FrontSection 3 of 5

Khao Phansa, and staying put

3 piecesThe rains retreat, and the year it shapes.

Monks' robes and bowls arranged in a temple storeroom — Section openerFor three months of the rains the monastic community stays in one place, and the lay year reorganises itself around that.Thai Vancouver picture desk

The other four sections

Counted in moonsWhy the festivals move, and against what.April, and everything gets wetThe new year, and what the water is for.Loy Krathong on a pond in NovemberA float, a candle, and what it carries.And in VancouverThe community, the temple and the kitchen, here.