Silvia Dona

Photographer

www.silviadona.com

Phuket Vegetarian Festival

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Location: Thailand

Nationality: Italian

Biography: I was born in Uganda during the military dictatorship of Idi Amin Dada, to a Greek mother and an Italian father. My parents had met in Tripoli, fallen in love and sometime later, my father took a job in Kampala. He was to spend half his life in... MORE

Fire walking ritual of Jui Tui ...he safety of the fire walkers.

1 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Fire walking ritual of Jui Tui Shrine is a very elaborate affair and generally held at a nearby sports field as it involves a great number of spirit mediums and gods’ sedan-chairs arriving in procession. A large crowd assembles to watch the spectacle which generally takes place on the evening of the sixth day.

The pyre is prepared following specific rituals and four altars with gods images are placed in the corners of the fenced-off space. The mah song (spirit medium) purifies the glowing coals of the pyre, scratches a few signs on the ground in front of the coals and throws salt and rice grains on them. A prayer is then read by one of the mah songs assistants who places a big sheet of charm paper on the coals to protect the safety of the fire walkers.

Mah song (spirit medium) walks ... as it moves through the town.

2 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah song (spirit medium) walks towards the sports field where the fire walking ritual will be held. He is accompanied by a group of companions or assistants (pi liang) dressed in white, the colour symbolising self-purification. Strings of firecrackers are lit and thrown into the street procession as it moves through the town.

A young spirit medium (mah song...mmander of the Celestial Army.

3 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

A young spirit medium (mah song - ‘horse of the possessing spirit’ in Thai) blesses the crowd by waving his flag over their heads. In Phuket, mah songs are predominantly young people and it is claimed by scholars, that they come from the lower social strata of the local Sino-Thai community. This young mah song has had his cheeks pierced with skewers called “general’s head”, the hilt being a small wooden head of a commander of the Celestial Army.

A female mah song in trance as ...ks pierced by a male pi liang.

4 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

A female mah song in trance as she awaits to have her cheeks pierced by a male pi liang.

Male mah song (sprit medium) ho...l well being of the community.

5 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Male mah song (sprit medium) holding a string of firecrackers during a street procession. It is common to see mah songs walk, or jump-step through the streets, as well as shake their heads continuously. This ’trance dance’, as well as the rituals performed in the streets are supposed to purify the environment for the general well being of the community.

Gods sedan chairs being carried...rocession through Phuket town.

6 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Gods sedan chairs being carried during a street procession through Phuket town.

Male mah song (sprit medium) ho...l well being of the community.

7 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Male mah song (sprit medium) holding a string of firecrackers during a street procession. It is common to see mah songs walk, or jump-step through the streets, as well as shake their heads continuously. This ’trance dance’, as well as the rituals performed in the streets are supposed to purify the environment for the general well being of the community.

Young male mah song blesses the... procession though Phuket Town

8 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Young male mah song blesses the crowd during a street procession though Phuket Town

The main attire of male mah son...les who adopt a male identity.

9 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

The main attire of male mah songs (spirit mediums) consists of a kind of ‘apron’, which fastens across the front of the body. The apron is made of coloured embroidered silk, and proclaims the identity of the shen (or ‘god possessing the medium’). The name of the shen is usually embroidered in Chinese characters at the top of the apron. The apron is worn only by male mah songs and some ‘tomboys’, females who adopt a male identity.

Mah song entering trance. Entra...her already entranced mediums.

10 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah song entering trance.
Entrancement usually comes easily and remarkably swiftly to most mah song, especially when it is conditioned by the rhythmical beating of gongs and drums and in the presence of other already entranced mediums.

Female mah song in trance getti... of Kwan Im’s altar.

11 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Female mah song in trance getting dressed by her pi liang
Females generally enter into trance in a quieter manner compared to males, though some emit very sharp shrieks at the moment of entrancement. While the men generally enter into trance in front of the altars of male deities, the female mah songs stand in front of Kwan Im’s altar.

Mah song entering trance surrou... major events of the festival.

12 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah song entering trance surrounded by his pi liang at Kathu Shrine.
Spirit mediumship is still widely practised around the world. In Chinese folk religion once a medium enters into a trance it is believed that a deity or spirit takes possession of his body, replacing the medium’s own soul, or more accurately the ‘yang element of his soul’ which then ‘wanders about in safe places’. This in turns leaves the ‘yin element’ of the soul in considerable danger. A medium therefore never enters into trance alone, but is surrounded by friends or relatives known as pi liang who attend to the spirit mediums during the major events of the festival.

A person is considered to be po...take part in some ritual event.

13 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

A person is considered to be possessed by a deity at a certain moment in the process of entrancement. Spirit mediums differ in the way that they enter into trance.
During the festival, mah songs will deliberately induce trance to coincide with the beginning of a ritual event. The principal medium of the shrine will begin by sitting quietly in the shrines hall. He concentrates and after a while he starts to move his head and arms. Suddenly he jumps up and approaches the altar, bangs it with the palms of his hands- this is the moment in which his spirit is believed to have left him and the god possessed his body. Assistants quickly help him to put on the mediums apron.
After this a succession of other mediums start to deliberately seek to enter trance. Soon mediums are seen entering trance all around the shrine. Once they have been quietly assisted to put on their aprons, they exit the shrine, either jumping or running and waving their flags. Soon after that the mah songs quiet down, routinely shaking their heads as they wait to be pierced or to take part in some ritual event.

