Spirits And Ghosts In Thailand

[NaiGreg]

The recent thread about ghosts in Thailand was a good one, but there is more to the story. Can anyone shed more light on these definitions?

from the www.thai-language.com web site .....

ผี phee ghost, spirit; pertaining to sorcery

ญญาณ win yaan soul, spirit

variations of a theme ...

เจ้าพ่อ jao phaaw a god or spirit

ดวงวิญญาณ duaang win yaan soul, spirit

ปิศาจ bpi saat a spirit, a ghost, a devil

เทพารักษ์ theh phaa rak guardian spirit

ผีที่ phee thee spirit of an object or place

ผีบ้าน phee baan spirit of a house

and the ubiquitous spirit houses ...

ศาลเจ้า saan jao shrine, spirit house

ศาลพระภูมิ saan phra phuu mi spirit house

The wife has explained a little, but she seems unsure sometimes.

Mods, can I double-post this in another (Buddhism) forum?

[cdnvic]

This actually doesn't have anything much to do with buddhism, it's just that alot of buddhists in this region believe in ghosts. The Thai language forum may be some help though. Maybe post a link to this topic over there.

cv

Edited January 16, 2005 by cdnvic

[bina]

i had asked about ghosts in the buddhism thread (ghosts dont follow people overseas);i put it in buddhism only cause there is no other forum that involves 'culture' and 'religious life' and 'ethics' etc .... so the buddhism forum seemed to be the place to ask all the questions....

darknight what do you say ???? after all we are not discussing madame whats her name's astrological predictions but ghosts do seem an integral part of thai life as i have met it.....in and not in connection to buddhism....

its kind of hard to separate the budhims from the animism in thailand....

anyway, thanx for the htread ghost explanations, for me it helps a lot.....

Edited January 16, 2005 by bina

[ProfessorFart]

Bina,

I think you're making a mistake by trying to divide and separate Thai beliefs here. Animism, Hinduism and Buddhism have all overlapped over the centuries and now go pretty much hand in hand in the Thai Psyche.

[bina]

I'm not trying to separate at all; its the forum...... anything that isnt pretty close to 'real' budhism doesnt have a home .... although darknight is being nice about that.... a very difficult and sensitive subject as is any discussion about things that are dear to us.

i specifically wrote: its kind of hard to separate the budhism from the animism in thailand.... in my post; trust me, i'm super aware of all the different aspects and thats what makes everything so fascinating; and frankly the thai people i know all have a very hard time separating the two.... as far as they're concerned, everything from astrology to tree spirits to whatever, including seeing the Buddha as an all seeing, all knowing type of god (which they do, it seems, regardless if this is what the Buddha meant or not) is all part of their very difficult for the most part lives..... an integral and important part..... (most of the poeple i know are migrant workers from the issan area) cant speak for higher educated thai or people from other locales...

which is why it is so important for me to learn as much as i can because they cant really explain to me the reasoning (i.e. where/why the beliefs or practices started)for some of the things they do, they just do them.....

[NaiGreg]

What I am really looking for is an explanation of which ghost/spirit terms are appropriate in various social situations. I suggested the Buddhism forum because it may elicit more serious replies.

I suppose there are regional terms to consider as well.

[bina]

people dont discuss ghosts in social situations for the most part; bad luck the ghosts might show up (unless you live overseas and then the ghosts have stayed in thailand) but these same guys told me that taiwan has its own ghosts but they werent afraid as much of them as of the thai ghosts.... and israel doesnt have ghosts ... cant figure it out.....

[srisatch]

The recent thread about ghosts in Thailand was a good one, but there is more to the story. Can anyone shed more light on these definitions?

from the www.thai-language.com web site .....

ผี                  phee                      ghost, spirit; pertaining to sorcery

ญญาณ        win yaan                soul, spirit

variations of a theme ...

เจ้าพ่อ          jao phaaw                a god or spirit

ดวงวิญญาณ duaang win yaan        soul, spirit

ปิศาจ          bpi saat                    a spirit, a ghost, a devil

เทพารักษ์    theh phaa rak          guardian spirit

ผีที่              phee thee                spirit of an object or place

ผีบ้าน          phee baan                spirit of a house

and the ubiquitous spirit houses ...

ศาลเจ้า        saan jao                  shrine, spirit house

ศาลพระภูมิ  saan phra phuu mi    spirit house

The wife has explained a little, but she seems unsure sometimes.

Mods, can I double-post this in another (Buddhism) forum?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I have got a little further with this!!

