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`Sukhwan' ritual at marriage: case illustration 1

The sukhwan ceremony at formal marriage is only one phase in the
proceedings. The following is an account of a rite which was performed
in the morning.

The phakhwan of the marriage ceremony is a conspicuous ritual item,
under other names, in all khwan ceremonies. It is a tiered conical structure
built on a tray, and on it are placed a boiled egg, bananas, flowers and
a lump of rice. The participants sit around it. The phakhwan is an offering
to the khwan. When the officiant invites the khwan of the celebrants to
come, they first come to the phakhwan because they are attracted to it.
The rule for marriage ceremonies is that elderly married women who are
still living with their husbands should make the phakhwan; widows and
divorced or separated women should not be assigned this task. There is
a taboo on the performance of sukhwan for the bride and groom together
if a parent (or the parents) of either of them is dead, for if it is done
under these circumstances the pair will not live or stay together long.
If a parent is dead, separate khwan ceremonies must be done for the
bride and groom. Villagers cannot say why this taboo exists. As in the
case of other khwan ceremonies, this particular one was performed in
order to make the bride and groom `rich, live well, healthy and happy'.
The observer can reasonably infer that the khwan ceremony avoids the
participation of widows and divorcees because it is meant to affirm the
stability of marriage. Similarly, marriage is `opposed' to death and this
notion is marked by a separate performance for the couples when a parent
is dead. After the bridewealth had been ceremonially presented, the
ceremony was conducted in the presence of the assembled guests in the

sleeping room (haung yaai) of the bride's parents' house, in that section
used by parents and located in the eastern quarter (see Chapter 2). The
officiant was a ritual elder called pupaahm or paahm (which is derived
from the Indian word brahman). He sat on one side of the phakhwan;
the groom and bride sat close together on the other side, the former on
her right. Sitting in a circle between the paahm and the groom were
three men, between the paahm and the bride four women. (The numbers
were said not to be significant. It is not necessary that these men and women
be married; they are friends of the couple and include both married
and unmarried young adults.)

A cord was attached to the phakhwan and passed through the hands of
the women, next of the groom and the bride, then of the men, and its end
was held by the paahm. The cord is called fai monkhon (thread of good
fortune). The officiant then placed a bamboo ring, with pieces of cotton
wool attached, on the head of the groom; an elder's wife did the same
for the bride. (The villagers interpreted this act as marking the pair as
the beneficiaries of the rite.)

A candle was lit, after which the officiant chanted the invitation to
the thewada or divine angels. (The thewada are always invited to come
and witness the marriage rite: they are told that on such and such a day
the marriage is being held for so-and-so. They are requested to help call
the khwan of the bride and groom so that they will come, `join as a pair',
and enter the bodies of the couple.) Then followed a long chant which is
the actual `calling of the khwan', and which I shall discuss presently.

Next the officiant gave advice and moral instruction to the couple. Thus,
for instance, the groom was told that he should not show interest in
divorced or separated women but must be true to his bride. The bride
was told that she was a daughter-in-law and must love her husband and
her husband's parents. The officiant then made sacred water (fai naam
lao) by pouring liquor and/or perfume into a bowl of water, and sprinkled
the couple with it. (From this point on, the young people in the audience
intermittently joked and pushed the bride and groom so that their bodies
touched.)

The paahm picked up the lump of rice, a banana, and the egg from the
phakhwan, put them in the groom's hand, and then tied his wrist with
a piece of white thread (fai mongkhon). The procedure was repeated for
the bride. (This may be said to represent the transference of the khwan
from the phakhwan to the couple, followed by the binding of the khwan
to the body.) The elders, men and women, and the young people followed
in tying bits of thread to the wrists of the couple. The elders at this point
gave the couple gifts of money. This sequence is referred to as puk-khan.

What has been described is the sukhwan ceremony proper. It is followed
by a sequence called somma phuu thaw (which is enacted without the
sukhwan when the latter is not appropriate, that is, when parent or
parents of bride or groom are dead). The words somma phuu thaw are
critical for understanding village social and kinship relationships and
obligations, especially the place of elders in the village community. Somma
means `forgiveness', phuu thaw means `old person'. These phuu thaw
are also, in the context of marriage proceedings, called thaw gae (old old
persons), which term is understood in the sense of intermediaries or
witnesses. Traditionally somma phuu thaw, `asking the forgiveness of
elders', is an essential part of the marriage ceremony. `Forgiveness' in
fact means two reciprocal things: the couple pay their respects to elders,
the elders confer their blessings on the union.