Mah song exiting from trance. A...haves like a normal man again.

14 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah song exiting from trance.
Although the manner in which mediums enter into trance may vary, generally the way they exit from trance follows a similar pattern. The mah song will jump up and then fall back into the arms of the pi liang. The jump is believed to be the point at which the god leaves the medium’s body and his own soul re-enters it. The assistant is sometimes seen covering the medium’s face and reciting a prayer before the latter revives, rubs his eyes and behaves like a normal man again.

Mah song being pierced with mul...nner surrounded by on-lookers.

15 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah song being pierced with multiple needles.
The piercing is done without the use of anaesthetic by the pi liang (assistant) or sometimes by experienced piercers who take on one medium after the other in the course of a morning. The needles are cleansed by antiseptic liquid. The whole event proceeds in a very businesslike manner surrounded by on-lookers.

Mah song entering into trance M...of heavenly beings.’

16 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah song entering into trance
Mediums in trance often communicate in an artificial and shrill, often indistinctive voice, a voice that has been described as the ‘voice of Chinese theatre actors’ by some scholars. In Thai, the medium’s manner of speech is also known as pasha thep, ‘the language of heavenly beings.’

Mah song having his cheeks, arm...ns parasols to name but a few.

17 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah song having his cheeks, arms and torso pierced by his pi liang at Bang Liao Shrine.
The piercing objects worn by the spirit mediums differ and do not seem to be iconographically related to the deities who possess them. Some mediums may also change the piercing objects from year to year. This relative openness of the choice of piercing objects has meant that some very spectacular, heavy and/or cumbersome objects have been introduced at the festival over the years , such as axes, guns, swords, bicycles, electric fans parasols to name but a few.

Mah songs performing in front o...anded or thrown at the public.

18 of 18 © 2024 Silvia Dona

Mah songs performing in front of a high altar in the yard of the Bang Niao Shrine. The mediums cut their backs with swords, axes or prick balls.
A Taoist prayer is also read out, with the public kneeling down and the mediums shouting and waving their flags whenever the bell is rung. At the end of the ritual, pieces of charm cloth and thread bracelets are handed or thrown at the public.

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Thumbnail of Fire walking ritual of Jui Tui S_the safety of the fire walkers.

Thumbnail of Mah song (spirit medium) walks t_n as it moves through the town.

Thumbnail of A young spirit medium (mah song _ommander of the Celestial Army.

Thumbnail of A female mah song in trance as s_eks pierced by a male pi liang.

Thumbnail of Male mah song (sprit medium) hol_al well being of the community.

Thumbnail of Gods sedan chairs being carried _procession through Phuket town.

Thumbnail of Male mah song (sprit medium) hol_al well being of the community.

Thumbnail of Young male mah song blesses the _t procession though Phuket Town

Thumbnail of The main attire of male mah song_ales who adopt a male identity.

Thumbnail of Mah song entering trance. Entran_ther already entranced mediums.

Thumbnail of Female mah song in trance gettin_t of Kwan Im’s altar.

Thumbnail of Mah song entering trance surroun_e major events of the festival.

Thumbnail of A person is considered to be pos_ take part in some ritual event.

Thumbnail of Mah song exiting from trance. Al_ehaves like a normal man again.

Thumbnail of Mah song being pierced with mult_anner surrounded by on-lookers.

Thumbnail of Mah song entering into trance Me_ of heavenly beings.’

Thumbnail of Mah song having his cheeks, arms_ans parasols to name but a few.

Thumbnail of Mah songs performing in front of_handed or thrown at the public.

Public Story

Phuket Vegetarian Festival

Copyright Silvia Dona 2024

Updated Mar 2023

Location Thailand

Topics Breaking News, Celebrations, Community, Culture, Culture stories, Documentary, Editorial, Photography

Summary

A photographic story about The Phuket Vegetarian Festival, aka the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, which is celebrated on the 9th lunar month of the Chinese calendar. The festival is rooted in Chinese Taoist beliefs.

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival, aka the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, is celebrated on the 9th lunar month of the Chinese calendar. The festival is rooted in Chinese Taoist beliefs. The temples hold a 9 day ceremony during which spirit mediums (mah song) fall into a trance and pierce their cheeks, arms and back with ritual objects. Street processions follow with mah song in trance displaying various forms of self-mutilation. During the procession the spirit mediums also distribute blessed candy, bracelets and pieces of orange cloths for good luck. They also bless the crowds by waving their flags over peoples heads. Mutilation is not the only part of the process. Devotees adhere to ritual cleansing activities during this period and dress in white clothes and abstain from alcohol, meat and sex. Yellow flags with red writing outside restaurants indicate that the establishment sells jeh or vegetarian food. Fire walking also takes place and attracts big crowds. The whole celebration is accompanied by drumbeats and loud firecrackers which are believed to ward off evil spirits.

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