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(Trailer) Thai Language Course for English Speakers

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Ban Chiang Pottery: From Prehistoric Civilization to Modern Charm

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August 18, 2021

The Making of Thai Silk

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November 19, 2021

Loy Krathong Festival – All You Need to Know

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Muay Chaiya: Martial Art of the South

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September 26, 2021

Beef Massaman Curry

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August 30, 2021

Meditation in Thailand

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Culture Ways of Life and Wisdom

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Secrets to Thai Cooking

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Khon, masked dance drama in Thailand

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Ban Chiang is a prehistoric culture that inhabited

Ban Chiang is a prehistoric culture that inhabited Northeastern Thailand. The name "Ban Chiang" came from the Ban Chiang Archaeological site in Ban Chiang district, Ubon Ratchathani province. The culture is most famous for its uniquely painted pottery. The red pigment with white geometric and curved designs, flowing lines, spiral patterns, wavy lines, and the S-shape in oval or circle patterns have been dubbed the “Ban Chiang Rope” pattern. These designs were created through a variety of techniques, such as scratching, carving, tattooing, plastering, and painting.
In appreciating the exceptional patterns and designs of the prehistoric pots and jars, residents of today’s Ban Chiang follow ancient motifs in producing pottery and souvenirs. Today, the Ban Chiang site is globally renowned as an UNESCO World Heritage Site, bringing pride to the local community and the Thai nation as a whole.
From "Ban Chiang Pottery: From Prehistoric Civilization to Modern Charm" Available on Thailand Foundation Website (Link in Bio).
Photo cr. tourismthailand, Thailand Village Academy, Isan Gate
#archaelogy #prehistory #history #preshistoric #ancientworld #banchiang #thailand #thaihistory #artifact #digging Less

Sericulture and weaving have sustained the people

Sericulture and weaving have sustained the people of Thailand for ages. Techniques are preserved in the delicate fingers of the weavers who pass down their skills from generation to generation.
The sericulture cycle may be broken down into four phrases:
1: Hatching
2: When the silkworms are about nine days old the feeding schedule increases to three times a day. Around Day 18, the larger silkworms are moved to other baskets to give them sufficient room to keep growing.
3: After about 36 days the silkworms reach full growth and turn yellow.
4: The silkworms are now moved onto special round, flat bamboo trays (chor) to spin their cocoon, a process that takes five to eight days. Most of the completed cocoons are harvested quickly to ensure that the pupa inside does not hatch, which would spoil the silk.
Once the cocoons are harvested, they are reeled into threads, dyed, and placed on the loom. There are two major techniques of silk weaving in Thailand:
1. Ikat, called mat mii (มัดหมี่) in Thai, is a textile technique whereby patterns are dyed onto weft threads before the fabric is woven. The dyeing process involves binding bundles of threads with strips of water-resistant materials, such as banana ropes or plastic, in a predetermined pattern. The binding “resists” the dye and thus control the coloring of the yarn.
2. Brocading consists of patterned textiles with one set of warps and one set of wefts composing the ground fabric. An extra set of wefts, often of a different color and texture, is required to create the pattern.
From "The Making of Thai Silk" Available on Thailand Foundation Website (Link in Bio)
#thailand #thaisilk #silk #textiles #fashion #sericulture #weaving #fabrics

December 5th is the birthday of His Majesty King B

December 5th is the birthday of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej (1927 - 2016), the longest reigning monarch in Thai history. His birthday is celebrated as the Thai National Day, as well as the country's Father's Day.
#fathersday #thaifatherday #thainationalday #thailand

Popped rice, colorful flowers, aromatic incense st

Popped rice, colorful flowers, aromatic incense sticks, and candles are among the most common offerings Thais use in religious settings or to show respect.
According to Buddhist beliefs, the explosion emanating from the puffing of the kernels represents flourishing wisdom and boundless compassion and the whiteness the purity.Popped rice can be decorated in different ways. The simplest decoration is to put the kernels in a bowl or banana leaf cones. They can also be strung together as a garland or stuck to a coconut leaf stem and placed in a vase. More sophisticated versions see water sprayed on the popped rice and the moist kernels pressed into a dome shape.
Flowers reflect beauty, purity, and auspiciousness. They can be made into different forms like a bouquet, stuck on coconut leaf stems, or knitted into a net to be hung on the walls and windows.
Candles bring light. This offering reflects Dharma or Buddha’s teaching. They can be simple and take the form of either horizontal or vertical candle bundles, each tied with plain string or colorful papers. Others can be lavishly carved and decorated.
The scent from incense sticks lingers in the air and is believed to bring blessings. Different forms of incense are used for different occasions. Thoop Yai (ธูปใหญ่) or a large incense stick is fat and used together with other offerings. When Thoop Yai are cut shorter and bundled together with candles, they are called Thoop Thian Phae (ธูปเทียนแพ), literally a raft of incense and candles. Thoop Thian Phae is generally used in ordination ceremonies.
From "Thai-style Offerings" Available at Thailand Foundation Website
#flowers #floraldesign #flowerdesign #flowerarrangement #thailand #bananaleaf #buddhism #dharma #thailand #thaitemple #thaibuddhism #buddha #buddhadharma #buddhist #religion #karma #mindfulness #sangha #bhikkhu #monk #thaibuddha #religion

