The Village Furniture Maker

Furniture Maker Surfacing Recycled Wood

We got a call from the family on Saturday informing us of some big doings going on Sunday out at Duang's sister's farm outside of Thasang Village.  Duang's mother and some of the women from the village were going to commence harvesting the rice crop and her sister's brother-in-law was going to be making furniture.  They had called to let us know so that I could go out and photograph the activities.

Unfortunately Duang was occupied making pahn sii khwan centerpieces for a Monk that we know.  Since she was getting paid to make it for delivery on Monday, she could not go out to the village.  However that would not stop me ...

I arrived out at the farm around 8:45AM.  The four elderly women were already out in the paddy stooped over with sickles in had cutting the rice.  Although there was still a heavy dew upon the thick vegetation on top of the berms that serve the dual purpose of dividing the land up into paddies and function as walkways to access the paddies, the harvesting was underway.  The bright sun and 31C (91F) temperature would quickly and soon dry out the crop.

As is typical of all rice harvesters here in Isaan, the women were covered up from head to toe.  Large straw hats protected their head and face from the strong Sun.  Either a strip of homespun cotton cloth, called a "pakama" or a cotton tee shirt worn as a pseudo balaclava shielded their face and offered some filtering from dust and detritus from the harvesting.
 
After an hour, the women were still going strong cutting and laying the rice in neat flat rows to dry but the heat had gotten to me.  I carefully made my way back to the house along the tops of the berms covered with long vegetation - straining my eyes to stay on top of the berm and to avoid breaking an ankle or leg in the periodic drainage slits cut into the berms hidden by the vegetation.

Once at the house, I sat at an outside picnic bench on a covered porch to cool off and to set up my camera gear to photograph the furniture maker.

The Furniture Shop

Across from the house was a rough structure - part carport, part elevated rice storage shed and a lean to work space used for making furniture.

The furniture shop was open sided with a corrugated metal roof.  Beneath mounds of sawdust was a compacted earth floor.  Electrical power for the wood working equipment was supplied by two long extension cords connected to a box mounted on a nearby column.  Fortunately I was using battery powered speedlights so I was not going to add to the electrical load and tangle of wires  about the work space.

I was struck by several things not to mention almost tripping over many things.  I was first struck by the lack of "professional" equipment. I have been in woodworking shops and I am familiar with the various specialized pieces of  equipment associated, if not "required" for making furniture.  There were no pieces of heavy shinny pieces of equipment.  The work benches were heavy but they were made from wood - recycled wood at that.  There was a table saw but it was not a heavy metal table with metal guides and rails.  The table saw at this woodworking shop was another heavy rustic wood table that had a large hand electric saw mounted underneath it with strips of lumber along with industrial grade C-clamps used as guides for cutting.

The furniture maker was busy planing a large and thick slab of recycled teak. To smooth and flatten the surface of the slab, he used an electric hand planer rather than a separate table planer that I had seen in other woodworking shops.  Although he had draped the electric power cord over his shoulder to keep it from interfering with the motion of the device, it was apparent that there had been some previous mishaps.  There were several locations along the length of the cord that were covered with wrappings of electrical tape, frayed electrical tape in many of the locations.

The woodworker worked barefooted and wore shorts.  He did wear glasses but they were more to see his work than to protect his eyes from the sawdust and wood shavings that shot out from the hand planer.  The non-grounded, non weatherproof, non GFI protected interior rated extension cord electrical box lay on the ground.

The woodworker was not completely oblivious to safety concerns.  There came a time when he had to re-position the heavy slab on his work bench in order to better access some portions of it. I saw that he was struggling with it, so I put down my camera and started to grab an end of the slab to help move it.  He motioned to me that it was OK and that he did not need or want me to help.  He then continued and completed moving the slab by himself.  I believe that he did this out concern for safety but I don't honestly know if it was concern for my safety or his safety!

Another thing that struck me was the use of recycled wood to make furniture.  I have seen this practice before in Southeast Asia.  In Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos), I have seen several houses that had been dismantled and reassembled at a different location.  On a trip here in Isaan earlier this year along the Mekong River, I had seen several companies, sawmills, where old timbers from houses were recycled and converted into doors, windows, and milled wood.

