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Laos Essential Artistry Posting Page
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
   We had been planning to go to Laos last month, in part to guide Elli, the professor, for a third time as she's completing research for a book she's writing on the ritual use of textiles, especially from Huaphan Province. But, in mid-May Bai's family called Bai to tell her that her father was seriously ill in the hospital and they wanted her to come quickly, as they thought he might die. So Bai left two weeks early and through the power of faith, family, Buddhist prayers and some kind of medicine the doctors had sent from Thailand as a last chance, he miraculously survived. And so after we were finished guiding Elli, a Baci Ceremony was held in Bai's parents' village to thank the village spirit who they also credited with providing an "extension" for Bai's father's life. In this post I'm including three photos from the ceremony, with the first one showing Bai's dad (with orange towel over his shoulder) and two that show both Bai and I. The second photo shows us holding the strings that connect all of the family together (can you see the rice grains in the air thrown by friends after the mor phon announces the kwan have come back!?) and the second one shows Bai and I as family and friends are tying the bacci strings on our wrists, as in all bacci ceremonies an integral component includes pook kwan or the tying of kwan, The Lao Heritage Foundation website has a great definition of the the bacci ceremony on their website at http://www.laoheritagefoundation.org/ceremonies/baci and they write: "Briefly the Baci is a ceremony to celebrate a special event, whether a marriage, a homecoming, a welcome, a birth, or one of the annual festivals. A mother is given a baci after she has recovered form a birth, the sick are given bacis to facilitate a cure, officials are honored by bacis, and novice monks are wished luck with a baci before entering the temple. The Baci ceremony can take place any day of the week and all year long, preferably before noon or before sunset. The term more commonly used is su kwan, which means “calling of the soul”. Kwan are components of the soul, but have a more abstract meaning than this. The kwan have been variously described by Westerners as: “vital forces, giving harmony and balance to the body, or part of it”, “the private reality of the body, inherent in the life of men and animals from the moment of their birth,” and simply as “vital breath”. It is an ancient belief in Laos that the human being is a union of 32 organs and that the kwan watch over and protect each one of them. It is of the utmost consequence that as many kwan as possible are kept together in the body at any one time. Since all kwan is often the attributed cause of an illness, the baci ceremony calls the kwan or souls from wherever they may be roaming, back to the body, secures them in place, and thus re-establishes equilibrium. The baci ceremony runs deep in the Lao psyche. In different part of the country the ceremony differs slightly in meaning. In general, it is nonetheless an emphasis of the value of life, of social and family bonds, of forgiveness, renewal and homage to heavenly beings." Another good definition comes from the book Rice in Laos published by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research. " One of the most popular traditional ceremonies involves the ritualistic tying of holy cotton threads to ensure blessings of the spirits on specific persons, activities, or places. It is believed to restore the natural order of things and bring communities closer together. The ceremony originated in the Hindu tradition and began to mix with Buddhist traditions in Laos 500 years ago. It is performed by a mor phon who is usually an elder who has spent some time as a Buddhist monk. The mor phon and invited guests sit around a baci center piece, which is a decorated flower arrangement on a base made of folded banana leaf sections. A long chain of cotton threads is placed in the hands of guests connecting them to each other and to the centerpiece. The mor phon then lights candles on the centerpiece and begins to chant Buddhist scriptures in the Pali language. On conclusion of the chanting, the mor phon and other guests tie cotton threads on guests’ and each other’s wrists. These cotton threads as well as the centerpiece have been prepared by the women of the group in advance of the ceremony. Thre threads used in the baci ceremony are usually white as Lao people believe that white represents friendship and kindness. However other colors can be used, (often times black in Thai Daeng villages in Huaphan Province). While tying on the threads, good wishes are offered to the recipient. The form of these good wishes is very flexible and may b offered in any language." by: Laos Essential Artistry 
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1 Comments:
It's an interesting article. I live in Laos. I know this baci. My parents did baci for me when I was out of the hospital. All friends and relative came, also neighbors.
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