Festivals & Events, Northern ThailandMacabre Thai Ceremony – Pu Sae – Ya Sae Ceremony in Chiang Mai
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Macabre Thai Ceremony – Pu Sae – Ya Sae Ceremony in Chiang Mai |
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| Festivals & Events, Northern Thailand 2 Comments |
Pu Sae – Ya Sae Ceremony is one among several macabre Thai ceremonies. Held in Chiang Mai annually every May or early June, at the beginning of the rainy season (in 2009 the ceremony will be held on June 7), the ceremony of Pu Sae Ya Sae is believed to predate the beginning of Buddhism in Northern Thailand.
Chiang Mai people worship Pu Sae – Ya Sae as guardian spirits of their region. Pu Sae Ya Sae, in their lifetime, were indigenous inhabitants of the region who wandered from Lawa (an ancient territory) and settled on the slopes of Doi Suthep.
Legend says that both Pu Sae and Ya Sae were cannibals and especially took great pleasure in human flesh, so the gruesome ceremony of Pu Sae – Ya Sae is tied to the legend of these cannibals.
When Lord Buddha traveled to the region, he passed through the territory of Pu Sae and Ya Sae, so they tracked his scent with an intention to eat him. The Buddha eventually managed to persuade both Pu Sae and Ya Sae to quit their former cannibalism by his sermon. They promised to hold dharma at all times, but pleaded with the Lord to allow them to eat buffalo flesh at least once a year as it must be so difficult for ex-cannibals like them.
To satisfy and honor the spirit of Pu Sae – Ya Sae, people in Chiang Mai built shrines for them; one at Ban Tin Doi on the foot of Doi Suthep and another on the foot of Doi Kham in Tambon Mae Hia where the ceremony is held every year. The ceremony ritually sacrifices a buffalo and makes offerings at the beginning of each rainy season.
Pu Sae - Ya Sae Ceremony in Chiang Mai-Music performance of the ceremony
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Pu Sae - Ya Sae Ceremony in Chiang Mai-The medium eats raw buffalo meat as a representation of Ya Sae's possession
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The religious ceremony of Pu Sae – Ya Sae is a combination of Shamanism and Buddhism where a prior part of Lawa culture is represented through a medium or shamanist who is able to convey words from the spirit of Pu Sae –Ya Sae to others and is finally possessed by the spirit of Ya Sae.
While the offered buffalo is cut into pieces and cooked, the medium sits calmly drinking lao khao (local white liquor) and smoking cigarettes. Accompanied by gongs, cymbals and drums, the medium then dances around the carcass of the buffalo and tucks into a chunk of raw meat. The situation is seen as a representation of the spirit’s possession upon the medium.
The ceremony ends when the spirit of Ya Sae sees the painted Buddha image which represents the presence of Lord Buddha, and salutes. In this way, the legend of Pu Sae – Ya Sae is reenacted and the conversion from cannibalism in Pu Sae – Ya Sae is celebrated as the spirits get their annual treat.
In a deeper meaning, the ceremony of Pu Sae – Ya Sae can be seen as a social message conveying a combination between Buddhist-Shamanist and Thai-Lawa tradition as stated in an invocation of Pu Sae – Ya Sae: ‘Let not the rice of the Lawa die in their swiddens; let not the rice of the Thai wither and die in their paddies.’ These words suggest a close and positive association between Lawa and Northern Thai people which has long been held.
June 20th, 2009 at 4:15 pm
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June 25th, 2009 at 10:45 am
This ceremony is kind of spooky but very unique. Thanks for sharing.