Buddhist Ritual Participation
A temple located in between rice fields
Honestly, I never imagined that I would be involved in a Buddhist ritual unless a Thai person took me under their guidance, and that’s exactly what occurred. An appointment was made over the phone with a monk in a temple in San Patong, a village situated approximately 20 kilometers away from Chiang Mai. The place is mostly known for its weekly buffalo market.
Hardly any visitors
The temple itself is not easy to locate due to its remote location amidst rice fields. For those who never have been there, you will have a hard time finding it. The place looks fairly abandoned and I am convinced that tourists are not frequent visitors if they hardly come at all.
The purpose of the visit is a ritual ceremony
In the cool of the morning, we drive to the temple. En route, we stop at a local market to purchase food and water for the monk. This is a customary practice among Thai people when they visit a temple. Our primary reason for visiting this temple is what I would name, a providence ritual. This will assist us in attaining a joyful existence, with the necessary financial resources, and participating in the ritual would additionally safeguard us against accidents.
Western skeptic
I have to admit that I have my initial doubts. But of course, I am biased because of my Western way of reasoning. How can a temple ritual enhance good fortune in one’s life? For Buddhist people, this is just obvious. However, I am willing to consider different perspectives and remain open-minded to the symbols and rituals of Buddhism. I simply comply without resistance in order to avoid upsetting my partner, and I believe it won’t cause any harm to me either.
Actively participate in the ceremony
You cannot expect good fortune to simply appear without effort; you must actively work towards it and participate in an extensive ceremony, which gets organized for a fee. The Buddhist ritual starts with yourself making sticky rice balls based on your age, placing them in a bowl with two candles and a flower on top. Furthermore, several pieces of string get cut, each of which is as long as your body length. Later, these ropes end up on another platter where they are soaked in water. Moreover, lighting candles at the temple entrance is also a part of the preparation. All these actions are performed by yourself.
Undergo the full Buddhist ritual to receive a blessing
After completing the initial tasks, the monk emerges and the actual ritual commences. The monk ties together the offerings (food and water), the white clothing we brought, and finally ourselves with strands of string. Next, he begins reciting different mantras for several minutes. Throughout the entirety of this Buddhist ceremony, you are crouching in front of the monk, with your hands folded in the wai posture. This position symbolizes a symbolic lotus flower, with the hands pressed together at chest level.
Finally getting blessed
After sprinkling our heads with water, there is an additional concluding ceremony where we affix oil and gold leaves to our hands and forehead. Once this last action is completed, we receive a blessing. The entire process requires some perseverance from me as I am not accustomed to sitting on the floor in a Lotus position. So I feel a sense of relief when the whole ceremony finally reaches its end.
A Buddhist ritual to favor your destiny
The entire event lasted for over 2 hours. It is not my intention to analyze afterward what were the advantages of having experienced this Buddhist ceremony, nor to figure out what all the actions performed mean. According to Buddhism beliefs, you merely tried to favor your destiny.