The use of recycled wood is dictated by several factors.  The first obvious factor is economics - recycled wood is cheaper.  Another factor is supply.  Most of the recycled wood is Teak.  Teak harvesting and timber production is greatly restricted now in Southeast Asia.  The last factor is quality.  Recycled wood is dry wood and aged.  I have yet to see a kiln for drying new wood or new timber being aged.  I have seen plenty of cracked wood due to improper drying and aging.

These were the things that struck me visiting the woodworker.  As for the many things that I almost tripped over - the work place was definitely cluttered and disorganized.  Several times I stumbled and almost tripped on mounds of sawdust, scrap pieces of wood, semi-finished pieces of wood, electrical cords strewn about the ground, or bumped my head on low beams, and all types of things hanging down from the roof - a great experience that I survived unharmed.

After a short time, the furniture maker was interrupted by an elderly man.  The elderly man had come up to the house to get a drink of water and get the furniture maker to go with him down towards the water bordering the farm where a small structure was being built.  The elderly man needed help to commence attaching the recycled wood beams to the concrete piles driven into the ground.

That was the end, the end of that day. for photographing the village woodworker.  However I did get to photograph some of his finished work inside of the house.  My photography for the day was also not completed for the day - a truckload of men drove across the property towards the water and stopped a very short distance away.  It was very apparent that they were going fishing.  I followed them to the old fishing hole, actually "fishing ditch" and took several photos- but that is for a blog another day.

Home  made table and chairs

Inside of my sister-in-law's house, I photographed a table and chair set that the wood worker had made.  Like furniture in Vietnam, the furniture was heavy, very heavy.  There is no need to worry about some drunk getting angry and throwing the furniture around!  The furniture was well made and reminded me of the "craftsman" style of the 1930's in America.

In an adjoining room, I photographed a chair that reflected an even greater level of skill.

I am definitely motivated to witness and document more of the village woodworker's work.  Sunday's experience was just an appetizer to whet my appetite to experience and share unique aspects of Allen's World.

Many times here in Isaan I have marveled at the self-reliance and adaptability of the people.  Watching the village woodworker was another one of those opportunities for me to appreciate that there are more than one way to live or to get things done.

Duang often reminds me "Thailand not like Amireeka".  I have also learned that "Lao is not like America" and "Cambodia is not like America"  These are not judgemental statements or evaluative comparisons.  They are observations of the fact - the fact that people do not live alike or do things all the same way.

I admire the resourcefulness of the people.  Observing and experiencing their lives has reinforced for me the need and value of "fit for purpose" as well as "making do with what is available"

There are many ways to live, just like making furniture, and not all the ways are the same or one is not necessarily superior to another.  The key is that one's needs are met by using what is available.

Just as I have learned that the most modern and opulent facilities are not necessary to receive adequate health care, I now realize that excellent functional furniture can be created without expensive modern equipment.

I hae asked Duang to let me know when the village furniture maker will be working 1/2 or one full day at his craft - my camera is always packed and ready with my batteries charged.

It's that time of year, once again - Tonle Sap

Late Afternoon on Tonle Sap - Kampong Khleang, Cambodia

November has arrived here in Isaan.  The Monsoon Season appears to be over - we are getting more and more days without rain and more days with bright Sun and blue sky.  Our temperatures are also much more comfortable - highs in the mid 80s to low 90s with lows in the mid to low 70s.

The rice harvest will commence in a couple weeks.  It is time to travel or at least to think about travel.

Two years ago, Duang and I made a 6 day trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia.  It was our second trip to the ruins of Angkor Wat.

Our trip in November 2014 also included a return tour of Tonle Sap "The Great Lake".

