Pee Ta Khon is the most common name for a group of festival

Festival

A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....

s held in Dan Sai, Loei province

Loei Province

Loei is one of the most sparsely populated provinces of Thailand, located in the North-East. Neighboring provinces are Nong Khai, Udon Thani, Nongbua Lamphu, Khon Kaen, Phetchabun, Phitsanulok...

, Isan

Isan

Isan is the northeastern region of Thailand. It is located on the Khorat Plateau, bordered by the Mekong River to the north and east, by Cambodia to the southeast and the Prachinburi mountains south of Nakhon Ratchasima...

, Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

. The events take place over three days some time between March and July, the dates being selected annually by the town’s medium

Mediumship

Mediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...

s.

The whole event is called Bun Luang. It is composed of a number of individual festivals: Pee Ta Khon, the Ghost Festival; the Rocket Festival

Rocket Festival

A Rocket Festival is a merit-making ceremony traditionally practiced by Ethnic Lao people throughout much of northeast Thailand and Laos, by numerous villages and municipalities near the beginning of the rainy season...

; and Bun Pra Wate, a merit-making ceremony normally held in March.

The first day is the Ghost Festival itself; it is also called Wan Ruam (assembly day). The town’s residents invite protection from Phra U-pakut, the spirit of the Mun river

Mun River

The Mun River , sometimes spelled Moon River, is a tributary of the Mekong river. It carries approximately 21,000 cubic kilometres of water per year.-Geography:...

. They then hold a series of games and take part in a procession wearing mask

Mask

A mask is an article normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance or entertainment. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes...

s made of rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

 husks or coconut

Coconut

The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...

 leaves with hats made from rice steamers, plus patchwork

Patchwork

Patchwork or "pieced work" is a form of needlework that involves sewing together pieces of fabric into a larger design. The larger design is usually based on repeat patterns built up with different colored shapes. These shapes are carefully measured and cut, straight-sided, basic geometric shapes...

 clothing. They also wear bell

Bell (instrument)

A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...

s and wave wooden phallus

Phallus

A phallus is an erect penis, a penis-shaped object such as a dildo, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. Any object that symbolically resembles a penis may also be referred to as a phallus; however, such objects are more often referred to as being phallic...

es.
The origins of this part of the festival are traditionally ascribed to a Jataka

Jataka

The Jātakas refer to a voluminous body of literature native to India concerning the previous births of the Buddha....

 story in which the Buddha

Gautama Buddha

Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...

 made a long journey and was presumed dead. The celebrations on his return were so raucous as to wake the dead.

The second day of the festival incorporates elements of the Rocket Festival

Rocket Festival

A Rocket Festival is a merit-making ceremony traditionally practiced by Ethnic Lao people throughout much of northeast Thailand and Laos, by numerous villages and municipalities near the beginning of the rainy season...

, plus various costume and dance contests and more parades.

On the third and final day, the villagers listen to sermons.

External links

• Phi Ta Khon Masks
• Phi Ta Khon Festival TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand)
• The Phi Ta Khon (Ghost Festival) (Assumption University, in English and Thai)
• Phi Ta Khon (Thai Ways Magazine)