A Thai Funeral
continued
Spirit boat.
Someone paying last respects.
We talked a while until the monk began chanting passages from the Buddha's teaching in Pali (the language that he spoke) and Thai. At the start of the chanting everyone waied, then bowed three times-once for the Buddha, the second time for his teachings, and the third time for all his disciples. After about 20 minutes of chanting and complete torture for my leg muscles, everyone was handed a glass with a small amount of water and a silver bowl. At one point everyone poured the water into the bowl as the monk's chanting slowed. This is an ancient ritual that goes back to the rituals preformed on Ganges River in India. It is intended as a blessing for the ancestors. When that was over the monk left the room and someone drove him back to the temple with the food to be given to the monks. The monks ate at the temple and everyone waited until they were finished to start the feast. When he returned with the other monks everyone knew that they were finished as it was time for guests to eat.
As I ate I watched the other people gather. They seemed less than solemn, often laughing and joking. And, of course, the kids were running around playing. Somjit's brother told me that Thais do most of their mourning in private gatherings with the cremation seen more as the beginning of the person's new life rather than the end of the last one. When someone is dying or is very old they are often advised by the monks to think in terms of a transition to a new life rather than an end. I often wonder if it's a comfort to old people to believe that they are about to become children again. Later, when I attended funerals for people who had died in more tragic circumstances and long before their time, I would find that not all funerals were as seemingly lighthearted. After the feast all 10 monks from the temple plus five family members who were monks for the day climbed the stairs for another part of the service. A long white string was passed around the monks and they tied it to their wrists, symbolizing their unity in the Buddha's teaching. The end of the string was tied to the coffin.
After more chanting everyone went downstairs and crowded around the coffin and the covering over it. It was on wheels and had two ropes attached. The family members took the ropes and started it down the one-kilometer path to the cremation area with the monks leading the way. The cremation ground is a tradition specific to the eight provinces of the north that make up the Kingdom of Lanna from about 1200 to 1556 when it was taken over by the Burmese. In the rest of Thailand cremations were held in the temple. The Lanna region has been part of Thailand since it was captured from the Burmese in 1785, but Lanna traditions remain strong. Most northern people avoid the cremation grounds except for funerals as they believe that such places are inhabited by spirits and usually harmful ones at that. Only monks are powerful enough spiritually to safely spend time there. One monk I met a year later regularly meditates in a cremation ground at night in the belief that the bad spirits will learn from him and improve their lot.
