:00 would run until 03:00 or 04:00 - that it is the way it is here in the Lao Loum culture.  The people work hard and when they decide to party, it is an all out, no holds barred event.  I experienced the same spirit the two times that I lived and worked in Brasil.

The show was part of the merit making event to mark the death of one one Duang's relatives some twenty years ago.  In the Lao Loum culture here in Isaan, there is a merit making ritual after a person has been cremated.  This ritual which can and is often viewed as a party is typically about one year after the cremation but the real determining factor is when the family is capable of paying for the event.

The event is very much like the celebrations for a son becoming a Monk, or a couple getting married.  Canopies are erected in the front yard or if the front yard is not large enough - in the street in front of the family home.  Round tables and plastic chairs are set up beneath the canopies at which guests can eat and drink.  Underneath one of the canopies accommodations are made for the visit from the Monks - do to their status, Monks are seated at a higher level than the laypeople.  This most typically accomplished by erecting an elevated wood platform reserved for the Monks.  The platform in covered in cloth and sahts (woven reed mats).  Small squares of higher value fabrics or decorated textiles designate the area for each Monk to sit.

Sometimes if a special merit making service is to be conducted, such as a sermon, or what I refer to as a "morality play", the participating Monks are seated in an ornate gold colored raised throne like chair where they can sit with their legs crossed.

Off to the side and in back of the home there are canopies for preparing and cooking food for all the guests. People typically arrive around 08:00 and will stay until 20:00 or even much later if there is a show associated with the celebration.  For the entire time, people are eating and drinking.  Each table, at a minimum, typically has a 1.5 liter bottle of Coke, 1.5 liter bottle of Sprite, a couple bottles of drinking water, a couple bottles of Leo Beer, and perhaps a bottle of whiskey with "Lao Lao" being the type of choice.  Young girls ensure that there is plenty of ice at each table for the soft drinks, and beer.  People here drink their beer "on the rocks" and their whiskey "neat" or "straight up".  Empty bottles are quickly replaced.

As new guests arrive, they are quickly ushered to a table to be start eating and drinking.  The food is ethnic cuisine and typical consists of 7 or 8 dishes or rather different items.  There is a difference between "dishes" and 'items"  many of the foods are eaten with the hand so there may not be an individual dish for each guest. The guests will make a small ball of sticky rice in their hand and dip the ball in a common bowl of whatever at the center of the table.  Often soups are consumed from a common bowl at the table with each guest having their own spoon.

The celebration that we attended on the 12th was a grand event.   After the day events we returned to our home to freshen up and get some rest for the night's activities.  We returned for the night show.

The night show was a more traditional Lao music event.  The music was based upon the ubiquitous Lao musical instrument, the khene.  The singing was a sort of Lao rap except that for the most part there were no set lyrics.  The performer made up or rather adlibbed the words to suit the occasion or moment.  The singing style is also long and drawn out with a great deal of warbling as well as tonal range - again very Lao.

Besides the khene, the music is performed by conga type drums, and cymbals.  This is the accompaniment that you would find in traditional Lao villages.  In a concession to evolving times and mores, the group also had a couple of electric guitars, keyboard, and drum set for some of their songs. There were also four go-go dancers.

I was most impressed by the traditional drummer playing the two conga style drummers.  He was a show  unto himself.  I almost took as many pictures of him as I did of the go-go dancers.

The drummer had a distinctive face.  His age and face reflected a life of many experiences and I suspect more than a few adventures.  He performed on the drums with a zest and confidence that a lifetime of experience allows - confidence, uniqueness, and individuality.

I have written most recently twice about little "Eat" from Tahsang Village marching to the beat of a different drummer.  I had also mentioned that as a person who has marched and sometimes danced to the beat of a different drum, I had appreciation for little "Eat".  Well at the night show I found a man who marched, danced, and even played a beat to a different drum.  What could be better than that?  Imagine being comfortable and confident enough to march and dance enthusiastically to your beat on your own drum.  That truly must be a component of being "free".

