Alms offering
Pha Siwisai and Pha Somphong
With their bowls after the morning alms offering
Here more than in Chiang Mai, it's a whole codified tradition. To my farang eyes, it looks like CM is kind of more "modern", like more relaxed about the rules. Over there, it's more like : the monks go out of their temple at the time they choose - somewhere between 6am and 7.30 - to wander on their favorite itinerary. The people bow to them, give a plastic bag with some food, then kneel down and the monk chant to thank them. Basically...
Here... All the monks of Luang Prabang leave their temple at the same time, in a single line, usually around 6.15am. One monk beats the drum and, 5min later, the file of monks and novices goes out. Monks first, novices behind, ordered according to the amount of time they have been wearing the robe.
People sit on the ground, on a map, a basket of sticky rice in front of them. They give a small amount of rice to every monk. But there isn't only one temple passing by, all the temples of the neighbourghood happen to walk in front of you at one time. So you end up giving rice to about 150 monks. Who never stop to chant...
French tourists waiting for the monks with their Lao guide.Here... All the monks of Luang Prabang leave their temple at the same time, in a single line, usually around 6.15am. One monk beats the drum and, 5min later, the file of monks and novices goes out. Monks first, novices behind, ordered according to the amount of time they have been wearing the robe.
People sit on the ground, on a map, a basket of sticky rice in front of them. They give a small amount of rice to every monk. But there isn't only one temple passing by, all the temples of the neighbourghood happen to walk in front of you at one time. So you end up giving rice to about 150 monks. Who never stop to chant...
And believe me... it's damn fast ! I did it 3 mornings in a row, so I begin to have the knack. But still... you have to rush. They walk at the same speed than a normal walk, hardly slowing down, and you have to take your rice and put it in the bowl in time. Except that... sticky rice is damn sticky.
Ah, nostalgy... This first morning when I was having a really hard time - my rice would never want to fall into the bowl. N-e-v-e-r. It would stick to my fingers like it would be in love with them... So my hand was following the bowl of one monk along 40cm before my jerks and jolts would make it understand the law of gravity. Hum... That is if I forgot the time when the small rice ball actually decided to flew into the airs - before I caught it with a look of oh-my-god, while the monk was trying to hide his smile...
The big issue in LP is that it is a really touristic city... And thus, the morning offering soon became a tourist attraction like others. Tourists wake up at 6am to get the opportunity to see something "strange", "outdated", "not really hygienic" but "beautiful to see". Some respect both the monks and the people who give. Others are... well.. tourists...
You can see some of them walking up too much close to the monks, sometimes walking backwards, just in front of the leading one, or running along the file to go to a new picture spot. It's pathetic and irrespectful... Just like a huge zoo walking free. But, fortunately, it's too early for the mass of the tourists. We don't have the whole bunch of them....
Ah, nostalgy... This first morning when I was having a really hard time - my rice would never want to fall into the bowl. N-e-v-e-r. It would stick to my fingers like it would be in love with them... So my hand was following the bowl of one monk along 40cm before my jerks and jolts would make it understand the law of gravity. Hum... That is if I forgot the time when the small rice ball actually decided to flew into the airs - before I caught it with a look of oh-my-god, while the monk was trying to hide his smile...
The big issue in LP is that it is a really touristic city... And thus, the morning offering soon became a tourist attraction like others. Tourists wake up at 6am to get the opportunity to see something "strange", "outdated", "not really hygienic" but "beautiful to see". Some respect both the monks and the people who give. Others are... well.. tourists...
You can see some of them walking up too much close to the monks, sometimes walking backwards, just in front of the leading one, or running along the file to go to a new picture spot. It's pathetic and irrespectful... Just like a huge zoo walking free. But, fortunately, it's too early for the mass of the tourists. We don't have the whole bunch of them....
Some Laos were quick to see the opportunity. From 6am, women walk in the street and offer rice and bananas to the tourists, so that they can give food to the monks - and have their picture of them doing it. These women usually sell the food at an expensive price.
Sometimes, the monks give back some food at the end of the walk, if they have too much for their day needs. They just drop some fruits or soup in the lid of one basket, in front of one Lao giving food. Except that sometimes, they saw the people selling it back afterwards. Needless to say... the novices were not quite happy with it...
Also... some westerners just sit in the middle of the people who do give, but just watch and do nothing else. So, sometimes, a novice will open his bowl and the tourist will just stare at him with wondering eyes. Pha Than told me it happened some times to him and that now they were all really shy about oppening their bowls to the Westerners. I felt it. Many monks walk faster in front of me, or are a little late to open the bowl... just in case. But after the 3rd morning, I think some of them began to recognize me. Actually, the evening of the 3rd day, I met a monk who asked me "where is your friend ? I never saw her with you before". The morning, one Canadian girl was sitting with me.
But what is funny with the monks and novices from Wat Pa Phai is that they do recognize me. And show it. The leading monk always hide a smile, although I never talked to him. But some of the novices... They make huge grins, almost winks. And Pha Than always drops a small "thanks" when walking by. You're not supposed to talk... Gang of novices... ^^
Sometimes, the monks give back some food at the end of the walk, if they have too much for their day needs. They just drop some fruits or soup in the lid of one basket, in front of one Lao giving food. Except that sometimes, they saw the people selling it back afterwards. Needless to say... the novices were not quite happy with it...
Also... some westerners just sit in the middle of the people who do give, but just watch and do nothing else. So, sometimes, a novice will open his bowl and the tourist will just stare at him with wondering eyes. Pha Than told me it happened some times to him and that now they were all really shy about oppening their bowls to the Westerners. I felt it. Many monks walk faster in front of me, or are a little late to open the bowl... just in case. But after the 3rd morning, I think some of them began to recognize me. Actually, the evening of the 3rd day, I met a monk who asked me "where is your friend ? I never saw her with you before". The morning, one Canadian girl was sitting with me.
But what is funny with the monks and novices from Wat Pa Phai is that they do recognize me. And show it. The leading monk always hide a smile, although I never talked to him. But some of the novices... They make huge grins, almost winks. And Pha Than always drops a small "thanks" when walking by. You're not supposed to talk... Gang of novices... ^^