Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – Ninety-six Shan young men with freshly shaved heads and bright, pastel costumes took part in a three-day novice ordination ceremony at Wat Ku Tao in Chiang Mai on Saturday, with more than 1,000 Shan attending the colorful ceremonies.

Traditionally, March and April are months for Buddhist novice ordinations, in which young men are accepted into training to learn the Buddhist precepts.

Novice ordination normally lasts for up to seven days, but recently the time has been shortened.

At Wat Ku Tao, Pra Kruchansipitak, the deputy monk at the temple, said this was the ninth Shan ordination, and it was held in honor of the Thai king and to preserve the Lanna culture of northern Thailand.

The ceremony, called Poi Sang Long, is a traditionally meritorious occasion, accruing great prestige to the young man and to family members.

Long Mong, who brought his 9-year-old son to  become a novice, said he was overjoyed that ‘my boy can serve Buddhism’.

Traditionally, the head of the candidate-novice is shaved and wrapped with a Shan-style head-cloth. He then dons a prince-like garment adorned with valuable jewels and gems and rides a horse or is carried on the shoulders of a man to a city shrine.

On the ordination eve, a procession of offerings and other necessary personal belongings are paraded through the streets and then placed at a monastery where the ordination will take place the next day.

Traditionally, it’s believed that if a son becomes a novice, his parents are blessed eight times in future incarnations. If a person hosts a novice, he or she will be blessed four times in future incarnations.

To hold a novice ordination, a host must donate 3,000 baht to the temple and provide food and drinks.

Sai Wan, 30, a migrant worker said, ‘It is not easy to hold a novice ceremony. I have a three-year-old boy, and he will become a novice in six years. I have to start to save money now’.

A Thai observer said local Shan migrant workers are thrifty and in spite of high costs such as passport fees and other expenses, they are ready to pay for such ceremonies.

However, if parents don’t have the money for the more showy high-end ceremony, they can give alms to temple monks, purchase the eight necessities of a monk, and their son be accepted as a novice.

A monk added, however: "Parents rarely choose the simple traditional way. Most choose to go the expensive way."

Explaining their choice, one person said: ‘It’s a once in a lifetime experience, and it’s worth it as memorial to the experience’.

Ordination ceremonies were also held in Sansai, Sankampeang, Mae Rim, Mae Teang, Wieng Heng, Fang and Mae Ai, which are home to many Shan residents. Apart from Chiang Mai Province, Mae Hong Son and Chiang Rai provinces also held ordinations.