Thai Spirit Houses

[LoveBug]

One of the first things I noticed here in Thailand is you can find small shrines or spirit-houses in just about every block. I don't know the correct term for these. But I read somewhere that traditionally when the Thais clear away land, they build small houses for the displaced nature spirits. Is this true? Are offerings made there? Is it a Buddhist practice or native Thai?

I would like to know what its purpose is and how to properly arrange it. I'd love to have one like this in our house when we build it. Can I buy this somewhere or is it custom-built? Do the different colors mean anything?

[lifeisrandom]

ask your wife

there is a big lot on ramkenhang road

Edited August 17, 2008 by lifeisrandom

[lannaman]

This and many other Thai cultural and factual aspects of Thai life are brilliantly explained in two books by Denis Segaller. He used to have a column in the Bankok Post, and his two books are 'Thai Ways' and 'More Thai Ways'. They are published by Asia Books. I recommend you read the first book first, as some of the topics in the second one are rather obscure. Segaller was a convert to Buddhism and so he had first hand experience of many ceremonies in Bangkok.

When we built our house here in Chiang Rai a great deal of discussion took place as to the geographical siting. Also we have two tables and shrines, one for the garden and on for the house. An old lady, who's a Buddhist and superstition specialist, performed the dedication ceremony for the shrines when the first post of our new house was laid.

I've been in the Land of Smiles for 15 years and will never learn and understand all Thai ways!

[Newbee]

http://books.google.com/books?id=Rslp-JcAv...kMGAxw#PPA18,M1

page 18-23

Chapter on Spirit Houses from the Farang book

In Bangkok, lots of Spirit houses are sold at Petchbury road, between Express way and soi Nana (Sukhumvit soi 3)

[lannaman]

http://books.google.com/books?id=Rslp-JcAv...kMGAxw#PPA18,M1

page 18-23

Chapter on Spirit Houses from the Farang book

In Bangkok, lots of Spirit houses are sold at Petchbury road, between Express way and soi Nana (Sukhumvit soi 3)

Looks like a good bedtime read Newbee, I'll look out for it here. We DO have bookshops here in the wild north!

[Bangyai]

I've got an old cocktail cabinet you can have.....similar kind of thing

[Carib]

Not saying that you should get one here.. but interesting to read this short article about what is done with spririthouses when they are old damaged, or need to be replaced for some other reason.

http://www.thai-blogs.com/index.php/2005/0...t_houses?blog=5

[Spee]

Not saying that you should get one here.. but interesting to read this short article about what is done with spririthouses when they are old damaged, or need to be replaced for some other reason.

http://www.thai-blogs.com/index.php/2005/0...t_houses?blog=5

Geez, that's a lot of bad karma strewn about there, unless of course all those spirits got new houses.

[dotcom]

The purchase & installation is best left to the locals.

Quite a bit of mumbo jumbo associated with it.

Not to mention some Fung Suei involved in choosing a site.

[Carib]

Not saying that you should get one here.. but interesting to read this short article about what is done with spririthouses when they are old damaged, or need to be replaced for some other reason.

http://www.thai-blogs.com/index.php/2005/0...t_houses?blog=5

Geez, that's a lot of bad karma strewn about there, unless of course all those spirits got new houses.

I asked about that, and the answer was, that if a spirithouse is replaced, they will have a ceremony to let the spirits move to their new home.

So, I said that all the sprit homes in the graveyards were " empty", so why do they have to go to that place and left in peace?

These questions are western I think, the answer very much Thai, without meaning that in a negative way. We westerners donot understand anything.

It is possible that they still contain sprits, bad ones, so just leave them there.

Also some `bad` people just dump the homes including spirits after selling/buying/changing the home or land. So.. donot get one there, it will be bad for you.

[lannaman]

Not saying that you should get one here.. but interesting to read this short article about what is done with spririthouses when they are old damaged, or need to be replaced for some other reason.

http://www.thai-blogs.com/index.php/2005/0...t_houses?blog=5

These Spirit house graveyards are quite often strewn around holy Buddha trees.

There is on of these trees on the central reservation of the super-highway just south of Chiang Rai. The tree has now died, and they have built a concrete shrine around the stump. The paraphanalia of safron ribbons etc. has been moved to a younger heathy tree by the highway verge.

[mizzi39]

One of the first things I noticed here in Thailand is you can find small shrines or spirit-houses in just about every block. I don't know the correct term for these. But I read somewhere that traditionally when the Thais clear away land, they build small houses for the displaced nature spirits. Is this true? Are offerings made there? Is it a Buddhist practice or native Thai?

I would like to know what its purpose is and how to properly arrange it. I'd love to have one like this in our house when we build it. Can I buy this somewhere or is it custom-built? Do the different colors mean anything?

We have a small spirit house and my in laws have a very big spirit house(s) with alter. (the whole 9 yards) It is my understanding that spirit houses have nothing to do with traditional Buddhism. The spirit house has its origins in Thai Animism.