Laotian and Karen belong together with the elephants
from the past till now. Chai-ka-tu an elderly in the Ruammirt village,
Chiangrai province, relates the history of the people and Elephants,
“If you are talking about our people and the elephants, we have had a
long historical bond. Even since when we had this land. Like the
Paka-Kayaw and the people in the south, the ones in Utharadit, we all
live our lives with the elephants” The ancestors of the people in Mae
Hong Sorn also lived their lives with elephants and they continue to do
so.
In Maesariang, Meahongsorn province, the people have their own way of living with the elephants. In the olden times, they had elephants. When they build houses they use elephants to pull the logs. We get the logs from many places. They use the elephants to carry heavy things. They are in the deep forest so when they build houses the elephants pull the logs. During harvest time, the elephants are used to carry the rice because there are no roads for cars. The people have to travel a long distances for work also.
In Maesariang, Meahongsorn province, the people have their own way of living with the elephants. In the olden times, they had elephants. When they build houses they use elephants to pull the logs. We get the logs from many places. They use the elephants to carry heavy things. They are in the deep forest so when they build houses the elephants pull the logs. During harvest time, the elephants are used to carry the rice because there are no roads for cars. The people have to travel a long distances for work also.
The story about the Phakake-yaw and Elephant
There is a story about two boys who were given the task of
looking after the house by their mother. However, they were very
naughty and disobeyed their mother. They opened a bamboo container that
they were not supposed to, and let a fly out. The fly flew into the
nostrils of both of them who then started to itch all over their
bodies. Their limbs started to expand and their noses started to
lengthen. Their mother came home and saw the children and was very
worried. She tried to feed them rice but they refused it. They did not
drink water either. After that, they started looking for grass to
eat. Their bodies started to grow and they turned into elephants.
After they turned into elephants, the elders pointed out that human and
elephants can’t live together, people were supposed to use the
elephants because later on, the elephants would not be able to speak to
humans. They told the two boys who had turned into elephants to stick
out their tongues and they plucked their tongues and turned them
around. You can see the elephants have tongues which have been turned
around. Because of this, the elephants have evolved into what they are
to this day. |
 |
Relationship: people and elephants
From the interviewing of Phakake-yaw people- “I love it as much
as a child or a wife. Sometimes at night I can hear the elephants
crying in the forest and I will run to see what is going on even if it
is late at night” If you are talking about love, I love my elephant. I
love it as much as I love my child and my wife. Sometimes when you
bring an elephant back, it also brings skin diseases back with it. I
need to bathe it and get medicine for it. I love it like a child, a
child that cannot take care of itself sometimes.We must take care of the elephants. Sometimes when their toenails are cracked we need to put medicine on it to heal it. When they died, I cried for many days. It seems like your relative had died. I didn’t have to study since I was born. I never abandon it or leave it alone, I will be unhappy if I didn’t see it. You can compare it with teachers. They teach the children everyday, and if they don’t see their students for one day, they will feel as if there is something missing, and they will be unhappy. Some days I only get 10-20 Baht but I still do it. Even if I don’t make any money I just want to work with them and take care of them. To find them new places to stay, to bathe them, to feed them…all these things make me happy. |
The Elephants tours.
As things changed with time, people were not the only ones who have to adjust their way of life. Elephants were once used to pull logs, but now the forest is closed. I’ll tell you from the beginning. Our ancestors were loggers, but after awhile the forest is closed down, so they stopped. They thought that it would be a good tourist destination here. You could come by car or by boat. You can go to many villages. You can go to the Lahu village, the Akha village or the Yao village. The tourist see how convenient this is, so they keep on coming. The elephants tour mostly from Maesariang District Meahongsorn province. In the past this elephant used to carry the logs, when the forest closes, the Phakake-yaw people started elephant tours with their elephants.
http://akha.hilltribe.org
As things changed with time, people were not the only ones who have to adjust their way of life. Elephants were once used to pull logs, but now the forest is closed. I’ll tell you from the beginning. Our ancestors were loggers, but after awhile the forest is closed down, so they stopped. They thought that it would be a good tourist destination here. You could come by car or by boat. You can go to many villages. You can go to the Lahu village, the Akha village or the Yao village. The tourist see how convenient this is, so they keep on coming. The elephants tour mostly from Maesariang District Meahongsorn province. In the past this elephant used to carry the logs, when the forest closes, the Phakake-yaw people started elephant tours with their elephants.
http://akha.hilltribe.org
No comments:
Post a Comment