Kissing the Drums In Appreciation

The drummer danced around his drums playing them with his hand and striking their sides with a drum stick.  The drums bore the scars of many a performance.

Playing the Drum With His Forehead

As part of his performance the drummer also would strike the drums with his forehead.  At other times he would "dry hump" his drums.

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He would also, on occasion, direct a pelvic thrust towards one of go-go dancers, perhaps all four of them.

Mahlam Lao shows are akin to vaudeville shows - singing, dancing, stand up comedy, music, and always a definite bawdy element.  Many of the jokes at best are double entendre and many times risque.  Many of the lyrics song between the male and female singers have to do with things of a sexual nature.  Sometimes the  female singer will try to grab the male singer by his genitals but seems to always not to succeed much to the delight of the crowd.  The male will sing about what he would like to do and can do to the female singer.  He will sometimes bend down to try to get a better glimpse of her but she always manages to foil his efforts - again the amusement of the crowd.  The antics are never obscene and often remind me of how close friends and family after a few drinks might joke and tease each other.

The Audience Loving the Show

The drummer was demonstrating his freedom to be himself.  It was comforting as well as reassuring to me to see that such diversity in culture still exists and to know that in areas such as Isaan are thriving.

There seems to be pressure in these modern times to develop a more homogeneous mankind perhaps in the belief that the more people are alike, the less conflict there will be. That scares me for it is the diversity of mankind and especially their culture that adds to the richness of living - for everyone.

There is no one culture that has the optimal solutions or even answers for all peoples.

There is no culture, let alone any society, that can best meet the needs and wishes of all peoples.

Seeing the drummer the other night - marching, dancing, and playing to the different beat of his own drum, gave me optimism that we hopefully will never get to "One World"

In "Allen's World" I am free to be me but even more importantly, you are free to be you.

Wai Khru Ram Muay

 

 

In yesterday's blog, I wrote about the students of Tahsang Village performing "Wai Khru Ram Muay".

The complexity, beauty, and hypnotic nature of the ritual is dificult for me to describe in words.  I know that my description of the music as being like "snake charmer" music did not do it much justice.

Today I found a very good clip on Youtube that shows a Wai Khru Ram Muay performed by three fighters.  In a Muay Thai match, the Wai Khru Ram Muay would be performed inside of the ring by the two fighters after they had first entered the ring and paid respects to each of the corners of the ring.  In a Muay Thai match, the fighters may or may not perform their Wai Khru Ram Muay at the same time or in unison. Their movements are highly individualized but share common elements.  Besides paying respect to Buddha, their teachers, their trainers, their country, there is a certain psychological intimidation element to the Wai Khru Ram Muay.

The link to the Youtube video is below:

http://www.youtube.com/embed/OPK5JtxjIM0

Our four year old grandson, Peelawat, performs his own versions of the Wai Khru Ram Muay; I suspect it is something that he has picked up from the older boys at school.  This weekend, I will share this video along with some others of Wai Khru Ram Muay with him and show him a special movement - "Chang" (elephant).

Duang and I attended a match in Pattaya.  The fighters were performing their Wai Khru Ram Muay when one of the fighters went to his knees bent his forehead to the mat and rose his torso upright with his right arm and hand placed at his chin to simulate an elephant's trunk - the place went crazy.  I have practiced the movement ever since and now that he is four, I will pass it along to Peelawat.

I think that it is going to be another great weekend.

Tahsang Village School Sports Day

 

 The end of December, in Thailand, is a special time.  It is a special time, not because of Christmas for the country is 97% Buddhist, but because it is the time of the year when schools conduct their Sports Day(s).

Twice before my wife and I have attended Sport Days that Tahsang Village School has participated in.  This year was an even more special time for the students of the school; their school was hosting the event.

The Sport Day is actually conducted over five days with the last day being like a mini Olympics between competing village schools - complete with opening ceremony, dance routine, and an Olympic flame. Four local schools for children 3 years old to 15 years old were participating in the grand event.