They ( ie Wife, mother and various other grannies!) rare pretty sure..it just gets lost in transcription and I have not got Thai on this computer

Jaao Paaw Spirit of man/father..phu yai

Jaao Mae spirit of/woman mother

Jaao Pha/jaao khao looks after hills

Jaao Paaw Ruk Muang..Spirit looks after Amphur and Jangwat

Bpi Baan also Bpi Reuan..another word for house (Mae says if she dies that is what she will be)

Bpi graseu sai awk kin dee duay..girl

Bpi grahang… boy chawp jap jim ie likes to eat pussy,,,can fly..phi kradsong..have the wings ie baskets under its arms

Eats girl saliva

Bpi Ga…m/F

Body changer

Eats sick people….all to do with entrails!

Bpi Pob

Disguised a a person..eats animals/people alive

Bpi Takian

Lives in trees-girl...if you cut tree down you have a problem

Mae Ya Nang..looks after boats and cars

Bpi Ta Nee

Lives in bananas and wears green clothes..girl

Bpi Dai Hawng

What I become if I die in an accident

Bpi Dai Tong Kom

Turn into this if you die when pregnant

Bpi Prai

Lives in river or even sea…kills swimmers

Bpi Pa Bpi Khao

Wild spirit of woods and hills

Bpi Fa

Spirit of old queens… I mean real ones not katoeys..

And their families.looks after villages and hills

Bpi Dip

Back from the dead..ie zombies kills everyone

Bpi Hua Kat

If someone cuts off your head…

Bpi Paa Chaa

Graveyard Souls..You need 7 of them to make a little buffalo…which then looks after house..need Paw Mot to do this!…If I am a pain she will go to the mor doo and get him to make the buffalo make my stomach hurt and then I will die!

Also

Bpi Kwai

Bpi Kwai Tanoo

Bpi Sing

Lives in body makes you mad…same as Bpi Khao

Bpi Kanoon (ie stands under Jack Fruit Tree…hello!)

Prostitute (not a Bpi at all is real!! And found in Lumpini and Sukhumvit!)

Bpi Mae Mai

Dies Not have husband so comes back to ###### man!

Luk Yom, Luk Gok, if pregnant 3 months girl born…keep the baby foetus and dry it,,helps father mother ..Winyaan Dek.. Gooman…good spirits of children

Paaw Gae..Ghost of old Likay Teacher

[cdnvic]

This is a cool thread guys.

NaiGreg, srisatch, thanks for giving me the knowlage I need to scare my wife when I'm mad at her.

cv

[NarrLing]

Thanks srisatch, you have cleared up a few of the nicer words my ex would call me.

[chuchok]

กระสือ = ga-sue-a . excuse the spelling. This is a creature from Thai mythology that is feminine by nature. It apparently is a lady wth half a body and entrails hanging out and flys around at night annoying the ###### out of people.

Not exactly a ghost, but close.

[cdnvic]

It apparently is a lady wth half a body and entrails hanging out and flys around at night annoying the ###### out of people.

I think I dated her...

cv

[chuchok]

It apparently is a lady wth half a body and entrails hanging out and flys around at night annoying the ###### out of people.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think I dated her...

cv

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You too.

[bina]

hi,

sompong and i are off to guard the goats tonite (moslem holiday which means that our goats are targeted for shishlik to be eaten on thursday) no offense to moslems but the realities of my life here).... so nite patrols in the dark with just the jackals wailing in the background for some 'mood music'....

asked him if he's afraid of ghosts, he said no, israeli ghosts dont scare him cause they dont speak thai..........

probably a shot of nam khaou will help ward off the creepies too.........

can someone write in all the other ghost words in thai please (are these central thai or issan ghosts?)

[srisatch]

hi,

sompong and i are off to guard the goats tonite (moslem holiday which  means that our goats are targeted for shishlik to be eaten on thursday) no offense to moslems but the realities of my life here).... so nite patrols in the dark with just the jackals wailing in the background for some 'mood music'....

asked him if he's afraid of ghosts, he said no, israeli ghosts dont scare him cause they dont speak thai.......... 

probably a shot of nam khaou will help ward off the creepies too.........

can someone write in all the other ghost words in thai please (are these central thai or issan ghosts?)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I will try and get to the Thai...as i said...for various reasons no Thai on this machine...These are, from me, Sukothai ghosts not Issan ones...who needs ghosts when you have those live people?

There's more::

Bpi Praet

A very tall Bpi, with everything big-except mouth cos cannot eat and lies to everyone, like a coconut tree-one to whom Sai Baat has not been offered

Big hands, lies to and , hits mother and father.

Like the ones we saw at Awk Phansa

1.Yom Ma Tud/ 2.Yom Pa Baan also Yom Malat..knows when you will die

1 helps 2

1 gets your soul when you die comes with Sam Wan Ga Suwan comes to see 2 what been up to good or bad

If you have been good Yoo Bon Faa ie send you to live on the star..Teeawada..Nang Fa is girl, If you bad…send you Kan Nai Din ie to ###### ..just like Brueghel has a dish boiling water..

