Changing Isan Village

I am always fascinated to get insights into the way that villages in Isan work; what makes them tick and how they tick. Last year I posted HERE about the headman of Ban Noen That, and his part in helping to provide a house for someone in need of one. Following that post I discovered that a few houses had been provided or repaired in much the same way in Phana itself with the help of the tetsaban. One commenter on my post expressed the hope that no sign had been erected naming people who had made  donations. No such signs were erected either in Ban Noen That or in Phana. Everything was done very discreetly and without fuss. Just as it should be.

Earlier this year, a donation of land was made in Ban Noen That for the benefit of the community as a whole. In the picture on the left you can see the that  that gives the village its name. Inside are interred some of the ashes of Phana's most famous monk, Yakru (Phrakru in Thai) Boonma. Born in Phana in 1808, he ordained at 20 and went to study in Bangkok, the first person from Phana to do so. He studied at Wat Borwonives with the future Rama IV, King Mongkut. When Mongkut became King, he sent Boonma back to Isan to spread the practice of the new sect, Thammayut. Yakru Boonma died in 1871, aged 63.

 The that  you see above is a fairly recent building. Inside it is the original, which you can see below.

 

 

In this picture you can see the small sala where people of the village gather on certain ceremonial, festive or ritual occasions. Until recently, there was a house and its grounds on the space in the foreground.  The woman who owned this land has donated it to the village, the house has been dismantled, the ground cleared, filled and levelled.

A closer look at the sign makes clearer how this particular donation will work, although it doesn't explain everything. (CLICK on the image to get a bigger picture.) I will give you an approximate translation.

The top line invites people to join a public or communal pa ba, a donation ceremony.

The second line says that you join the pa ba by buying the land that has been offered to Luang Boo Tuat (Respected Great-Grandfather -- Yakru Boonma).

The third line suggests that you can be part of this merit-making donation by helping offering towards the purchase of the 555sq m land at 199 Baht per sq m.

Finally we are told where (in the sala) and when (12 April) the donation ceremony was to take place.

Now it may sound as if the woman who owned the land has not actually donated it; but she has, as far as the people of Ban Noen That are concerned. She has given up her house, that's for sure. The money raised by the donations (110,445 Baht if all are taken up) is to be spent on providing the woman with a new house on her farm some way outside the village, making use as far as possible of the material from her original house. 

So the village is changing. A new public space has appeared, and will no doubt be used for lots of dancing and the like. But the village is changing in another way, too, and this might sooner or later alter the nature of the community too. More and more people are moving out of the village and building houses on their farm land. Of course this is something we are familiar with in the west, but in Isan it has been the practice to cluster together in small villages and to walk  out to the farm when necessary. It is easier to get to the farms nowadays, by bicycle, motorbike, tak-tak, or pick-up. But it is also easier to get electricity and water supply to the farm, there is no danger from large wild animals, there is generally little likelihood of attack by bandits. And so on.  But it does mean fewer close neighbours (and more distant karaoke) and that must eventually lead to a diminished sense of community and an increased sense of individuality.

Comments

[Martyn]

Lawrence I see the donation comes in the form of the generous lady getting a little money back to help fund her new farmhouse. I'm sure her land and house in the village were valued at a lot more than the 110,445 Baht she'll receive.

Attacks by wild animals....that got me thinking. I know you're talking years gone by but what type of animals are you suggesting.

You'll be pleased to know I've picked up your last two posts via feedburner.

[Lawrence]

Hi, Martyn. Yes, I think what impressed me most was the way that all interested parties seemed to benefit from this little scheme.

Well, when Isan was much more densely forested, people setting up new villages had to beware of tigers and elephant mostly. Crocodiles, too, perhaps, if they were close to a river. Houses on stilts and clustered close together may have afforded some protection against other people, too, I suppose, though it didn't always protect the people in Lao who were made slaves, did it?

Glad to hear that feedburner is working, though there isn't much here for you to pick up at the moment. Must try harder.