Phuket

faultytowers · #1 08-09-2006, 17:14

Last night was strange and very unusual , and not for the normal reasons. Started off in Faulty's for a couple and noticed that the barmaid,Ning, kept walking outside and looking up at the sky. Tried to find out why , but got the usual "Me not speak good English".

Headed down to M.T.B , and was having a few drinks when the staff at Freedom Bar started lighting "joss sticks". Not just one or two but hundreds, soon the air was filled with smoke and it looked like the fire brigade may be needed. At this point a very large duck/goose was plonked down on the bar at MTB , along with assorted other "goodies". Nicke asked Ead what was going on , but her reply was "You no understand"!!!!

Eventually all the "offerings" were placed by the dancing poles , all of the girls then lit a handful of joss sticks and knelt down and prayed for at least 2-3 minutes. It was very solemn and , at least to me , looked very serious . Soon girls from a lot of other bars were coming over and repeating the process.

All that us "farangs" could pick up was that it was something to do with the moon. Later , I noticed that the girls kept walking out and looking at the sky , until with much screaming , they saw what they were looking for. Ead went out looked and immediately came back and rung the bell. This started a "chain reaction" , I think every bell in Soi Eric was ringing within 1 minute. Went out and looked myself but could not see what all the excitement was all about.

All the girls were very happy and soon started with the "Ting-Tong" dancing , so, whatever it was , it must have had a "happy ending".

Today , after a bit of asking around , found out it was an eclipse of the moon (not sure if full or partial). But in 10 years of visiting I have never seen this "ceremony" before , neither had Nicke or any of the other farangs I spoke to.

If anyone has any more info it would be appreciated , as it seemed a very moving/honorable ceremony , which all the girls took seriously.

1. At first I just thought "Bar Snacks are getting bigger".
2. Then the other "gifts" were assembled.
3. The girls took it in turn to "pray".
4. Even the Irish joined in. (Pad Mc)
5. Dancing
6. More dancing.
7. "Liver Dance"

alibaba · #2 08-09-2006, 17:48

Now i understand what my g/f was trying to explain to me on the phone yesterday.
I thought what she was explaining was that there is a full moon tonight.Life can be difficult at times.55555

Coolhand · #3 08-09-2006, 17:50

Interesting!

It was a partial eclipse. Because it occurs close to the equinox, everywhere will experience higher tidal ranges.

K2 · #4 08-09-2006, 18:24

It was only a partial eclipse ... details I could only find from this NZ website ..

Partial Lunar Eclipse Set for Sept. 7 - Yahoo! News

The next one is due March 3rd 2007.

As far as the Thai/Chinese superstition found this regarding Lao superstitions...

Laotian mythology tells of the giant frog that ate the moon. This in reality is how the Lao explain a lunar eclipse. The disappearance of the moon is taken as a bad omen, and evil spirits are present. This superstition sets the stage for bad things to happen in the land. So the Lao make a great effort of scaring the frog away from the moon. They fire their guns into the air and make as much noise as they can. The frog is frightened by the noise and it releases its grip on the moon and it is restored to its original shape. Now peace and prosperity can return to the land.

Hence the bell ringing - noise making etc.

Dodger · #5 08-09-2006, 18:33

That's what my teelak told me last night, she said "moon make no good and dissappear, you must make a load of noise to scare away the demons"

So I farted and went back to sleep!!!!

jay ozpom · #6 08-09-2006, 18:35

Thanx for that,very interesting read.Nice pics of the girls dancing too.Good to see Nok with a smile on her dial.I heard a guy on the radio the other day saying we were due a partial eclipse, they must use the same moon in Thailand as us.

faultytowers · #7 08-09-2006, 18:38

Thanks for the info Kev , just thought it strange that I had never seen this before in all my trips to LOS. The BG's definitely showed a lot of respect, so it must have significant meaning to them. Guess the date will feature in a lot of lottery numbers this month.

Tyfon · #8 08-09-2006, 18:42

In 1868 King Rama IV (the same one portrayed not very accurately in the musical "The King and I") predicted an eclipse over Siam, to which he invited foreign dignitaries and scientists. It is recorded that local village people banged drums and let off fire-crackers to scare away the demon Rahu who, they beleived, was trying to eat the moon.