Tonle Sap is the largest fresh water lake in Southeast Asia - not that this fact justifies a visit.  Tonle Sap is referred to by the Lonely Planet guide book as the "Heartbeat of Cambodia".  Personally to me, Tonle Sap is the lungs of Cambodia.  The lake provides food and irrigation water for one-half of the people in Cambodia.  Tonle Sap is connected to the mighty Mekong River - one of the greatest rivers of the world.  Tonle Sap's water level fluctuates greatly in accordance to the seasons.  In the rainy season from May to October when the Mekong is at its fullest, water flows from the Mekong into the lake.  In the dry season as the Mekong's flow diminishes, water flows from the lake into the Mekong.  Water levels in Tonle Sap range from a maximum of 2 meters (6 feet) in the dry season and to a maximum of 10 meters (32 feet) in the rainy season.  The flooding of surrounding land during the rainy season provides a great deal of food and shelter for aquatic life thereby making Tonle Sap one of the richest sources of freshwater protein in the world.  Tonle Sap is a nursery for many of the fish of the Mekong River. During the dry season fisherman average a take of 220 to 440 pounds of fish a day.

Tonle Sap grows from approximately 965 square miles in the dry season to just over 5,020 square miles in the rainy season.  The increase in area as well as increased depth presents challenges in terms of housing for the inhabitants in the area.  Man has met the challenges of Tonle Sap by building floating homes or building home atop stilts roughly 20 to 30 feet high.  It was the opportunity to witness this unique lifestyle that first attracted me to visit Tonle Sap.  Both Duang and I are interested in seeing how people live in environments and situations different from what we are accustomed to.

Our Homestay Accommodation - the house on the right

Based upon our experience during our first trip to Tonle Sap in 2007, we incorporated a home stay in the village of Kampong Khleang to better learn and understand Cambodian life on Tonle Sap.

Preparing Our Lunch In Kampong Khleang

 I had planned our last trip to Tonle Sap to coincide with the full moon and Bon Om Touk (Cambodian Water Festival).  Bon Om Touk is an annual festival held in November to celebrate the reversal of Tonle Sap water flow.  With the start of the dry season water commences to flow out of Tonle Sap into the Mekong River making up to 50% of the Mekong River flow.  During the rain season water flows from the Mekong into Tonle Sap.  The reversal of flow into the Mekong River also marks the start of commercial fishing season on Tonle Sap - the fish hatched during the rainy season, and nourished on the nutrient rich waters of the floodplains of Tonle Sap migrate into the shrinking lake and out into the Mekong River.

Tonle Sap Harvest - Selling fish to a Middleman

We spent the night with a family in Kampong Khleang.  The mother and father were teachers at a local elementary school and have three children, to girls and one boy.  Their home is built on stilts over the lake but fronts a raised dirt road about 2 feet below the house.

Kampong Khleang Neighborhood

It was quite interesting to spend a day and night with the family.  Although they did not speak English, we could see that they were nice people and concerned that we enjoyed our stay.  We appreciated their efforts to ensure that we were comfortable and found their children to be quite entertaining.

Our host's family

We slept in the large front room of the house, the room closest to the street.  Our bed was one of the hardest beds that I have ever slept on.  A mosquito net protected us throughout the night and we were not bothered by buzzing in our ears.  We were not even bothered or awoken by the three children sharing the room with us - sleeping on mats placed on the floor and protected by their own mosquito net.  The two motorbikes kept inside the large room did not make any noise but the odor of fuel permeated the air.  What kept me awake were the sounds - the sounds of dogs foraging beneath the house and along the street, the sound of cats foraging beneath the house and along the streets, the sounds of dogs and cats encountering each other, the sounds of new born babies in the houses next to our room - 15 feet away and separated from us by two layers of woven bamboo.  There was also the occasional sound of a motorbike tearing up the dirt road. Who said that rooster crow at dawn?  Sure they crow at dawn but they also crow much earlier, too!

Sunrise Over Tonle Sap From Kitchen Area of Our Home-stay

Yes, it was not a very good night of sleep but oh what an experience it was!  As the Sun rose over the floodplain the ever increasing sound of awakening life built up.  Insects, birds, motorboats, and the sounds of people awakening to encounter a new day of life on the lake created a unique symphony not available to tourists in the city.  The symphony of sound was supplemented by the smells of a the new day - charcoal fires to cook the first meal of the day, the odors of pork, chicken, garlic, onions, fish, and the smell of motorboats setting out to check the fish traps at dawn.  The new day was announcing its arrival along with the acknowledgement of the potential that each reawakening brings.

