Religious sacrificial ceremony for the Guardian Spirit shrine

        The shrine of the guardian spirit of the Akha village is an important and holy place of the Akha community. The Akha people will decorate the shrine while worshipping the spirits that they believe in. The shrine of the village is usually built in the month of April every year after building the village gate. The Akha people will usually worship and pray at the shrine once a year usually but if there is any disaster or epidemics. The shrine is around 500 m away from the living homes of the Akha community and it is usually located at a high altitude looking over the living homes of the Akha villagers.

This is very important because the Akha people believe that the shrine being high above them will let them feel that the guardian spirits are looking after them and will take care of them.The shrine houses the guardian spirit of the forest, the guardian spirit of the mountain, and the Holy God who is the leader of the Akha hill tribe community. Traditional Akha people feel that all these holy spirits safeguard and take care of their lives. These beliefs have been strong ever since the past.

    For the religious ceremony to be held, no female is allowed to be involved in this kind of important ritual because the Akha people feel that males are more superior to the females. The Akha women will usually stay at home and prepare meal. The court area is cleaned and the Akha people will start the ritual by choosing a tree to symbolize as a shrine.

The preparatory work will be distributed among all villagers. Some villagers will cut bamboo into shapes to decorate the shrine and the Akha people call it “Hna-Chi-Hna-Ja” and “Ta-Laew” respectively. Once the shrine is completely built, the religious Akha will start to give offerings to the gods and ask for blessings for themselves and also for their family members. Sometimes, they may also ask god to take care of their rice field and other crops. After everything is done, everyone will gather at the court area where a meal is served. After the meal, the Akha people will wash and clean up the dishes and the court area together before heading back to their homes. With that, the ceremony is considered completed successfully.

        Note   "Ta-Laew" is a kind of decoration made from bamboo that are spilted and weaved. This decoration is a sign to prohibit people from touching it. Hence when the Akha people put “Ta-Laew” at the religious shrine, it prevents anyone from touching the shrine altar. This belief is passed down since the past.