Associate Professor Jaruphan SupprungDean of the Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts

Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University

A Comparative Study of Thai and Balinese Temple Festival Dress

Temple of the Emerald Buddha in the Grand Palace The famous Thai Buddhist Temple in Bangkok, Thailand

Mother Temple of Besakih on the slopes of Mount AgungThe famous Balinese Hindu Temple in eastern Bali, Indonesia

Aims of this Qualitative Research

To study Thai Buddhist and Balinese Hindu temple festivals

To compare Thai Buddhist temple festivals dress with Balinese Hindu temple festivals dress

To create the knowledge which can be useful for Thai attitudes and cultural perceptions, especially for Thai children and youth

4 Thai Buddhist Temple Festivals

1 Songkran Festival: Thai traditional New Year(starts on April 13 every year and lasts for 3 days)

Give alms to monks

Build sand pagodas

Release birds & fishes

Make merit to ancestors

Pour scented water on Buddha image

Pour scented water ontheir elders’ hand

Pour scented water/ on each other

Take part in folk plays

4 Thai Buddhist Temple Festivals

2 Buddhist Lent Festival: 3 months Lent in rainy season (starts on the first day of the waxing moon of the eighth lunar month)

Large candle procession

Thai Buddhist people present large candles and bathing robes to Buddhist monks

Present large candles to monks

Present bathing robes to monks

4 Thai Buddhist Temple Festivals

3 Sart Thai Festival: On the 15th waning (no moon) day of the tenth lunar month

Sart Thai Day is the day of making merit traditions andthe honoring Ghosts and Ancestors day

Sart Thai Festival inNakhon Si

Thammarat,Southern province

Of Thailand

4 Thai Buddhist Temple Festivals

4 The End of Buddhist Lent Festival: On the full moon day of the eleventh lunar month

Thai Buddhists offer foods and other necessities to monks. This ceremony is called “Dhevo Rohana Ceremony”

3 Balinese Hindu Temple Festivals

1 Odalan Festival: On birthday of each Hindu temple

Religious celebration

Theatrical event

3 Balinese Hindu Temple Festivals

2Galungan Festival: A 10-day festival for Gods & the spirits of the ancestors in every 210 days

Activities for Balinese Hindus on serving Godsand the spirits

of their ancestors in Galungan Day

3 Balinese Hindu Temple Festivals

3 Nyepi Festival: Balinese Hindu New Year Festival

Nyepi Day or New Year’s day is the Day of Silence.But there are much noise and parades in Nyepi Eve.

Nyepi Eve parade

Conclusion

Thai Songkran Festival is similar to Balinese Nyepi Festival in terms of the purpose of the festival, which is traditional New Year celebration

1

2 Thai Songkran Festival and Sart Thai Festival are similar to Balinese Galungan Festival in terms of the practice of dedicating merit to the spirits of deceased relatives and expressing gratitude to thedeceased ancestors

Comparison of Temple Festival Dress

Thai Buddhist Men Balinese Hindu Men

Everybody does not wear headdress and mostly wear round collar outerwear and

Thai wide leg trousers (left) or Thai loincloth

Most of men in Northeast and some areas of Central region of Thailand wear sarongs

They wear headdresses, short sleeve shirts or long sleeve shirts; and wear sarongs

Comparison of Temple Festival Dress

Thai Buddhist Women Balinese Hindu Women

They wear the inner wears which have leaving the shoulders free and front opening; wear the long-sleeved, lacy blouses as the outer wears; and wear sarongs

Most of them wear collarless blouses with elbow length sleeve and front opening as the outer wears, and wear sarongs

Conclusion

Thai Buddhist Men and Women Balinese Hindu Men and Women

In the temple festivals, Thai Buddhist men and women wear the same sarongs as Balinese Hindu men and women