Earth-Sanctifying Ceremony
An earth-sanctifying ceremony was held on January 19th and 21st at the Tha Yaw Chaung and Gwe Chaung Gyi villages where we’re building cyclone shelter-type elementary schools.
The ceremony seems to have similar significance as in Japan, in which they sanctify the earth’s soul and cleanse it. The starting times and equipments seem to vary by place and calendar they follow.
A group of five monks conduct prayers, first centered on the construction site, then at the four corners. Then they drive in a wooden stake at the corner of the building that is propitiously located according to the local fortune telling. The Sunday-born people hold the edge of the string, the Monday-born’s the opposite end, and the Tuesday-born’s drive in the wooden stake.
After that, the local people and JEN’s staff donate stoles and food to the monks. We then end the ceremony with a water-splashing ceremony, which signifies the sharing of the virtue among all people in the world, live or dead.
JEN plans to continue our work while embracing the region’s customs and traditions together with the local people.