They? Who? have the book to write what you have done wrong..The Book is made out of Dog Skin..Banchee Nang Maa

If you have been adulterous..you have to climb a tree with big thorns..ouch!..under the tree has a man stuffs spikes up your arse.and when you come to the top has the bird eats your head.

So that deals with farangs dead in LOS na?

Another one comes in...at 02.15. woke me up to tell me this.! belongs with Bpi Kanoon...:

Bpi Grooa, husband of Bpi Kanoon..also real person rather like a Mangdaa...you know all those lads on bikes at the entrance to Nana

Bpi Grooa definitely needs writting in Thai as it is some inverted play on words. I just want some inverted sleep

Edited January 18, 2005 by srisatch

[Darknight]

Great read, my wife and i had a great fun with them especially the Bpi Mae Mai

[bina]

ok,

we discussed ghosts some more: he says that there are lots of ghosts in schools at night, so i asked what did he do when he went to the school in his village at night (why at night? dont know) he says when you meet ghosts you have to wai, and say 'saa tu' (what one says to a monk , no? ).... thai phuket ghosts have made it to the israeli newspaper (the taxi story for instance).... for him it wasnt even news, just expected, for my israeli park workers, well, incredulous disbelief.....

mind you we were discussing this at 2.oo a.m. in driving rain and hearing wierd sounds (we were waiting for real thieves, not ghosts); but the dogs were quiet so.....

but to accompany me to our kibbutz cemetery, no way....... he won't do it..... not during the day or the night......

[chuchok]

ok,

we discussed ghosts some more: he says that there are lots of ghosts in schools at night, so i asked what did he do when he went to the school in his village at night (why at night? dont know) he says when you meet ghosts you have to wai, and  say 'saa tu'  (what one says to a monk , no? ).... thai phuket ghosts have made it to the israeli newspaper (the taxi story for instance).... for him it wasnt even news, just expected, for my israeli  park workers, well, incredulous disbelief.....

mind you we were discussing this at 2.oo a.m. in driving rain and hearing wierd sounds (we were waiting for real thieves, not ghosts); but the dogs were quiet so.....

but to accompany me to our kibbutz cemetery, no way....... he won't do it..... not during the day  or the night......

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Not just in Asian countries will you get people scared of ghosts.

Many Maori people in NZ are frightened of ghosts or spirits.

I'll give you a small example.

I have a friend living in a small northern town in NZ. He is blond haired and blue eyed and stands out a wee bit because the town is predominantly Maori. My friend is also the local stone mason for a funeral home. He also helps out on embalming when they are short staffed.

"Up North", the largest cash crop is dope and unemployment is quite high. Many, many homes are burgled...local cops say it's not if, but when you house will be violated.

My friend has never been burgled. He leaves a head stone at the front of his property. No Maori will go near it.

He also drinks at the hardest pub in the area. Believe me, when I say hard ,there are gang members and all the hard nuts in town that drink there. He doesn’t get touched. Not a hair on his head.

To say that the locals are scared of him would be an understatement. To get a Maori to walk through a cemetery at night would be nigh on impossible.

[toklong]

Can anyone offer an explanation as to why you sometimes see many old discarded

spirit houses along side the road,railroad tracks ect.? Thanks.....

[Neeranam]

Interesting thread, especially as I was woken up in the middle of the night by something very strange. I am sure it was some kind of ghost, living in my banana tree just outside my spare bedroom(where I slept last night )

I couldn't see anyhting and it was not scary in any way, but a very strong force.

I am still trying to figure out what it was. It certainly got inside me in some way.

Funny as my wife is totally unafraid of ghosts, even wanted to stay in a Scottish castle last year near my home. This is unlike many Thai people, who say that Thai ghosts are very different to any other ones.

It would be interesting to do a poll to see how many people on this forum believe in ghosts.

My favourite is the "bret", the 30 ft high one, although they haven't been seen around these parts(isaan) for 30 years.

[ProfessorFart]

Its an odd thing this Thai Ghost theme.

Were I walking across some Lancashire moor on a moonlit night in November with the wind blowing through my sooul I would be chilled to the bone and jumping at every odd noise.

In the balmy atmosphere of Thailand I have had no fear at all yet it was there where I had my first supernatural experience.

[CarlBkk]

I haven't yet encountered any real known haunted places in Thailand (I do like some ghost-hunting) but enjoy watching the Channel 7 "live" ghost show where members of the public pluck up enough courage to spend a night with a torch in a renowned haunted place with IR cameras recording. I can't yet work out if it's staged. Would be amusing to see a farang get on there though!

