Almost everywhere you go in Thailand, you will notice small shrines, like miniature Buddhist temples, standing on pillars. They resemble an ornate birdhouse but often are far fancier creations of spires and peaked roofs, floridly and brilliantly decorated in red and gilt as well as other colors. They are called san phra phum (ศาลพระภูม), or “spirit houses,” and this is exactly what they are — homes for land spirits.
Made of wood or cement, spirit houses should bear some relationship in fanciness with the house or building they “represent,” so the spirit will feel comfortable. A small, simple wooden house will do for the spirit of the land where a farming family may have it’s own simple wooden house. A great fancy Khmer temple-like affair houses the spirit where a bank headquarters has been erected.
While not universal, these spirit houses are to be found just about everywhere except in a Buddhist wat. But even still, you may find older spirit houses near the wall of a wat, or many of them lying in a heap under a wide-spreading tree. These have been discarded in favor of newer, more luxurious spirit houses.
The san phra phum is treated like a shrine, and offerings of food, fruit, flowers, candles, incense, and sometimes whiskey or an entire pig’s head may be laid on the porch of the shrine or on a table set before it. It may also be “peopled” with tiny elephants, horses, and wee dancing girls. Most Thais (and many expats) honor these spirit houses even without knowing too much about the spirit in residence. It it part of the general essence of Brahmanism that underlies Thai spirituality.
Because they are not related to Buddhism, these shrines are not erected by Buddhist monks when they may come to bless your house or place of business. Rather, a Brahmin will set the requirements for placing your shrine and will carry out the ceremonies to invite the spirits to reside happily in it. The Thai Brahmin is not a member of some special caste as in India, but is trained in Brahmin beliefs and customs. He may also wear a white chongkraben and a white shirt or long upper garment embroidered with gold thread. Sometimes, he’ll even wear white stockings and white shoes. Usually, he sports a little knot of hair on the back of his head. More important is his intimate knowledge of the Brahmin traditions, scriptures, and ceremonies.
Some big city hotels, banks, or mansions may host enormously fancy shrines before which large offerings are made. The Bangkok Bank, for example, had two large shrines at its former head office. This is because the bank building housed the Japanese secret police during the Second World War and it was believed that the victims of police interrogation and torture were buried on the property. The extra shrine was meant to protect the bankers and their customers from any especially unlucky spiritual influences. In these matters, more is considered better.
The offerings of food and drink, by the way, may be consumed by ordinary mortals after the spirits have had their fill of the essences. Ants may crawl up the supporting pillar and birds may descend on the altar for an auspicious snack. No one will gainsay them. Who knows, perhaps the spirits inhabit other creatures as well.
In villages, bungalow colonies, city apartment blocks, and suburban housing estates, there may be a central spirit house that anyone can honor.
Christians may be interested to learn that at the ruins of the Portuguese colony in Ayutthaya, which date from the early sixteenth century, there is a spirit house dedicated to saints Pedro and Paulo (Peter and Paul). A Catholic-run school in Bangkapi has one dedicated to the Virgin Mary as well. Those should be considered shrines for saints rather than true spirit houses.
An excellent online article about spirit houses and the various spirits that reside in them can be found on the website of Chiangmai and Chiangrai Magazine.
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Posted by Mark Jochim
