Liang Phi Ban is the annual feeding of the village guardian spirit, phi ban, held by lowland Lao and Tai villages that believe the spirit protects the community in exchange for the yearly offering. Historically the offering included a water buffalo sacrifice, a practice documented as having eased over time; the rite reaffirms the village's boundaries and its residents' shared standing under one guardian spirit as much as it propitiates that spirit. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Origins
Origin of the NameSourced to the subject's own accountThe name is transparent in Lao: liang means to feed or to tend, ban means village, and phi means spirit, so liang phi ban is literally feeding the village spirit, naming the rite by its central act rather than by any more abstract or theological description of what that act accomplishes. 1 Connections
Belongs to Tradition
Source Tai Folk Religion (Wikipedia)Wikipedia contributors
Sources
1. Tai Folk Religion (Wikipedia)
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