[corkscrew]

Interesting thread, especially as I was woken up in the middle of the night by something very strange. I am sure it was some kind of ghost, living in my banana tree just outside my spare bedroom(where I slept last night )

I couldn't see anyhting and it was not scary in any way, but a very strong force.

I am still trying to figure out what it was. It certainly got inside me in some way.

Funny as my wife is totally unafraid of ghosts, even wanted to stay in a Scottish castle last year near my home. This is unlike many Thai people, who say that Thai ghosts are very different to any other ones.

It would be interesting to do a poll to see how many people on this forum believe in ghosts.

My favourite is the "bret", the 30 ft high one, although they haven't been seen around these parts(isaan) for 30 years.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

On the first night when we were visiting my parent's former home in the USA I casually mentioned that both of my parents had died in this bedroom. Her eyes got wide...the next day we moved the bed out of the bedroom and into the den...and vice versa with the desk.

[bina]

just to calm u all down, according to my friends, thai ghosts do not travel to other countries, and dont normally bother farang... farang ghosts will bother farang, and farang ghosts in farangland will not bother thai living in farangland, hence no need for the ghost houses, etc.... (or maybe they told me this to calm themsleves down/??? 55555

ethnocentric ghosts???

[minbari73]

just to calm u all down, according to my friends, thai ghosts do not travel to other countries, and dont normally bother farang... farang ghosts will bother farang, and farang ghosts in farangland will not bother thai living in farangland, hence no need for the ghost houses, etc.... (or maybe they told me this to calm themsleves down/??? 55555

ethnocentric ghosts???

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I wish you'd tell that to my wife Funny little things aren't they ? The things they think ! Coming to live in Perth Oz, the first thing she asked me is whether anyone died in the house. I said no of course, but then I wouldn't have a clue! Any bump in the night, video recorder turning itself off, lightbulb blowing, noise outside and it's "Ghost!" &lt;deleted&gt; don't show her a ghost movie, such as The Grudge, or I'll be accompanying her to the loo 4 times a night. She won't purposely buy second hand things in case of spirit attached, but is perfectly happy to buy something s/h for the baby because he doesn't believe in ghosts (yet).

When a little girl, she had several bad experiences with apparent ghosts. One of the more popular and scary village ghosts was the "crying pregnant lady" who shuffles past abodes in the dead of night sobbing this was one. And when she was a bit older she ran away for a few hours and hid in an old abandoned school and swears she heard a stampede of footsteps above her, again at night, only to be rescued by her cousin.

Now she's with me and i'm such a big brave manly type she has nothing more to fear

[desi]

Bpi Dai Hawng

What I become if I die in an accident

Ah hah! So the Bpi Dai Hawng live in the Spirit Houses dotted along roadsides?

And the famous place in BK where many accidents happened has all kinds of Bpi Dai Hawng spirits roaming around?

(yes, I do realise I've resurrected this from 2005... :-)

[yabaaaa]

just to calm u all down, according to my friends, thai ghosts do not travel to other countries, and dont normally bother farang... farang ghosts will bother farang, and farang ghosts in farangland will not bother thai living in farangland, hence no need for the ghost houses, etc.... (or maybe they told me this to calm themsleves down/??? 55555

ethnocentric ghosts???

Hilarious, what happens when the borders of surrounding countries change slightly? How thick is the border line an who decides it? would a Thai ghost go halfway across the border line or not? How high does the border go?

Id love to ask the Thais this.

[desi]

Hilarious, what happens when the borders of surrounding countries change slightly? How thick is the border line an who decides it? would a Thai ghost go halfway across the border line or not? How high does the border go?

Id love to ask the Thais this.

From what I'm reading, the logic almost makes sense. Thai ghosts are mostly territorial, so therefore they will stay in Thailand, correct?

(Note: I don't believe in spirits, not even Western ones. But the subject is interesting)

[girlx]

Ghost Lusters: If You Want to See a Specter Bad Enough, Will You?

Researchers set up "haunted" room to prove an electromagnetic theory of ghost sightings

Read here

Edited October 28, 2008 by girlx

[AmeriThai]

Good thing this dead thread was resurrected seeing how it's close to Halloween.

When my wife first came to the USA, every bump and sound she heard at night convinced her they were caused by ghosts. One day she was burning incense because she was afraid the ghost of her deceased ex had followed her. I calmed her down and told her that was impossible. He'd have to have a visa to get into the country, and the embassy never gives visas to ghosts.

Earlier in this thread someone mentioned Thais never talk about ghosts in social gatherings. Not so. The subject seems to be a pretty common topic of discussion among groups of family and friends in Thailand.