Ghosts And Spirits

As a small boy, I was both fascinated and terrified by ghosts in equal measure. When I grew older, I found there would inevitably be a perfectly rational albeit rather dull explanation for things that went “bump in the night”. However, in Thailand a rather different view prevails. A profound belief in ghosts and spirits is engrained within the Thai psyche. This is reflected throughout daily life, especially in religion and entertainment. Thai television regularly transmits gory tales of conflict between the living and the un-dead for family viewing.

My wife tells me some of the older hotels in Kanchanaburi province are believed to house many ghosts. Unsurprisingly, Tour Guides supervising two day excursions to the River Kwai area are uncomfortable staying overnight in these hotels, especially alone. I understand that one very senior guide always insists her young driver shares her room when visiting the province. I didn’t ask whether or not this has anything to do with the ghosts!

A visitor to Thailand will immediately notice a preponderance of Spirit Houses. These may be found almost anywhere, but especially outside temples, private homes and businesses. I once encountered an accident black spot where several dozen simple Spirit Houses were installed by the side of the road marking the place of passing of those that perished there.

The purpose of a Spirit House is to provide a home for spirits that live on the Earth, especially ancestors. The thinking behind this is that if spirits are provided with a place in which to reside, they will not find it necessary to haunt the home or business of the provider. To ensure the spirits are content, offerings are made of food, drinks, garlands and incense sticks. If properly looked after the spirit guardians will protect the building and bring wealth and prosperity.

Spirit Houses can be made of wood, concrete or brick and come in a variety of different shapes and sizes. Some are simply constructed whilst others may be ornate and very decorative. They may house statues, small figures such as Thai dancers and even animals – elephants and horses are popular. Miniature furniture may also be provided.

I once asked my wife whether she wanted to import one back to the UK. She explained that buying and installing a Thai Spirit House is not a simple affair. First, a suitable place has to be found. The Spirit House should not stand in the shade of the building. A location to the north of the building, with a nearby tree is ideal. The colour of the Spirit House must also be considered. It should be chosen according to the day of the week on which the owner of the building was born. Erecting a spirit house requires a special Brahmin ceremony, an integral part of which involves inviting the spirits to come and live in it. The timing of the religious ceremony is important too. Unlucky dates should be avoided. During the ceremony special offerings will be made; often a pig’s head, fruit and sweetmeats.

On change of ownership, the new owner of a building may wish to erect their own Spirit House. The old Spirit House may either remain in situ, or be decommissioned. A special ceremony is needed to remove an old Spirit House. There are Spirit House graveyards in Thailand, where Spirit Houses no longer in use are taken for storage.

Turning now to ghosts and legend, perhaps the most famous Thai ghost story is “Nang Naak”. Her story has been the subject of many films and is well known, even outside Thailand. There are many different versions of the tale, and even the era when these events supposedly took place is open to debate. Despite this, most Thais believe her story to be true, or at least some parts are. A brief synopsis of the tale is provided below.

A teenage girl named Nang Naak falls in love with a handsome young man, Nai Maak. Shortly after they marry, Nai Maak is conscripted for military service. He is forced to leave his pregnant wife behind. Whist he is away Nang Naak goes into labour, but both she and the baby die during childbirth. As was customary at the time, Nang Naak is buried rather than cremated because of the nature of her passing. It was believed that burial would prevent her from returning from the dead. Despite this, her spirit refuses to die. When Nai Maak returns to the village, the ghost of Nang Naak makes both herself and her baby daughter appear as humans. The family reunion is sweet but short lived. The villagers try to warn Nai Maak that he is living with a ghost, but he refuses to accept it. For her part Nang Naak kills everyone who comes between her and her husband. Nai Maak is eventually forced to acknowledge the truth when he sees his wife grotesquely stretching her arm between the floorboards of their traditional Thai stilt house to pick up a fallen lime on the ground. The husband, villagers and monks then all go to Nang Naak’s grave. During the exorcism, Nang Naak sits up in her grave. Her face is young and beautiful at first but rapidly deteriorates into a corpse. The senior monk then cuts away a piece of her skull and tells her to go to her proper place. She is never seen again! Legend has it that the piece of her skull cut away by the monk was made into a broach which later came into the possession of Prince Chumbhorn Ketudomsak. There is a shrine dedicated to Nang Naak located on Sukhumvit Soi 77, in Bangkok.