Phi Ta Khon

spirit · Thailand · Southeast Asia

Phi Ta Khon is the ghost of the festival in Dan Sai District, Loei Province, northeast Thailand: a three-day celebration (March–June) within the Bun Luang merit-making ceremony. Participants wear masks built from sticky-rice steamers (huat), coconut-spathe bases, and soft wood, playing ghosts called Phi Tam Khon ('ghosts following people'), a fusion of Buddhist merit-making and animist custom.

Open in the interactive archive →