Authors : Sawai Senaraj , Boonsom Yodmalee , Sunaet Potisarn and Pra Suttisarn Sohpohn
Abstract: Traditional funerals in Thailand involve many rituals and traditions. Funeral rituals commonly practiced in communities in the Province of Roi-et include rituals before death, the bathing ritual, hairstyle, insertion of money, coffin ritual, coffin light, sacred chants, ordainment of Buddhist novice, ladder ritual, popped rice, cremation site selection, shroud tossing, facial bath ritual, Bangsakul cloth offering, wooden flowers, suppressing the coffin and gathering remains. All rituals since ancient times have been influenced by Animism, Buddhism, Brahmanism and local knowledge of the community. These traditions are going through changes influenced by modernization, technology and globalization. Many of these changes can be seen in funerals that use crematoriums which are mostly located in the urban communities. Traditional customs and beliefs are still widely practiced in the more rural communities and in funerals that still use a funeral pyre.
Sawai Senaraj , Boonsom Yodmalee , Sunaet Potisarn and Pra Suttisarn Sohpohn , 2008. Local Knowledge and Beliefs of Traditional Funeral Rituals in Roi-et Province Thailand. The Social Sciences, 3: 207-210.