Marisa Cranfill
There is a place in Thailand where they celebrate Halloween all year round. No, it’s not the famous Pii Ta Khon festival where villagers dress up like ghouls and demons or the Day of the Dead in the 10th lunar month when Thais venerate their ancestors. This is a legitimate 365 day/week ghost shrine where people of all ages come to make wishes and ask for help from a powerful female ghost. Being that many of the people I interviewed at the s
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Marisa Cranfill
A homemade spirit house in the Northeast of Thailand is surrounded by a blanket of crispy leaves. This is the dry season: a time of trust and courage, a time to give thanks, to let go and to rest. The energy of autumn is brittle, rigid and descending as it prepares for the depths of the slow winter months. In Chinese five element theory, autumn is the season ruled by the metal element and its corresponding characteristics. Metal connects to the o
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Angel Baker
One of my favorite memories from visiting Thailand with Marisa of Spirit House Connection is wandering the streets of Chaing Mai. The people were glowing. The food was lovely. The smells were intoxicating. The shopping was never ending. Despite its antiquity, the spirit of this city felt young and alive and adventurous. There were several women on this trip and I don't remember a thing we discussed but I remember laughing and laughing and laughin
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Marisa Cranfill
Animism is in fashion. And I am not talking about our infatuation with cats, dogs and sloths (my favorite are photo shoots of iguanas dressed up as rock stars). Animism is the belief that a soul or spirit exists in every object, whether animate or inanimate. The word comes from the Latin anima, meaning ‘breath’. In Thai and Lao culture the anima is called kwan- a vital essence that exists in different concentrations: humans, animals,
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Marisa Cranfill
On my recent trip to Thailand I found myself spending more time at amulet markets than I had planned. The largest amulet market in Bangkok, called Talad Phra Kreung, is a playground of magical regalia and a must see if you are into supernatural adventures. At the market devotion, fashion, food and the spirit world merge to create a very sanuk experience. Thai people believe that amulets are potent objects (kwan khlang) that have sacred power (sa
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Marisa Cranfill
Thailand is a tropical country that is said to have three seasons: hot, hotter and wet. Adapting to the weather is so much a part of Thai culture that the people place a high value on staying cool. This applies to the body and emotions as well as to the spirit world. Spirit houses are preferably placed under the shade of large trees, though sometimes this is not an option. In the image shown here, the land owners have solved the problem by
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Can't find the solution to an old problem? Need a little inspiration for your next class or collection? Writer's block? Trying to get pregnant? Maybe you should try some light-hearted fun with a tree goddess (sanuk in Thai). For me, one of the largest nature goddess shrines in Thailand at Nai Lert Park is definitely sanuk. What is so powerful about the space is not only the tree nymph named Jao Mae Tubtim that lives in a giant banyan tree,
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