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Richard Humpheries (Black and White) Jason Miller Shwe Koako, Karen State Sylvia Murcfeld Photographs Jean de La Tour Richard Humphries _______________ Version Date June 2004 12/01/2005 Website: Designed, Built and written by Paul Keenan |
The Lehkai (Ariya) Religious Sect[1]
In Karen state there are 17 schools teaching over 1000 students.
Similar to animist rites, the tying of a couples hands are
used as the main part of the Lehkai wedding ceremony, where the couple to be
married are required to make an offering of uncooked rice in a bowl, 3 balls of
cooked rice, patties of sticky rice, bunches of bananas, flowers and skein of
white thread. After the hand tying ceremony a large vegetarian feast is held. Funeral rites share similar animist overtones with corpse being bathed by the sons and daughters of the deceased, scented water of Thanaka is then applied. Three bowls containing bananas, betel leaves, nuts, tobacco, edibles limes and candles. In one of the bowls 1 Kyat 25 pyas and a 4-cubit length white cotton cloth is placed. Before leaving Three lamps are lit, the room sprayed with scented water whilst the priest recites prayers. The coffin is taken out of the house whilst water is poured behind it from an earthen pot. The coffin is placed in the ground with the head facing east a bowl is place at the head, one in the middle and, one at the feet. The money is for the priest performing the ceremony. The children of the dead invite the corpse for a last meal after this a coconut is cut open and nuts and juice are into the grave. The ceremony concludes with a vegetarian meal, after which the preist must spend the night in the funeral house. The next morning members of the household have their wrists tied with cotton thread The stated five aims of the Lehkei are:
Priests are forbidden from involvement in politics and must venerate the 3 gems, namely: the Lord Buddha, the Law and Priesthood
[1] Information for this article is taken from ‘A brief outline on the Traditional Background of the the Lehkai (Ariya) Religious Sect.’ by Saw Kya Shin, Kyaw Paung Yei, Kyau Taing Lone Gay and Mahn Gyi Sein. Photographs: Jean De La Tour |
One
of many animist sects that mix Buddhism and the traditional Karen legends of the
Golden book. The Lekei was formed in the early 1860’s and bases its beliefs on a
prophetic book (consisting of 49 scriptures) that is written in Leit San Wait, a
type of writing best described as Chicken Scratch Script (literal translation of
the words). Orginally from the Kyondo area, the sect still flourishes with
monastries and schools in Kya-in-Seikkyi, Pa-an, Hlaingbwe and Kyaik-marraw
townships with the latter being in Mon state.
The
Lehkai continue to hold ceremonies to the traditional Karen spirit (see animism)
of Hpee Bu Yaw in addition to three other major festival, a bonfire festival
combined with that of Hpee Bu Yaw, another for the safe spawning of marine life,
another for the safe return of those spawns and finally a thanksgiving festival
to celebrate a bountful harvest.
