People set up the spirit house (Preah Phum/ព្រះភូម) or spirit shrine (Rien Devata/រានទេវតា) mainly so that the local guardian spirits, such as tree spirits, and territorial spirits, which we call ‘Mroeng Kangveal’/ម្រេញគង្វាល (herder/shepherd spirits), have a place to dwell. Offerings to the spirits are made on precept days, on Uposatha precept days — the owner of the house takes fruit, rice cakes, bananas and sugarcane, or areca nuts, places them on a plate, and sets it on the spirit house or shrine so that all those spirits may partake of them. All of this is an ancient Khmer belief that our ancestors have handed down for a very long time now.
ลงรักปิดทอง/Long Rak Pit Thong, or ‘lacquering and gilding’, is both a Thai conservation technique and an act of worship and a way of making merit wit...
គេតែងតែគោរពពពួកអស់នឹង ព្រោះពពួកអស់នឹងគេតាមបីបាច់ថែរក្សាយើង ហើយខ្លះទៀត ពេលណាដែលម្ចាស់ផ្ទះមានគ្រោះ មានភ័យ មានអន្តរាយអ្វីមួយកើតម...
អញ្ចឹងពពួកភូមិទេវតា តាមការពារ និងថែរក្សាម្ចាស់ផ្ទះនឹង ទាល់តែម្ចាស់ផ្ទះនឹងជាអ្នកមានទាន មានសីល មានសេចក្តីល្អ ប្រព្រឹត្តសេចក្តីល្អដែរ...
ម្រេញគង្វាល គឺជាភពអមនុស្ស ដែលជាកញ្ចក់ឆ្លុះបញ្ចាំងពីភពរបស់យើង ដែលភាគច្រើនយើងតែងតែហៅក្មេងឃ្វាលគោ ឃ្វាល ក្របី។ ដោយសាររឿងហ្នឹងវាទាក់ទងបាយសំណុំ ទឹកបំពង់ ដែ...
អ្នកដែលមិនជឿលើព្រះបិតា លោកតាស្នាប់ បានជួបប្រទះអភ័យហេតុផ្សេងៗគ្នា៖ ម៉ូតូរបស់ពួកគេខូចនៅពេលបើកចូលព្រៃ ខណៈដែលមនុស្សខ្លះវិលត្រឡប់មកវិញបានដួលចេញពីម៉ូតូ បាក់...
บวชต้นไม้/buat ton mai, also known as 'tree ordination', is a method of conserving trees in Thailand rooted in Buddhism. The practice emerged as a res...
วัฒนธรรม/Wattanatham (meaning ‘culture’) is one of over one thousand terms coined by Prince Wan Waithayakon. In a 1975 interview, Prince Wan, who atte...
ธรรมชาติ/Thammachat, meaning ‘nature’ in Thai, was a term coined as part of a larger language policy spanning the late-19th and 20th centuries, involv...
ปะกำ (ภะษากูย) หรือ ผีปะกำ (ภาษาไทย) เป็นวัฒนธรรมที่พบได้เฉพาะในกลุ่มกูยอาจีงหรือกูยเลี้ยงช้างเท่านั้น เป็นวิญญาณของบรรพบุรุษกูยเลี้ยงช้างที่เป็นหมอหร...
Traditional Manggarai weaving designs used natural dyes as the background, including indigo, known as 'tao' in the Manggarai language or 'nila', meani...