We drove out to Tahsang Village early on Friday 28 December in order to watch the parade of the students from Tahsang Village the short distance to the school at the perimeter of the village.

Some Tahsang Village School Students Awaiting Their Marching Orders

 Each of the competing schools had their individual assembly points along the main street in Tahsang Village. Each school had their students dress in the school uniform.  Within each individual school has a distinctive uniform for their students based upon their age group.  As seems only fitting, the youngest students were at the front of the school's contingent. As is befitting of any marching group. the schools contingent were lead by a drum major or much prettier Isaan version of a drum major.

Bem and Friend Ready to Lead Tahsang Village School Students

The older girls who lead their school's students are dressed in outfits, or rather costumes that the school had rented from a shop in nearby Kumphawapi. Here in Isaan, people are not wealthy and surely do not have money to buy specialized clothing that would wear only a couple of times a year.  Instead of buying, people will rent certain clothing for special events such as this or a wedding.  Many people will rent very beautiful and classy clothing for their wedding.  There are also costumes that are fit for royalty of a long gone era.  There are also costumes that you often see in entertainment establishments in Pattaya, Bangkok, or Phuket.

Bem Leads Her Fellow Students On To the Field

Some of the schools had some of their older girls dressed in traditional Isaan clothing while others had their students carrying the flags of the ASEAN nations along with students dressed in traditional clothing of the peoples of the ASEAN members. The ASEAN member states are Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Brunei, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, and Philippines. They are a regional association that hopes to evolve into a European Union type organization.  The absence of China in the group leads me to suspect that this group is associating as an economic as well as political balance to China in the region.

After the schools had assembled on the field of competition, there was a ceremony to raise the Thai flag, firing of three fireworks, opening speeches, lighting of the Olympic flame or rather the lighting of the pot of charcoal and finally an awards presentation.

Duangchan was awarded a certificate of appreciation by Tahsang Village School for her support and contributions during 2012.  Duang had attended the school for four years but had to leave to help support the family by working in the fields when she was ten years old.  Besides the current students being relatives and friends from the village, I suspect that Duang enjoys being able to help others.  She contributes milk, food, and snacks to the students for special events.   It was nice to see her generosity and support for the students recognized.

Tahsang Village Students Perform Wai Khru Ram Muay

Just as for the opening of the Olympics there was a dance routine for the Sports Day. As hosts for the event, Tahsang Village was responsible for the routine.  They did a fantastic job!  Tahsang Village School has 48 students and I believe all of them participated in the routine. The students wore their blue and red uniforms accessorized with a red headband invoking the mongkhon worn by actual Muay Thai fighters.  The students preformed a stylized "Wai Khru Ram Muay".  The Wai Khru Ram Muay is a warm up activity resembling a dance prior to competing in a Muay Thai match.  Besides preparing the fighter physically and mentally, it demonstrates respect for the teachers and the trainers of Muay Thai.  It is accompanied by unique music which reminds me of the music you hear in old movies where a snake charmer is performing.  For me, the Wai Khru Ram Muay is the best part of most matches.  The movements and music are hypnotic and steeped with a long history.  The students performed it very well.

The Wai Khru Ram Muay is an individualized activity with each fighter selecting the movements to demonstrate his skills as well as personality.  The activity by the Tahsang Village students was meant to be a choreographed routine performed in unison.  To the most part it succeeded in that intent.  However as the saying goes, "There is one in every crowd".

I had left the sidelines and walked to the middle of the field to get some better close up photographs of the students.  As I approached the back side of the performing students, three year old "Eat" broke from formation and re positioned himself directly in front of me.  Then in perhaps in a more genuine display of respect for the tradition of the Wai Khru Ram Muay broke into his own set of moves with huge amount of enthusiasm and unbridled joy.

