Storing the rice in the barn.

Farmer usually carry out a ceremony to store harvested in the barns in December which is the 3rd month in Lanna calendar. The activity reflects lifestyle of Lanna people. Owing to its geographical feature, Lanna or the Northern part of Thailand has a fertile land to grow any cash crops.

Most of Lanna people in the old days were farmers. Paddy fields in the north can be cultivated in all seasons but most of them preferred growing rice in rainy season which start from July to August. Winter, especially during November to December, is also a prefect period for rice growing. After harvesting their rice, the farmers would sort out rice from their paddy ears. After they finished the process of separating rice from paddy ears, they would keep their rice within their houses.

They would weave a basket or build a barn, which is called “Yoong” in Lanna dialect, to store the rice. The harvested rice will be kept for consumption and part of their seeds will be kept for next cultivation.

To move the rice into the barn is hard task. Farmers who can afford manpower will hire workers to handle the task. Most farmers prefer selling out all their rice after they thresh their harvested rice.

Some prefer stocking their rice and studying the market price before selling it out. In order to keep their rice as long as they desire, the barn has to be well constructed and protected from insects, animals and being stolen.

In the part, farmers did not frequently open their barns after they had kept the rice inside. This is based on their belief that doing this will disturb the Goddess of rice (Mae Posob). Therefore, they would keep two portions of rice for their own consumption and food exchange respectively. They would exchange their rice with other necessary ingredients and dried food such as jiggery (sugar), shrimp paste, fish sauce, etc.

In some communities, farmers would carry out the ceremony to lock their barns temporary after they have kept the rice inside the barn. The ceremony will be performed once again to unlock their barns when they need to sell the store rice. Farmers believe that Friday is inauspicious for rice trade. Those who hold this belief don’t even measure off their rice on the day. Friday in Thai is pronounced “Wan Sook” which shares the same sound with happiness or “Kwam Sook”. Due to this sound resemblance, those people believe that to sell rice on Friday or “Wan Sook” will wipe away their happiness. This kind of belief is prevalent throughout the country. People in the south will not take the rice out of the barn on very Monday, festival days, Buddhist Lent Day, Songkran, year end and month end days. Their rice barn also has influence on their belief and rituals. The barn indirectly helps them to be more prudent and conscious in their works and life.

Loy Krathong Festival

On the full moon of the 12th lunar month (usually November) Thai people celebrate and give thanks to Mae Khong Kha, the River Goddess (Originally from the Ganges in India), for her life-giving bounty. They also ask her forgiveness for having used and polluted her waters during the past year. Krathong were originally little banana leaf boats-nowadays many Krathong are made from colors paper in the shape of the lotus flower. People place many auspicious items in the Krathong. For example candles, incense sticks and small coin are put inside-formerly beetle nut was also included. As each member of the family lights their candle and launches the Krathong, a prayer is said. As the Krathong floats away, so too will the water wash away each person's sins and misfortune. Temple and village groups make elaborately decorated balloons for Loy Krathong, trailing colorful streamers and often fireworks display.

In the same way that candles, incense sticks and firworks are used to reach out and upwards in thanks, and floation a Krathong to clean one's sins and the release of birds and fish to gain merit, so it can be seen that a balloon rising up to heaven combined all these ideas. This is a time for rejoicing and feasting as the rains have stopped and all is fresh and clean. Tradition has it that Nang Noppamas, wife of King Ramkamhaeng the great of Sukhothai was the first to make a Krathong back in the 13th century. Whatever its origin, this is the most beautiful of all Thai festivals.

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Sin Luang (Buddhist Holy Day)

Buddhist Lent falls on the first day after the full moon of the eight lunar month. Buddhist Lent refers to a period of the lunar months during the rainy season when Buddhist monks are committed to staying and meditation. This is a time for serious contemplation and meditation.

According to legend, the history of this tradition dated back to the time of early Buddhism in ancient India, when the Lord Buddha decreed that his followers should avoid all unnecessary travel during this period. This was decided in order to protect the villagers' new crops from being unintentionally damaged or trampled. Traditionally , Buddhist Lent is celebrated in the early morning when people begin to arrive at the temple and offer the food they prepared to the monks.

the precepts can be given as often as several times during the day with a public sermon. People join in the merit making and take a vow to keep either five or eight precepts such as refraining from killing, stealing, wrong sexual conduck, lying and drinking alcohol.

Also this day is considered a very important time for laymen to ordain their sons into the monkhood in order to get the maximum benefit from the Buddhist teachings.

During the Buddhist Lent season, according to Lanna culture, Buddhist Holy Day fall on the 8th day and the 15th day of the full moon and waning moon of each month, and it is the custome for villagers to spend most of their time in the temple making merit.

During their sermons, monks recount the Jataka Tales, Buddhist parables of wisdom and morality taken from the stories of the previous lives of Lord Buddha and his followers.

These tales taught worshippers how to live their life with honesty, morality and self-sacrifice.

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Wai Kru (Paying Respect to Teachers)

Wai Kru ceremony is a special occasion where pupils, university and college students pay respect to their teachers in order to gain merit and fortune. This ceremony bring them luck in their studies throughout the academic year.

The date is determined by each institution, but it is always held on a Thursday. Atypical Wai Kru Ceremony starts with the offerings. which are prepared one or two days before the ceremony.

The offerings consist of meat dishes, sweets, fruits, beverages and auspicious flower trays. They also make offerings to their teachers, which include coconut, banana betel nut, flower, incense & candle, white and red cloths and liquor. On the day, disciples will organize a procession with all offerings and auspicious trays and present those necessities, on ancient stands to their master. The master then continues the ceremony by inviting all divinities to receive the offerings

The master chants blessing to students and flowers before the invinities. Finally, the master will conduct the wrist Binding Ceremony for good fortunate to all students.

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Thod Kathin ceremony(ทอดกฐิน ). The ceremony of presenting robes to Buddhist monks.

The Thod Kathin ceremony is an annual presentation of new robes to the monks and is usually performed after the buddhist Lent when the monks are allowed to move freely from place to place. Apart from the robes, other necessities and a financial contribution will be offered to the temple and the monks as well. Buddhists believe that this ceremony will result in much merit since in the old days a great amount of time was dedicated to the weaving of each robe.

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Tan Kuai Salak (ตานก๋วยสลาก)

The Tan Kuai Salak ceremony takes place in communities throughout northern Thailand between the full moon and waning moon day of September. This Buddhist merit-making ceremony dates back to the founding of Chiang Mai in 1296, when it was performed at Wat Chiang Man, the city's oldest temple, by King Mengrai and his followers.

For this occasion, each person or family prepares a beautiful "Kuai Salak" basket, full of fruit and useful items for the monks of their temple. Each basket has a number and a corresponding numbered stick or lot which the monks choose at randam. They then recieve whichever baskets correspond with the lots. During the Buddhist Lent period, monks remain in their temples to avoid walking through the rice fields and fruit gardens that are abundant at this time of year.

The Kuai Salak basket is beautifully decorated according to each family's tastes and many are colorful and very elaborate. By offering Kuai Salak, northern Thai people believe they can pass the merit they make to their ancestors and so this day is a way for Lanna people to remember their departed family menbers.

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