Rahu was betrayed by the sun and the moon in his attempt to steal an elixir of life and Rahu swore revenge on them both. Both solar and lunar eclipses are therefore interpreted as Rahu attempting to exact his revenge.

Try explaining that in BG-English.

Petter · #9 08-09-2006, 19:07

The Whole of the Moon,wasent that waterboys

Reed more of this and other Superstitions from Thailand:
Richard's Life in Thailand - Thai Superstitions

faultytowers · #10 08-09-2006, 19:07

Did a bit more checking , and also found the Rahu story but to make it all the more interesting this year's eclipse fell on a special day;

Quote:

“Sat Thai” Day, i.e. the full moon day of a the 10th lunar month, the day the Thais believe all spirits are released to receive the food dedicated by their relatives.

So , it looks like it was doubly important to make "offerings" to the spirits and also , to drive away the demon.

This has been another aspect of Thai culture I did not really know about , so at least I have gained a bit of knowledge this trip.

K2 · #11 08-09-2006, 19:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyfon

In 1868 King Rama IV (the same one portrayed not very accurately in the musical "The King and I") predicted an eclipse over Siam, to which he invited foreign dignitaries and scientists. It is recorded that local village people banged drums and let off fire-crackers to scare away the demon Rahu who, they beleived, was trying to eat the moon.

Rahu was betrayed by the sun and the moon in his attempt to steal an elixir of life and Rahu swore revenge on them both. Both solar and lunar eclipses are therefore interpreted as Rahu attempting to exact his revenge.

Try explaining that in BG-English.

Indeed Tyfon - while looking for the eclipse info (I'm a solar eclipse chaser - lunar ones not very impressive in comparison) ... came accross this :-

"Joe Louis Puppet Theatre, the last of the kingdom’s traditional Thai small puppets troupe, was awarded the ‘Best Traditional Performance Award’ in recognition of the troupe’s presentation of The Myth of Rahu and the Lunar Eclipse at the 10th World Festival of Puppet Art held in Prague, Czech Republic, during June 1-10, 2006."

Thailand's Joe Louis Puppet Theatre Wins 'Best Traditional Performance Award' at 10th World Festival of Puppet Art in Prague, Czech Republic - TAT Governor Cornor

brit · #12 09-09-2006, 08:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by Petter

The Whole of the Moon,wasent that waterboys

Reed more of this and other Superstitions from Thailand:
Richard's Life in Thailand - Thai Superstitions

My favourite:

(14) Do not throw money away because you will lose your finger

Cheap charlies everywhere rush to learn the thumb disappearing trick...

I think they missed one underneath though
(14a) Do not throw tiirak away because you will lose your ****

jay ozpom · #13 09-09-2006, 11:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Petter

The Whole of the Moon,wasent that waterboys

Reed more of this and other Superstitions from Thailand:
Richard's Life in Thailand - Thai Superstitions

Thanx for the link Petter.Some good info on Thailand..jay..

nelsonone · #14 11-09-2006, 11:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Petter

The Whole of the Moon,wasent that waterboys ]

Yes Petter and IMHO one of the most beautiful and poetic songs ever written........

I pictured a rainbow
You held in your hands
I had flashes
But you saw the plan
I wondered out in the world for years
While you just stayed in your room
I saw the crescent
You saw the whole of the moon!
The whole of the moon!

You were there at the turnstiles
With the wind at your heels
You stretched for the stars
And you know how it feels
To reach too high
Too far
Too soon
You saw the whole of the moon!

I was grounded
While you filled the skies
I was dumbfounded by truths
You cut through lies
I saw the rain-dirty valley
You saw brigadoon
I saw the crescent
You saw the whole of the moon!

I spoke about wings
You just flew
I wondered, I guessed, and I tried
You just knew
I sighed
But you swooned
I saw the crescent
You saw the whole of the moon!
The whole of the moon!

With a torch in your pocket
And the wind at your heels
You climbed on the ladder
And you know how it feels
To reach too high
Too far
Too soon
You saw the whole of the moon!
The whole of the moon!

Unicorns and cannonballs,
Palaces and piers,
Trumpets, towers, and tenemets,
Wide oceans full of tears,
Flag, rags, ferry boats,
Scimitars and scarves,
Every precious dream and vision
Underneath the stars

You climbed on the ladder
With the wind in your sails
You came like a comet
Blazing your trail
Too high
Too far
Too soon
You saw the whole of the moon!