When I first arrived in Khon Kaen, this ceremony was one of the first things my classmates and I did as a group.
I learned about the Spirit of Happiness ceremony, which is lead by the master of the ceremony, who may be a monk or spiritual leader. Everyone sits in a circle. They then put their hands up in a prayer position as the master of the ceremony chants and blesses everyone. After this, whoever is wishing you safe travels (it could be your family or friends) ties strings around your wrist. For our ceremony, the priest tied the first strings around our wrists. Since we had all traveled far from home, we tied strings around each other's wrists too. The second time we did this ceremony was after we spent a weekend in a homestay in Surin, Thailand. This community performed the ceremony to wish us safe travels back to Khon Kaen.
This tradition is supposed to ensure that your spirit stays with you when traveling, especially your spirit of happiness. It is believed that when traveling far from home, you can lose your spirit of happiness. Perhaps this is how the people of Thailand try to ward off homesickness.
