ABNORMAL DEATH
Villagers view abnormal death with great fear, because the winjan may
become a malevolent phii called phii tai hoeng. These spirits are said to
hover on earth because of their attachment to worldly interests, having
been plucked from life before completing a normal life cycle. The corpses
are denied cremation because of the fear `that disease may affect the
luug
and
laan (children and grandchildren or other living descendants) who
may die like their predecessors'.
The corpse is buried quickly after death; this is done even if death
takes place at night. Monks are not called upon to chant beforehand or
to officiate at the burial. The corpse is not put in a coffin; its feet and
hands are tied and it is simply covered with a bamboo mat and buried.
The burial is devoid of ritual.
It is only after the body has been hastily disposed of, so that the earth
may contain its dangerous powers, that the monks are invited to conduct
rites, to invest the deceased with merit and grant protection to the living.
They are invited to chant in the deceased's house for three nights; they are
not given food on the succeeding mornings but are given gifts.
The corpse may be left in the earth for a period extending from three
months to two years, at the end of which its dangerous powers have been
immunized and it is ready for the normal mortuary rites. The bones are
dug up and cremated; they are then cleansed and put in a pot, and buried
in the manner described earlier. The monks officiate. Finally a prasaat
peueng ceremony is held to transfer merit to the dead. Thus sudden death
is also treated with ritual of the double obsequies pattern, the first phase
being the burial and the second the normal mortuary rites performed as
one continuous sequence.
