Phi Ta Khon Festival – The Iconic Ghost Festival Thailand

The Phi Ta Khon festival is an ancient tradition believed to have originated alongside the "Bun Luang" festival, which combines the Vessantara Jataka sermon and the Bun Bang Fai rocket festival. This tradition may have started when Buddhism first spread to Thailand several hundred years ago.

The Phi Ta Khon festival closely resembles ancestral worship rituals in the Lan Xang Kingdom of Luang Prabang, whose territory once bordered the Dan Sai, Chiang Khan and Lom Kao districts of present-day Thailand. According to one legend, the Phi Ta Khon spirits emerged when Prince Vessantara and his wife Matsi were returning from the forest to the city, and the forest spirits and various animals, out of love and longing, disguised themselves and joined the villagers to send off the royal couple. This became known as "Phi Tam Khon" ("spirits following people") or "Phi Ta Khon."

 

What is Phi Ta Khon?

The name "Phi Ta Khon" refers to a type of folk performance art where participants wear scary, ugly masks and cover themselves fully in costumes. They then join a parade procession and dance during annual local festivals. In the local dialect of Dan Sai district in Loei province, this Phi Ta Khon performance is done only during the "Bun Luang" festival.

The Phi Ta Khon is a ritual performance meant to worship and communicate with ancestral spirits. The Thai-Lao ethnic groups jointly believe their deceased ancestors who founded their cities are sacred, fearsome spirits with the power to bless their descendants with abundance or curse them with disasters. To show respect and pray for prosperity, the Phi Ta Khon dance is performed during important festivals to please the ancestral spirits. This ancient tradition has been passed down through ritual ceremonies for generations. The Phi Ta Khon is one festive highlight that brings joy and entertainment to the Bun Luang festival in Dan Sai, along with other fun activities.

 

Types of Phi Ta Khon:

1. Big Phi Ta Khon - These are large puppets built on a woven bamboo frame about twice the size of a person, covered in fabric or paper. They are decorated to resemble men and women using locally available scrap materials. Only one pair of big Phi Ta Khon is made to join the parade each year. Performers enter and operate the puppets from inside. Only certain groups are allowed to make the big Phi Ta Khon. Others need special permission from the spirits first and must continue making them for at least 3 consecutive years.

2. Small Phi Ta Khon - This is a folk play performed by children, teens and adults, both male and female. Everyone has the right to participate, but women rarely join as the play can get quite boisterous and mischievous.

 

Phi Ta Khon Costumes

A standout feature of the Phi Ta Khon festival is the colorful, wildly patterned costumes made by sewing together scrap fabric to make shirts, pants or full-body suits that completely cover the wearer. The highlight is the Phi Ta Khon mask made from a steamed sticky rice colander. The signature accessories are cross-shaped bags hanging from the waist and wooden swords carved and painted bright red to resemble male genitals, used by the Phi Ta Khon to teasingly flirt with women.

 

Phi Ta Khon Folk Play

The Phi Ta Khon folk play is performed as part of a 3-day ritual. The parade procession happens on the 2nd day, while the 1st and 3rd days are dedicated to religious ceremonies.

- On the 1st day, villagers build an altar and prepare small offering trays to be placed in the four cardinal directions. A large umbrella is set up on the main altar for the opening ceremony.

- The 2nd day is when the Phi Ta Khon parade is held along with lively folk music performances. The procession goes to the temple for a Bai Sri Su Kwan blessing ceremony. The various Phi Ta Khon spirits joyfully dance along the way.

- On the 3rd day, villagers make merit at the temple by offering food to monks, listening to a recitation of the Vessantara Jataka, and dedicating the merit to deceased ancestors. No Phi Ta Khon play is performed.

 

The Phi Ta Khon festival has long been practiced as a unique tradition in Loei province as part of the Bun Luang festival that also incorporates the Bun Pa Wed and Bun Bang Fai rocket festivals. It pays respects to the city pillar shrine and sacred spirits. Today, the Phi Ta Khon attracts tourism income for Loei and is preserved by villagers so younger generations can experience this ancient cultural heritage.

 

At Siam Niramit Phuket, our iconic show in Phuket, the Phi Ta Khon folk play of Northeastern Thailand is showcased for visitors from around the world to appreciate the diversity of Thai culture and its distinctive regional traditions.

Click here to book your tickets to our Phuket show and witness the beauty of this traditional Thai play.