Aspirit house is a shrine to theprotective spirit of a place that is found in the Southeast Asian countries ofBurma,Cambodia,Laos,Thailand,Malaysia,Indonesia,Vietnam and thePhilippines. They are normally in the form of small roofed structure mounted on a pillar or adais, and can range in size from small platforms to houses large enough for people to enter. Spirit houses are intended to provide a shelter forspirits that could cause problems for the people if not appeased. They often include images or carved statues of people and animals.Votive offerings are left at them topropitiate the spirits; more elaborate installations include analtar for this purpose.
Inmainland Southeast Asia, most houses and businesses have a spirit house placed in anauspicious spot, most often in a corner of the property. The location may be chosen after consultation with aBrahmin priest. Spirit houses are known asနတ်စင် (nat sin) orနတ်ကွန်း (nat kun) in Burmese;ศาลพระภูมิ (san phra phum, 'house of the guardian spirit') in Thai; andរានព្រះភូមិ (rean preah phum, 'shrine for the guardian-spirit') orរានទេវតា (rean taveda) in Khmer.
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Inmaritime Southeast Asia, spirit houses are connected to the various traditionalanimistic rituals involving spirits. In the Philippines, spirit houses are dedicated to ceremonies or offerings involving theanito spirits. They are also referred to as shrines. They are knownmagdantang in Visayan;ulango orsimbahan in Tagalog;tangpap,pangkew, oralalot (for various small roofed altars), andbalaua orkalangan (for larger structures) in Itneg;maligai in Subanen;tenin in Tiruray; andbuis (for those built near roads and villages) andparabunnian (for those built near rice fields) in Bagobo.[1][2][3]
In Chinese,spirit houses are called 土地神屋 orTudigong Houses, representing a link between the concept and the concept of anEarth Temple dedicated to alandlord deity or aTudigong.
InTamil Nadu, spirit houses and shrines house localtutelary spirits, guardian deities, and deified ancestors who derive fromancient Dravidian animistic beliefs.[4][5] They tend to be located on the periphery of villages, known as the "katu," due to the belief that these spirits are "too dangerous and unpredictable to [have] reside in the village... and seem to be disturbed by the sounds of village life."[6] Many of these spirit houses are dedicated to the spirit of a deified hero, especially—Madurai Veeran,Karuppuswami, orAiyanar.[7] Offerings of bananas, coconuts, oil lamps, meat, and alcohol are routinely left at these shrines to ensure the health and safety of the village. This starkly contrasts the Vedic Hindu practice of only offering vegetarian foods to deities.[8] As a result of countless Tamils falling into the British Raj'sindenture system, these shrines have spread throughout the Indian diaspora.[9]
InKerala, each family home complex (forNairs andEzhavas), known as atharavadu, has a spirit house located towards the northeast corner. Known as "kavu" or "sarpa kavukal," these shrines consist of a small grove with symbolic houses and carved stone effigies of guardiannagas, and other "gods, spirits,yakshi, [or] ancestors."[10] The Malayali people traditionally believe that the construction and maintenance of these sacred shrines keeps tutelary spirits docile and can even serve as atonement for "angry serpent gods [who were]... left unattended."[11] Spirits of the kavu are most commonly offered "raw rice, unbroken coconut fruits, betel leaves, and areca nut," as well as an "oil lamp in front of the deity at dusk."[12][13] Occasionally, these kavu serve as locations for shamanistic rituals known as "pampin kalam" where mediums channel the deities and perform sacred rites around hand-drawnmandalas made from coloured powder.[14]
In Cambodia, the most common offering are fruits (e.g. banana, orange, grape; some people even offer different fruits at the same time.) In neighbouring Thailand however, it is a long-standing tradition to leave offerings of food and drink at the spirit house. Rice, bananas, coconuts, and desserts are common offerings. Most ubiquitous is red, strawberry-flavouredFanta.[15] The idea seems to be that friendly spirits will congregate to enjoy free food and drink and their presence will serve to keep more malign spirits at bay. The popularity of redFanta offerings has existed for decades. Opinions as to "why Fanta?" vary. Most point to the significance of the colour red, reminiscent ofanimal sacrifice, or perhaps related to the practice of anchoring red incense sticks in a glass of water which promptly tints the water red. Sweetness is explained by the observation that sweet spirits naturally have sweet tooths.[16]
Parts of spirit houses include
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