The view outside the front door of our home-stay

Yes, it was not a good night of sleep but oh what an experience it was!  I have always embraced the value and prestige of my life not in the comfort that I have enjoyed or the material wealth that I have been able to acquire but rather in the experiences that I have encountered.

Tonle Sap Boatchild

For Plains Indian warriors, prestige and honor were acquired by "counting coup" - For the Cheyenne counting coupe involved touching an enemy with a stick, bow, whip, or open hand.  For me it is counting experiences - counting experiences involves the act of touching lives or being touched by the lives of others as well personal interactions with the world about me.  I am fortunate to have a wife who is willing and able to participate in my quests to count experiences.

One of the main streets of Kampong Khleang

Last year I considered returning to Tonle Sap including experiencing another home-stay.  After doing soe preliminary research for a return trip, I discovered that the water levels in the lake were very low.  Since one of my goals was to document more of the life on the flood plain, I decided not to return to Tonle Sap.

Kampong Khleang Intersection

On our last trip, we were taken by our home-stay hosts in the early morning to check the family's fish traps set out on the floodplains outside of Kampong Khleang.

Tonle Sap Backwater Early Morning Encounter

Checking fish trap early morning on floodplain

This year I am considering returning to Siem Reap and especially Tonle Sap with either a one or two night home-stay.  Based upon our last trip, I am considering going in December or January - for the full moon.  I believe that going a month or two later will improve the opportunities for documenting the commercial fishing activities on the lake as the flow out of the lake into the Mekong Rier will be more established.

I also want and know that I can take better photographs of moonlight over the floodplain - partially submerged trees, flat water, and a full moon low on the horizon and climbing high in the sky.

Sunset Over Tonle Sap

Research indicates that December 13 is a full moon and January 12 is another full moon.  On December 13, the moon will rise at 4:09 PM and set the following morning at 4:12 AM.  On January 12 the moon will rise 4:51  PM and set at 4:58 AM the next morning.  These times are convenient for the photographs that I intend to take.

I have not checked to determine if the stars are aligned for a trip but the moon certainly is.  Yesterday I sent an email to my contact in Siem Reap to determine the current water levels.  This year, in Udon Thani we have have had much more rainfall than last year so I am optimistic that Siem Reap and the Mekong River have received much more rain too so that a return trip is warranted.

If the water levels are sufficient, I will have to discuss with Duang before making detailed plans and arrangements.

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.

Bun Khao Saht 2016 - Feeding the Family Spirits



Making Food Offering To the Spirits of Parents





Friday was a special day in Isaan.  September 16, was Bun Khao Saht also known as Boun Khao Salak or "Celebration of the Dead" in neighboring Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos).  It is the Mid-Autumn Festival or Moon Festival held on the day of the tenth Full Moon of the lunar calendar.  For Westerners it is called the "Harvest Moon".

On this special day merit making is performed by offering food to the Phii (ghosts) of family members.  People also earn merit through offering a special treat called "Kao Tawtek" to their local Monks.  Kao Tawtek is a mixture of freshly popped rice, caramel, peanuts, shredded coconut and millet.  It is made in backyards, front yards, and side yards throughout Isaan just prior to Wan Kao Saht - typically in huge woks over wood fires. It is also traditional for older people to give gifts of Kao Tawtek and money to children.

Like many things here in Thailand, Bun Khao Saht seems to be adapted and amalgamated from other cultures. The Chinese celebrate a Hungry Ghost Festival and "Ghost Day" around the same time.  In Vietnam, the second biggest holiday with an emphasis and focus on children is celebrated at this time of the year.

I drove out to Tahsang Village, my wife's home village, early this morning to be able to participate in the daily merit making ritual of offering food to the Monks.  I drove through the bright green rice paddies, "high as an elephant's eye" sugar cane fields, and muddy fields lying in fallow before I arrived at Wat Pha That Nong Mat.  This has been one of the most wet monsoon seasons since I have been in Thailand.  Since we returned to Thailand from our trip to America on July 20th, we have had rain all but three days.  Mud is everywhere and some of the country roads have moving water flowing across them.  Of course the combination of rain and traffic is taking a heavy toll on all the roads.  Potholes and failing pavement are now the norm.