The `somma phuu thaw' on this occasion took the following form (a
standardized pattern). Two cushions were placed end to end and a bowl
containing flowers and candles was placed on top of them. The couple
sat on one side of the cushions and the officiant on the other. (Male and
female friends may or may not sit next to the couple.) The officiating
elder (the same person as the officiant of the sukhwan rite) first touched the
bowl—this he explained as `accepting the flowers and candles given as
the gift of the groom and bride to the elders'. He then gave them lengthy
advice (a longer version of the advisory sequence in the sukhwan described
above). For instance, since in the case of this marriage the couple were
expected to live uxorilocally (for a while at least), the groom was told
how to behave as a good son-in-law of the household—that he must
respect his new `parents' and work hard. The wife was given an even
longer instruction. She was told: Do not argue with your husband,
prepare food for your husband to eat when he returns from work, look
after the house and keep it clean, get on well with the husband's relatives,
do not commit adultery, save money from your husband's earnings, etc.

Following this, an elderly married woman led the bride and groom to
their sleeping quarters (the western quarter of the sleeping room), where
the bed had been prepared for them. They then returned and candles
and flowers from the bowl were distributed to all the phuu thaw. (This
is a `gift' to them from the couple and `marks' them as witnesses.) With
the wedding rites thus concluded, a feast was given to all those present.

Now for some comments on the ritual symbolism. That in the sukhwan
ceremony is pretty obvious and requires no lengthy elucidation. The
ceremonial structure, phakhwan, or its equivalent, is to be found in most
village rituals; it reminds one of the prasaat (palace) in Buddhist rites, the
conical pagoda, and the seven-tiered umbrella of royalty. The name of

the structure, however, changes with the rite and this is conceptually
important. In this case the phakhwan stands as the object that will attract
the khwan; it is the place where the khwan will alight; in other words, it
becomes the externalized and objectified khwan itself. Items of food—
boiled egg, lump of rice, bananas, etc.—are placed in the phakhwan; the
khwan is attracted by them and enters them, and when the officiant
transfers the khwan to the bodies of the celebrants it is these items of food
that are first handed over to the couple. In every ritual in the village,
food items are used symbolically as offerings, as the objects that attract
supernaturals, and as a medium for the transfer of sacredness. In this
khwan rite we may note that the food objects and other offerings are called
kryang bucha, that is, objects for making worship, the word bucha being
derived from the Indian word puja. The offerings in this case distinguished
by the fact that they lack meat and are primarily, except for the egg,
vegetarian, and that they are offered to pure benevolent sacred agents.
(The logic of these category distinctions can only be expounded later when
we have examined other rites, especially those addressed to phii (spirits).)

The white cord is the object through which `charging' or `sacralization'
takes place, and it is also used to bind the wrist (puk-khan). Through this
act the khwan is tied to the body. The ritual role of the cord is similar
to that in certain Buddhist rites examined earlier in Chapter 12. The role
of the lustral water as a cleansing agent before the khwan is received by
the celebrant is also readily evident.

The officiant is signified by his wearing on his arm a package containing
cooked rice, banana, and coins; this package also constitutes the nominal
payment for his services. The signification of the celebrants requires
a gloss: a bamboo ring with pieces of cotton wool is placed on the head.
The white colour of the cotton symbolically connotes purity in this
context. The head is crowned because it is the head that is considered
the pre-eminent residence of the khwan. The mode of signifying the
recipient differs in different sukhwan rites, and I shall elucidate the logic
of this in the rites to follow. An additional object is the candle, which is
always lighted before the ceremony starts. In the wedding ritual a single
candle signifies both celebrants, and is not a focus of elaboration as in
the other two situations that will be examined.

Finally, the pushing of the bride and groom so that their bodies touch,
and their being led to the bridal chamber, are clear enough in their
implications for a couple being married and about to initiate sexual union.

Now to comment on the supporting cast in the ceremony. It is elderly
married women who are neither widowed nor divorced or separated who
make the phakhwan. The women thus stand for established stable marriage.

Young friends of both sexes, married and unmarried, sit on either side
of the groom and bride, themselves holding the cord. Youths are selected
to transmit good wishes and to give moral support to the couple. It is
a married elderly woman who leads the couple to the chamber, and it
is elders who take precedence in the binding of the wrists of the couple
and in turn receive respects and gifts from the couple—all of which
signifies that it is the elders who are establishing the marriage and who
are appropriate for transferring blessings. The somma phuu thaw sequences
underline these features. Youth takes a secondary place in these sequences,
and in fact throughout the entire marriage proceedings.