The annual robe presentation – (Pali: Kathina) – is a one-month-long Buddhist celebration enthusiastically observed in Theravada Buddhist communities in many countries and regions in Asia such as southeastern Bangladesh, Cambodia, southern China, northern India, Laos, northern Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.
In Thailand, the people carry the robes in a big procession to a temple, before presenting it to the monks along with other offerings, such as an alms bowl. Money trees are also donated to the temple along with the Kathina robe, so that the temple will have money to operate. Sometimes Kathina ceremony is also a fundraiser occasion. For example, the temple will spend the money on a new building.
The King of Thailand and members of the Royal Family usually go to various Buddhist temples in Bangkok to perform this rite. His representatives also offer Kathina to temples across the country.
There is a tradition for the King to go aboard the spectacular Royal Barge procession along the Chao Phraya River to the Temple of Dawn (Wat Arun) to preside over the Royal Kathina ceremony every year.
#buddhism #dharma #kathina #thailand #thaitemple #thaibuddhism #buddha #buddhadharma #buddhist #religion #karma #mindfulness #sangha #bhikkhu #monk #thaibuddha #religion

Banana Leaves According to Brahmin (known today as

Banana Leaves
According to Brahmin (known today as Hinduism) beliefs, many of which have made their way into Thai culture and continue to play a major role, particularly in royal ceremonies, banana leaves are considered “pure and untainted” because banana-leaf containers are never reused. Reusable containers may look clean after being washed but, from a Brahmin point of view, invisible elements may still contaminate the seemingly spotless plates.
Bai Si is a decorative banana-leaf cone used as an offering to the deities as well as tokens in rituals and religious ceremonies. For commoners, there are two types of Bai Si. The first, Bai Si Pak Cham (บายศรีปากชาม), literally meaning a Bai Si in a bowl, is small in size. The second type, Bai Si Ton (บายศรีต้น) or Bai Si Yai (บายศรีใหญ่), is bigger and requires a wooden structure to form its exquisite shape.
On the other hand, there are three variations of Bai Si for royals, namely: an elaborate version of Bai Si Ton; Bai Si Kaeo, Thong, and Ngoen (บายศรีแก้ว ทอง เงิน), for which gold, silver, and glass footed trays are used in place of banana-leaf cones; and Bai Si Tong Rong Thong Khao (บายศรีตองรองทองขาว), which is similar to Bai Si Ton but bigger, more exquisite, and placed atop a platinum footed tray.
Flowers
Flowers are part and parcel of the Thai way of life and are turned into various other forms such as garlands, hanging floral decorations and floral coverings. Floral displays alway adorn the venues of important ceremonies like weddings and are also placed in front of the coffin at a funeral.
In the old days, most – if not all – Thai women needed to learn how to string flowers together, and their quality was often judged based on their skills. Mothers, therefore, made sure their daughters could master the intricacies of floral creations. Some prodigies went on to become famous traditional florists.
#flowers #floraldesign #flowerdesign #flowerarrangement #thailand #bananaleaf
photo cr. Pinterst: Nattanicha, เฌอ' เบลลล; sentangsedtee; FB: @missflower2u

Happy birthday, Panom Tian! The late Thai author w

Happy birthday, Panom Tian! The late Thai author was born today in 1931.
Known for his pen name “Panom Tian,” or “the tip of a lit candle” in English, Chatchai Wisedsuvarnabhumi was a renowned Thai novelist and national artist for literature. With his extraordinary sense of imagination, Panom Tian managed to produce all-time classics in various genres ranging from romance and mystery to action and adventure. However, the most notable work of his is Petch Pra Uma, or The Diamonds of Goddess Uma–Thailand’s longest literary epic that tells the story of a journey to a land beyond the map.
Panom Tian passed away in 2020, but the “tip of a lit candle” he left behind has continued to inspire and guide the Thai literary world.
#PanomTian #PetchPraUma #ThaiLiterature
#พนมเทียน #เพชรพระอุมา

Loy Krathong is a festival celebrated by the Thai

Loy Krathong is a festival celebrated by the Thai people on the full moon night of the twelfth month of the Thai lunar calendar. In the modern calendrical system, this event usually occurs in the month of November, though the date varies from year to year. Regardless of the exact timing, Loy Krathong is always considered as an occasion for joy, gratitude, and new beginnings.
The term “Loy Krathong” is derived from word “loy” – meaning “to float”- and the word “krathong” – which refers to type of small, floating religious offering. True to its name, the highlight of the festival is the floating of krathongs across small and large bodies of water all over the country.
As an agricultural society, water has played a crucial role in the Thai way of living since ancient times. The element provides sustenance, while rivers, canals, and oceans acted as the main mode of transportation throughout the major part of Thai history. Thus, every year during the Loy Krathong festival, Thais float small boats of offerings as tokens of gratitude toward Phra Mae Khongkha (the Goddess of Water). They also use this opportunity to ask forgiveness for any wrongdoings they have committed upon the water, such as littering or wasteful usage.
Other Loy Krathong activities include the floating of sky lanterns, Buddhist religious ceremonies, music, street food, and local fairs.
From "Loy Krathong Festival – All You Need to Know" Check Link in Bio ☑️

Greetings from Thailand Foundation to you all 🙏

Greetings from Thailand Foundation to you all 🙏 ❤️
#loykrathong #loykrathongfestival #loykratong #loykrathongday #thailand #thailandtravel #thaifestival #chaoprayariver #watarun

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