Trance in the Procession Ceremony

The street procession is one of the most important ceremonies in the Taoist Thetsakan kin che. In this particular ceremony, communication is achieved between the participants and the gods through the mediums called ma song (see figure A.13, p.

274).

Ma song are devotees who are in communication with the gods. At the moment the god enters into the devotee’s soul, he transforms him or her into being the god himself, both in soul and character.

Ma song are usually male but occasionally female. Female ma song are possessed of a female spirit or goddess, called chao-mae (เจาแม), such as the goddess, whose abode is in Thonburi, called Chaomae Thapthim. There are other Chinese goddesses in Thai belief and sacrificial practice. The word “chao-mae” means “the woman potentate”, (chao means “potentate” and mae means “mother”). The highest ranked goddess is Avalokiteshvara, who originally was a male Bodhisattva but the people in Thailand call her “Chaomae Guan Im” or “Phra Phothisat Guan Im” (Phra Phothisat means Bodhisattva). In the procession, the female ma song will also bless the people as the other ma song but mostly without self-flagellation. The beginning of the transformation from a devotee to a ma song is described by Khuekrit Pratyaprueang:

“On the morning of the street procession, many people and many of the devotees prepare by worshiping at sacred altars in the worship area. After that all devotees who have worn only black trousers gather in front of the main altar tranquilly, mindful of the main shrine of the temple or association. At that moment the music is started with the big drum, followed by big and small cymbals and gongs producing a fast, deep, voluminous sound to begin the process of inviting the god into the devotee’s soul (ma song)” (Personal interview 30 October 2006).

After the god enters into the devotee’s soul (ma song), the percussion ensemble performs continuously and moves to an open-air area for the next event. When all devotees or ma song come to one place, they manifest the supernatural powers by piercing sharp objects through various parts of their bodies such as sharp metal spikes

through the cheeks, back or tongue. It is believed that these activities bring good luck to the community and show the power of the god.

The percussion ensemble continues and plays its music louder with deep and engulfing sounds from drums, the sizzle and crash of cymbals and many different resonances and sounds from gongs. The ensembles with their stirring beat have a driving effect of entertainment and bustle. The tempo of the beat has a direct effect on the heartbeat and brain waves and affects the emotions. The sound of the moment leads the people to perceive the atmosphere as pressing, exciting and thrilling.

During the piercing, a ma song is always shaking and trembling to the tempo of the music. With the exciting and thrilling feeling, the people prepare themselves for the procession. Most of the participants help the ma song in piercing their bodies. After piercing, the music is stopped and the announcer invites everybody into the procession’s order. The procession is organized like a mighty army. The purpose of this procession of the deities is to give blessing to the people. The people who are not involved in the procession stand beside the streets and wait for it. When the parade of deities pass by, some people kneel quietly or put both hands together to their forehead, bending down forward until their forehead touches the ground.

The music for the procession ensemble is called luo gow and it performs in the first part of the procession, creating the sounds for celebration and laudation of the deity, especially for Kio Ong Tai Te.

In the first part of the procession there are advertisements of the sponsors, the music ensemble, the “Miss Beauty” group, signboards or cardboard plaques with proverbs, and children carrying flags and banners with the gods’ names in Chinese characters.

The next part of the procession is the deities’ part. There are many palanquins showing the images of important gods for whom the people have great regard. In this part of the procession another gong and drum ensemble performs. This ensemble includes the big drum, a gong, an oboe and cymbals. It is not a big ensemble but it seems to have more power. The drum is the most important instrument in the percussion ensemble, which produces the stirring sounds and hard beats lasting for

long periods. In addition to the music there are again and again long strings of firecrackers.

“On the way, the firecracker is one thing used to make the lauding sound. With the long firecracker the people take it on a long stick and ignite it for worship of the deity, particularly the important gods in the palanquins. When the fire-cracker is ignited, the palanquin’s carriers will speed up their dance tempo with the palanquin under a firecracker stick until the set of firecrackers is completely finished” (Personal interview with the musician Wirat Chaokhamin, 26 October 2006).

It is important to worship with using firecrackers, because the people believe in a positive effect:

“The significance is the good luck that could correlate with the deity’s satisfactions, so if they can make the deity more satisfied, the good luck will come” (Personal interview with the musician Wirat Chaokhamin. 26 October 2006).

The ma song walk around the municipality, finally arriving back to the starting point (it takes about three to five hours). After all the ma song arrive at the shrine or temple, they return to the main altar. The god in the devotee will leave him/her to go back to heaven; at that moment the body of the devotee starts to shake strongly. At this time the percussion performs with an accelerating rapid tempo accompanied by more firecrackers.

After the end of the street procession, there is a long pause. In this time the other performances of self-flagellation take place to show the transcendent virtues of the deities, such as blade-ladder-climbing, fire-walking or holy-oil. The percussion ensemble will accompany this performance.

The music in the trance ceremony is usually focused on the rhythm ensemble. But the effects of the music go far beyond this:

“The dynamic connection enables music to cohere with a wider world, and it enables the adept to harness an affective and spiritual power that lies both within and beyond the musical imagination” (Mora 2005:93).

In this case, the sound of drums is the most important one, the rhythmic drumming having become familiar and customary. The loud and deep sound is believed to be a sacred sound. One opinion is that the loud sound can drive out the devil or bad luck and replace these with good luck and good fortune, especially because of the rhythmic drumming. Another popular belief concerns human spirituality and the manner in which the power of the vibrations of the drumbeats can be used in festivals and celebrations to please those who are honored and to put them in a favorable mood.

The phenomena of the gods entering the devotees or ma song cannot really be explained in terms of the rhythmic effects of the music. From the observer’s point of view, the devotees seem to be unconscious, similar to a state of hypnotism, doing many things that appear impossible.

6. THE MUSIC OF MAHAYANA BUDDHISM IN SOUTHERN THAILAND