"Eat" Performing His Own Wai Khru Ram Muay

Eat marches to the beat of a different drummer but you can always count on him marching enthusiastically.  Having marched and on occasion danced to different drummers, I appreciate both Eat's individuality and enthusiasm   I just hope that it does not get him into too much trouble!  No matter, he put on quite a show and was appreciated by the audience.

After the performance concluded. the competitions got underway.  There were running races, relay races, ping pong, volleyball, futbol (soccer), taekraw, and petanque.  There was also an unofficial competition between the schools for enthusiasm - blaring sound systems and students performing competing dance routines vied for bragging rights around the field.

No Need for Track Shoes or Even Shoes to Race In Isaan

It was obvious that many of the younger students did not understand the sports competition but that did not prevent them from enjoying themselves.  They had a good time playing with their friends from school and from the other local villages.  Perhaps best of all, they enjoyed eating and drinking.  The school had food for sales at a nominal price.  Many of the local food vendors had set up their stalls along the perimeter of the school grounds so there was ice cream, ice tea, soft drinks, grilled squid, grilled chicken (all parts), grilled pork, pauk pauk, and other local specialties for sale.  There were a couple carnival type booths for breaking balloons with darts, shooting things with a corks fired from a gun, and ring toss for prizes.  There was also a large inflated slide for children to play on.

Besides the teachers and students there were many spectators at the event. Mothers, fathers, grandparents, brothers, sisters aunts, and uncles all attended the event. They enjoyed themselves watching the children and of course - gossiping amongst themselves.  Duang's Aunt, "Momma Glasses", showed up with a full bottle of whiskey that did not remain full for long.  Everyone was enjoying themselves but then again that is what typically happens when the Lao Loum people get together.

Eat Enjoying Some Ice Cream

Too Young To Go To School, But Old Enough To Enjoy A Cucumber

Tahsang Village School has only 48 students so they did not fair all that well in the sports competition.  If the goal of the day was to win and not lose, the day was a bad day for them.  However, you could not determine that by looking at the faces of the students or the adults.  For them it was a great day, and I would have to agree, because the goal as it is every day is to enjoy life, the life that you have and not the want you would like.  They had tried their best.  They had enjoyed the company of their friends, teachers and family.
Who knows?  Maybe they will win, next year.

Tahsang Village School Fans

Planting Rice - In January?

My Sister-In-Law Planting Rice on her Land

I have photographed people in Southeast Asia planting rice many times but those times have always been in July or August.  Last week we received a phone call from Duang's older sister telling us that they would be planting rice on Friday, 4 January.  She has a small farm just outside of Tahsang Village where she and her family grow rice, sugar cane, corn, and vegetables along with raising one cow and one water buffalo. They used to have pigs raised on their land but now cultivate mushrooms. The pigs were actually being raised by a poor family from their Christian Church.  Duang's sister let the family borrow the land.  Generosity is very common in the Lao Loum culture of Isaan.

Duang's two cousins and their families have joined their parents in living on the farm now.  That is how it is in Isaan, many children take care of their parents by helping on the farm. In return they have a place to live.

We were going out to the village to bring our grandson to our home to spend the weekend so it worked in perfectly with our plans.  The truth be known, we often accommodate family activities into our plans.  Besides the enjoyment of spending time with the family, there are always plenty of interesting people as well as activities to photograph.  We quite often will get phone calls informing us of something that people think that I would be interested in taking photographs of.  The fact is that there is very little that I am not interested in taking photographs and eventually writing about.

Duang's Cousin Brings A Rack of Rice Plants Out to the Paddies

Rice planting in January?  That was going to be a first for me to photograph.  Rice is typically planted here in July.  The reason that it is typically planted in July is because of the rainy season, the monsoons and has nothing to do with temperatures.  We are now in our "cold" season.  Night time temperatures typically get down to 65 F and there have been a couple nights when it has been down to 58 F.  The day time high temperatures are around 85 F.  This is my favorite time of the year - no air conditioning, no ceiling fans, no sweating or rather "much less sweating" for me.  It is also the time of no rain.  I like that too but then again I do not grow rice.

