Bucha Khru and Khrop Khru Rite Honoring the Past Masters, Wat Chulamanee, B.E. 2568
Date
31 July 2025
A photo record of the Bucha Khru and Khrop Khru rite honoring the past masters at Wat Chulamanee — the morning propitiation rite, the crowning with the teacher-head masks, the hand-offering dance and the khon performance — Thursday 31 July B.E. 2568 (2025).
The Bucha Khru and Khrop Khru rite honoring the past masters for the year B.E. 2568 was held on Thursday 31 July B.E. 2568 (2025) at Wat Chulamanee, Bang Chang Subdistrict, Amphawa District, Samut Songkhram Province.
The set opens with the morning propitiation rite, with the sacrificial offerings, bai si and flower trays laid out along the long tables, the lighting of incense and candles, the monks chanting blessings, and the sprinkling of lustral water over those attending, who filled the pavilion dressed in white.
The ritual enclosure held dozens of lacquered and gilded teacher-head masks (sian khru) ranged across the altar, together with an image of Shiva Nataraja, figures of the hermit teachers and the masks of the various khon characters. The Khrop Khru rite followed, in which the officiating master raised each teacher-head mask over the head of each participant in turn and anointed them with scented paste.
The closing part records the hand-offering dance performed by those who had received the rite, dressed in white tops and jong kraben, and a khon performance in full costume before the ceremony ended.