The Ritual in Practice
The Wai Khru ceremony involves performance by students as they personally pay homage to their teachers, and the endowment of initiation rites performed by the teachers. This portion of the ritual is done in different ways according to the type of school in which the ritual takes place.
One way in which the interaction between teachers and students unfurls is through a little recital where teachers take the hands of students, individually, and play a musical instrument or show the students how to play a tune on their chosen instrument. This type of ceremonial procession takes place mostly in music schools or schools known for their music education courses and faculty. By participating in this rite, students are officially initiated into the program and a personal bond is created between teachers and students. The performance of this rite is about of recognition and familiarization of pedagogic structures that seamlessly blend the transmission of knowledge and personal connection.
Another way that teachers and students interact in a Wai Khru ceremony is done as a performance mostly on behalf of the students. In this situation, one female and one male student would be chosen to represent each class or grade level. The principal of the school, based on observations and suggestions by the faculty, makes the selection of these student representatives. The students selected for this task must consent to perform the Wai Khru grahb, or performance. The performance of the grahb consists of concise movements and body posture incorporated into the silent act of paying respect to each teacher of the school.
Student representatives are expected to show control of their body while graciously prostrating themselves at the feet of each teacher. In Thai Buddhism, this is considered to be the most polite show of respect anyone can offer to another person. While kneeling, performers clasp their hands in a wai position at chest level and with hands open, prostrate themselves to the ground, laying their hands flat on the ground, and then return to the wai position. The action is repeated three times and the wai position is then held while the teachers give the student representatives blessings and confirmation of their talent and aptitude regarding their performance.
Since this version of the ritual is widely practiced in Thailand. Students are chosen by school officials to be representatives for their class. The Wai Khru ceremony is a type of interaction that promotes personal connectivity between teachers and students, and the appreciation for the pedagogic structure.
Natikan
Copyright © 2001 by University of North Texas. All rights reserved.
Revised: 05 May 2004 11:17:34 -0500
Student representative in a Wai Khru Ceremony
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