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Arguably
the most intimate of social observances, weddings
in any community anywhere in the world evoke
local tradition perhaps more than any other
ritual. Thailand is of course no exception,
and in Thailand's northern region - Lanna,
short for Lan Na Thai or One Million Thai
Rice-Fields - the celebration of a couple's
public commitment to one another offers an
open window onto Lanna's unique culture.
In
traditional Lanna weddings, Thais normally
divide the proceedings into two main functions.
First comes the suu khaw, a ceremonial
visit to the bride's parents to ask for
their daughter's hand. Whether at the parents'
home or in another appointed place, the
ritual involves the presentation of engraved
silver bowls containing fresh flowers meant
to honor the family's ancestors, a symbolic
sum of money representing a dowry and a
general wish for prosperity in the form
of fresh betel nuts, three dozen leaves
from auspicious plants, plus bags of sesame
seeds, rice and beans.
The second stage of the Lanna wedding observance
involves a procession to a place selected
for the marriage ceremony itself. Here a
maw phawn, local elder versed in
the ways of the all-important Thai spirit
world, will symbolically link the couple
together by tying a length of sacred white
cotton string between the left wrist of
the groom and right wrist of the bride.
A more literal tying of the knot - in Northern
Thai the ritual is known as mat meu
or 'wrist-binding' - could hardly be envisaged.
In Lampang, a Northern Thai city renowned
during Thailand's teak empire years for
its plentiful work elephants, wealthy families
amplified on the mat meu procession.
Instead of approaching the venue for the
wedding ceremony on foot, the bride and
groom mounted a lavishly decorated tusker,
Thailand's most auspicious animal. Slowly
ambling down Lampang's historic streets,
these elephant-back wedding processions
must have been a delight to all who were
fortunate enough to grab a roadside view.
Today
the Thai Elephant Conservation Center, along
with the city of Lampang, has revived the
phi-thi taeng-ngan bon lang chang,
or elephant-back wedding ceremony. Beginning
with this year's Valentine's Day (14 February)
- a commemoration of romance which urban
Thais have celebrated for several years
now - 15 couples will be invited to don
full Lanna costume and hoist themselves
onto elephants for a stately pachydermic
pageant from the city center at the Thai
Elephant Conservation Center in Hang Chat
district. In Hang Chat the lucky couples
and their guests will be welcomed by a Lanna
music and dance performance, followed by
the traditional mat meu ceremony.
Afterwards a Thai district officer will
register the nuptials and issue wedding
certificates to each couple. Then it's time
for everyone to celebrate with traditional
Lanna food and drink.
The Thai Elephant
Conservation Center is offering a special package for elephant-back wedding
scheduled for 14 February
2007. Love-struck
individuals who contemplate taking
wedding vows to new heights can contact
the Thai Elephant Conservation Center
at:
Tel: +66 (0) 5422 8108, (0) 5424 7871 -6
Fax: +66 (0) 5423 1150
E-mail: info@thaielephant.org
Web site: www.thaielephant.org
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
All images featured in this article
have been kindly provided
by the TAT office in Chiang Mai.
All rights reserved. Text Copyright Tourism Authority of Thailand News Room
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