On Bun Khao Saht, in addition to earning personal merit, the participants earn merit for the spirits of their dead relatives.  It is especially important to make offerings to family members who died during the year since that last Bun Khao Saht.  For my step-son and step-daughter, it had the significance associated with the death of their father who died the previous week.

Duang's Daughter Makes Offering to Her Father

In the Lao Loum culture, as well as other Southeast Asia cultures, the people have to take care of the spirits of their family as well as other ghosts.  Spirits need merit in death as well in life to assist them in their journey to enlightenment.  Merit is the basis for determining what form and status a person will be reincarnated as in a future life.



The villagers, in addition to the normal offerings of food for the Monks, had brought baskets of special foods wrapped in banana leaves.  The baskets were carefully placed on the floor of the incomplete Viharn (several years under construction but it does have a tile floor now) next to a concrete column.  A sai sin (sacred cotton string) was placed across the tops of the baskets.  The sai sin ran up the column, across the Viharn and ran down a second column near where the Monks sat slightly above the villagers.  The sai sin terminated in a ball placed on a plate at the side of the Wat's senior Monk.  The sai sin connects this world to other worlds, the laypeople to the Monks and conveys the merit making to the deceased people.



Many of the women were dressed in white uniforms like the attire that Duang wears just about every night when she conducts her ritual upstairs in our home where my roll top desk has been converted into a shrine.  The women, including Duang and her mother, were participating in a women's retreat at the Wat.  They spent the remainder of the day and most of the night reading and studying the scriptures and receiving lectures from the Monks.

The offering of food to the Monks was a typical daily ritual with one exception, while the Monks ate their one meal of the day, the women in the white costumes along with a couple of Brahmans chanted in Pali for most of the time.

Pope and Peelawat Participate in the Ritual

At the end of the ritual, the villagers gathered up their baskets and went outside.  The villagers scattered throughout the Wat grounds selecting specific trees to stop at before going to their family tat where the bones of their family are interned.  The offerings made at the trees were for family members who died prior to the family having enough money to buy a tat as a repository for their bones.

The food was placed upon banana leaves and consisted of peeled fruits, sticky rice, chili sauces, dried fish, kao tawtek and other typical Isaan foods.  Off to the side was a banana leaf with betel-nut chewing items.  After the foods were laid out, water was poured over them as the family members communicated to the spirits.



 

 

 

The offerings to the spirits also included two lit yellow candles and two sprigs of "dogkhut" - I suspect Thai jasmine buds.  When offerings are made to the Buddha, three of each item are offered - one for Buddha, one for the teachings of Buddha (Dhamma), and one for the Buddhist religious community (Sanga).  For spirits the offerings are in pairs.



After the family spirits residing in the tats had been offered food and drink, the people hung filled thin banana leaf packets in the trees throughout the grounds.  The banana packets contained food offerings to the other family spirits whose bones were not interned in the tat.



Duang and some other women, made food offerings to the spirits of relatives whose bones are kept in highly decorated steeple or spire shaped structures called "Tats".  Tats are reliquaries for bone chips of departed ancestors.  More affluent villagers have a free standing tat and those less affluent will often have a niche inside of the block walls that surround Wats.





After a while, around ten minutes, one of the men rang the Wat's large bell three times signifying that the spirits had completed eating.  The small banana leaf packets were quickly removed from the trees and returned to the family baskets.  The packets will later be placed in the sugar cane fields, rice paddies, and other lands to feed the spirits (ghosts)  that inhabit them.  In return for feeding the hungry ghosts, the people ask that the spirits watch over the land and its crops bringing success as well as good luck to the owners.

Laypeople of Thasang Village Partake In Communal Meal

The villagers returned to the Viharn to have a community meal with the food leftover from the offerings to the Monks.  There is always too much food offered to the Monks and since they are allowed to take only what they can eat that morning for their one meal of the day ensuring that there are always "leftovers".