Spirit of Superstition : Thailand Has More Than Its Share of Bizarre Beliefs

In the six months she has been pregnant, Premsiri Dilokpreechakul has not driven a nail into a wall. “If I do, my child might be born ugly,” she explained.

Premsiri, a 25-year-old reporter, is an educated woman living in Bangkok, a modern metropolis. But why risk misfortune by violating a timeless, if unexplainable, taboo?

Thailand has the normal Asian assortment of spirits, ghosts and other bugaboos--and countless ways to appease or distract them. The complex mix of Thai culture, however, lifts superstition to a high level. You have to see it to disbelieve it.

Granted, bizarre behavior is in the eye of the beholder. “I still don’t understand why you won’t open an umbrella in the house,” a Thai told an American living here.

Some Strange Beliefs

But the Thais have some strange superstitions themselves:

--A twitch in the left eye is good luck. But in the right eye? You’d better stay home.

--Conjunctivitis, an eye inflammation now sweeping Bangkok, can be prevented by sticking out your tongue at anyone who has it.

--If a gecko, a variety of lizard, calls out from its place on the wall or, worse yet, falls on you or in front of you, cancel your travel plans.

--The number 3 or any multiple of 3 is particularly propitious. Nine is the best of all, because the word in Thai sounds similar to the word for “progress.” On important birthdays, nine Buddhist monks perform the rites.

Thai spiritual life, including the supernatural, is a mix of Buddhism, Indian Brahmanism and animism. The personal symbol of spirituality is the amulet, the Thai equivalent of the rabbit’s foot or St. Christopher’s medal. The charm, worn around the neck, provides protection against misfortune or evil.

Wares on Pavement

Near the Grand Palace, on a sidewalk outside the wall of Thammasat University, sit the amulet merchants, their wares spread on small cloths laid out on the pavement. The buyer will squat beside them, place a jeweler’s loupe to his eye and take a close look at the merchandise.

The amulets are as small as a thumbnail or as large as a thumb. Some are animist, usually phallic. But most are representations of Buddha or a famous monk.

“They protect you from danger, from evil spirits,” said Panitan Watcharapreechaskul, a government employee and student of amulets.

Quality depends on antiquity, workmanship and the figure represented. “Authentic” amulets are made in a Buddhist temple and blessed by monks. Many are fakes.

Stories abound of protection and good fortune provided by amulets, including the belief that some make the wearer bulletproof. Some Thais wear only their favorite amulet, others wear three, five, seven or more (always an odd number), and most people have a good collection.

“I myself have about 50,” Panitan said.

‘Rented,’ Not Sold

Because of the religious aspects, amulets are never sold but are “rented” in perpetuity. “With his logical and scientific orientation, (the foreigner) may find it difficult to understand how one who professes to be a good Buddhist can believe in spirits, can wear Buddhist amulets to ward off accidents and even bullets, and can follow the injunctions of Brahman rituals,” wrote William Klausner, an observer of Thai culture.

The outsider, Klausner pointed out, “must try to appreciate the reality that the Thai is able to compartmentalize these different beliefs. The Thais find no inconsistencies . . . . “

Greed and curiosity are often bound together in superstition. Earlier this year, a Thai village woman was reported here to have laid an egg--literally. Figuring that she had magical powers, the villagers came to her with gifts of money, asking in exchange a prediction of the winning numbers in the state lottery. Police denounced the episode as a fraud.

Consulting the Stars

Astrology is another place to seek one’s fortune, good or bad. No major venture is started here without a consultation. The king is reputed to be a student of the stars.

Buddhists worry about their karma, a sort of balance sheet of good and evil deeds that determines their fate in this and future lives. There will be retribution for evil, but it may be mitigated by doing good, by making merit in Buddhist terms.

Similarly, in dealing with the spirit world of the animists, the object is to pay tribute and avoid offense. An angry spirit can cause anything from a pain in the neck to a natural calamity.

The newborn are usually addressed by unattractive nicknames, like “Fatty” or “Pig.” Spirits might be jealous of a beautiful child, the belief goes, so the idea is to deceive them, particularly during the vulnerable infant’s first month of life. It is not unusual to hear a Thai woman complimenting another on her ugly baby.

Little Spirit House

The most ubiquitous form of appeasement is the spirit house. It stands in a corner of the property of every Thai house or building, a miniature structure always grander in design than the full-sized house and always elevated on a post to show respect.

It is a tribute to the spirit of the land, and offerings and prayers are made regularly by the occupants of the main structure.

The little house represents a fairly clear relationship between man and spirit. Other superstitions are more difficult for foreigners to understand. For example:

--A man must not walk under a line holding women’s clothing, in part because doing so will erase the protective magic of his amulets and tattoos.

--Age 25 is dangerous. “I did nothing risky when I was 25,” a Bangkok secretary said. “I never went to the mountains or anything like that.”

--Never get a haircut on Wednesday.

The origins of others are fairly clear. On coffins containing bodies awaiting cremation at a temple, the names are usually marked in red lime. Many Thais, therefore, will not sign their names in red ink.

And, on the positive side, an old woman who has had a long and happy married life is invited to make the marriage bed for newlyweds.