The Phi Ta Khon festival is unique to the Dan Sai district in Loei Province and reflects the local Isan belief in ghosts and spirits. Held once a year, it is part of a grand merit-making festival known as the \u201cBoon Luang\u201d festival. This year it is on 26-28 June 2015.<\/p>\n
\u0080\u009cBUN LUANG AND PHI TA KHON FESTIVA<\/strong> DAY 1<\/strong> 4:00 a.m. Invocation of Pra Upakut: Procession from Phon-Chai Temple to Mun and Sork River. DAY\u00a02<\/strong> 10:00 a.m. Grand opening ceremony by Loei Governor in front of Dan Sai District Office. DAY\u00a03<\/strong> 4:00 a.m. 13 consecutive Buddhist sermons at Phon-Chai Temple The origins of the Phi Ta Khon Festival<\/strong> can be found in the tale of Lord Buddha\u2019s last great incarnation before attaining Enlightenment. In Buddhist accounts, it is said that when Prince Vessandara, the Buddha\u2019s penultimate incarnation, returned to his city, it was such a joyous occasion that the village spirits came forth to join the welcoming parade. This very colourful and vibrant Phi Ta Khon procession is the central focus of the celebrations.<\/p>\n In a lively re-enactment of the tale, the young men of the community dress up as \u201cspirits\u201d wearing long trailing costumes made from colourful strips of cloth sewn together.<\/p>\n The hideous-looking Phi Ta Khon mask which is made of dried sticky rice husk is painted in bright red, green or other colours, and features the characteristic long pointed nose. This completes the transformation. The clanging sound of the square cowbells worn around the waist announces the presence of the spirits who wield phallic-shaped long-handled swords decorated with red paint. The good-natured, fun-loving spirits mingle among the crowd, teasing and amusing all who take part in the procession. Spectators and visitors are welcome to join in the fun.<\/p>\n There are two types of \u201cspirits\u201d featured in the Phi Ta Khon procession namely the \u201cPhi Ta Khon Yai\u201d the supreme Phi Ta Khon, and the \u201cPhi Ta Khon Lek\u201d, the ones that are commonly found. The making of the Phi Ta Khon Yai involves the performance of a sacred ritual to seek the blessings of the supreme powers before work on the Phi Ta Khon Yai masks can be initiated. It is also a task reserved exclusively for the descendants of families in which the tradition of making Phi Ta Khon masks has been practised for several generations. The Phi Ta Khon Yai is made of bamboo and is dressed in either male or female attire. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Phi Ta Khon festival is unique to the Dan Sai district in Loei Province and reflects the local Isan belief in ghosts and spirits. Held once a year, it is part of a grand merit-making festival known as the \u201cBoon Luang\u201d festival. This year it is on 26-28 June 2015. \u0080\u009cBUN LUANG AND PHI […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-293","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-thailand-festival-and-event"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=293"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":326,"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293\/revisions\/326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=293"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=293"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laofree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=293"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nDansai district, Loei province<\/p>\n
\n( Phra Upakut Invocation and Cultural Ceremony )<\/p>\n
\n6:00 a.m. Food Offerings to Monks at Phon-Chai Temple.
\n8:30 a.m.\u0080\u0093 Ba- Si (Summoning of Spirits) Ceremony at Chao Pho Kuan\u00e2\u0080\u0099s House.
\n10:00 a.m.\u0080\u0093 Cultural Ceremony at Phon-Chai Temple by Dan Sai Sheriff. Gathering for Phi Ta Khon procession and competitions among groups marching along Keaw Asa Road.
\n11:00 a.m. Performances on the stage in front of Dan Sai District Office.<\/p>\n
\n(Official Opening Ceremony and the Grand Phi Ta Khon Parade )<\/p>\n
\nAll parades move from Dan Sai District Office to Phon-Chai Temple.
\n1.00 p.m. \u00a0Performances on the stage in front of Dan Sai District Office.
\nPhi Ta Khon competition (Final round).
\n3:00 p.m\u0080\u0093 Ba- Si (Summoning of Spirits) Phra Wet at Chao Pho Kuan\u00e2\u0080\u0099s House.
\n3:30 p.m.\u0080\u0093 Phra Wet parade led by Chao Pho Kuan and Chao-Mae Nang Tiem to Phon- Chai Temple to make merit and firing of the Bamboo rockets.
\nPhi Ta Khon mask discarding ceremony at Wang-wern pier, Phon-Chai Temple
\n7:00 p.m. \u00e2\u0080\u0093 Buddhist sermons at Phon-Chai Temple.<\/p>\n
\n( Buddhist sermons\u00e2\u0080\u0093 No Phi Ta Khon Dancing )<\/p>\n
\nParading of consecutive Buddhist sermons of all villages in Dan Sai District<\/p>\n