Planting Rice Seedlings In A Prepared Flooded Paddy

Here in Isaan, rice is grown using the wet cultivation technique.  Rice seed, saved from the previous harvest, is broadcast over a prepared and flooded paddy.  The seeds sprout and form a thick green carpet.  Insecticides are used to protect the seedlings.  After about one and one half months, when the sprouts are approximately 24 inches long (61 cm), the seedlings are pulled up from their mucky bed.  About four inches (10 cm) of the top of the seedlings are cut off.  The harvested seedlings are then transplanted in a final prepared flooded paddy.  In clusters of 3 to 4 seedlings, they are pushed approximately five inches (13 cm) into the 12 inch (30 cm) deep muck of the flooded paddy.  The rice grows in the flooded paddy for three months.  The rice paddy is allowed to dry out before the rice is harvested.  The cut stalks dry in the sun for three day before they are removed from the paddy.  Rain and water are detrimental to the harvesting of the rice.

Because of the need to have water to keep the paddies flooded during the growth stage of the rice, most farmers in Isaan produce only one crop a year.  Here in Isaan the rain falls from May until late October so the growing season is from July to late October.  Farmers do not have access to the large amount of water, cheap water, to grow during the dry season from November to May.

I had not been out to my sister-in-law's farm in two years.  I was shocked at some of the changes.  The farm is located at the edge of a large floodplain. Over the past two years a slough has been constructed along the back end of the farm.   I checked with Duang and she told me that her brother-in-law hired a company to dig the big ditch and that other land owners had paid for the work done along their property lines. No building permits, environmental impact studies, or permits were required prior to doing the work.  Now there is apparently a source of water as well as a source of fish year around for those property owners.  Duang's family is taking advantage of the new supply of plentiful and cheap water to grow a second crop of water.

My Brother-In-Law Planting With New Floodplain  Berm In the Background

For me besides the opportunity to take some family photos of rice planting, the day offered opportunities to do some experimentation with my photography.  Since it is "cold" season, I was taking late afternoon photographs. There was no need to avoid the heat of the day.  Since the shortest day of the year was less than a month ago, the late afternoon Sun is also lower in the sky than it is in July.  The quality of light now as well as the brilliant blue sky give elements for more interesting photographs of an activity that I have photographed many times before.

Working Together In the Late Afternoon

The great opportunities for photographs also presented challenges - especially for the automated functions of today's high tech digital cameras.  Modern cameras can take acceptable photographs by determining the aperture based upon the selection of  "film" speed and shutter speed, or by determining the shutter speed based upon the selection of "film" speed and aperture.  Many times this automation is not effective do to conditions outside of the "norm".

On the afternoon that I was going to photograph the rice planting I knew that automated functions would not work.  The bright background would cause the foreground, the people, to be too dark.  If I metered so that the people would be properly exposed, the background would be much too bright i.e. "blown out".  The background would have no detail.  There would be no blue sky, green vegetation, or rice stalks in the background. I was hoping for more dramatic effects in my photographs.

The solution to get more dramatic photographs was to go back to basics and taking the photographs the old fashioned way - manually.

I put my camera into "manual" mode, set the shutter speed high enough and aperture high enough to keep the background on the darker side and used an on camera flash with a Flashbender light modifier set to 1/4 power and also on "manual" to provide fill light for the foreground thus providing a more balanced exposed photograph.

Isaan Gothic

My Brother and Sister-In-Law

Posing Time Is Over, Time to Go Back to Work

As wonderful as modern technology and automation are, they do not always provide the best solution for every set of conditions or circumstances.  They will often provide "acceptable' results but not very often will they provide "exceptional" results.  For "exceptional" results and especially for conditions that are not "norm", the old time tested methods need to be used. Having been raised in a time and place where we were taught to seek and produce "exceptional" results, I am grateful that I still know the old ways.