Chapter 5: Tung: The Sacred Banners of Lanna, Cosmological Geometry, and the Deliverance of Damned Souls
Explore Lanna's sacred banners (Tung): the 16-km Doi Tung epic, miraculous infernal rescues from hell, and the three-tailed funerary Tung Sam Hang.
The Metaphysics of the "Tung" and the Votive Sand Stupas
In classical Northern Thai terminology, the word "Tung" corresponds directly to the Pali scriptural term "Patākā" (Central Thai: Thong Ta-khab or centipede banners), while smaller triangular flags are designated as "Chor" (pronounced Jor).
During the Songkran festival, when communities transport sand to monasteries on Wan Nao to erect commemorative sand stupas (Cetiya Sai), the pinnacles of these earthworks are consecrated with clusters of triangular paper Chor and vibrant, elongated Tung. Palm-leaf manuscripts articulate a profound eschatological doctrine concerning these banners: should a deceased devotee, burdened by residual unwholesome karma, descend toward the subterranean cauldrons of hell (Naraka), the streaming tails of the banners they consecrated during their lifetime will supernaturally unfurl into the underworld, wrapping around the trembling soul and hoisting it out of the flames directly into the celestial realms.
During grand monastic consecrations ("Poy Luang"), northern communities hoist monumental "Tung Chai" (Victory Banners, also called Tung Yai). Handwoven from raw cotton, silk, or satin, measuring roughly 20 inches wide and soaring 3 to 4 Wah (6 to 8 meters) in length, these banners line temple borders and rural approach roads for kilometers, alternating with broad triangular pennants ("Chor Chang") to signal to pilgrims that an ocean of merit is being generated.
The Epic of Doi Tung: A 16-Kilometer Celestial Banner and the Naming of Kengtung
The most breathtaking legend of this sacred craft is preserved in the Chronicle of Phra That Doi Tung (Mae Sai District, Chiang Rai), dating to approximately 242 BE (circa 301 BCE), during the reign of King Achuttarat:
- The Arhat Phra Kassapa Maha Thera journeyed to the northern mountains carrying the holy collarbone relic (Urangkhatat) of Gotama Buddha to enshrine upon the highest peak.
- A miraculous Golden Banner measuring one Yojāna (16 kilometers) in length, alongside companion banners measuring 14 kilometers long by 10 kilometers wide, was unfurled across the mountain summits to venerate the relic.
- Populations across the intermontane plateaus gazed in awe at this colossal celestial streamer fluttering above the clouds, naming the mountain peak "Doi Tung" (The Mountain of the Banner). The great valley kingdom established within sight of this banner's flight took its permanent historical name: "Chiang Tung" (Kengtung).
Infernal Salvation: Miracles from the Sangkhayāloka and Chiang Saen Chronicles
Sanguan Chotisukharat compiles extraordinary historical accounts from the Sangkhayāloka and the Chronicles of Hiran Nakhon Ngoen Yang Chiang Saen, evidencing the banner's supernatural capacity to override negative karma:
- The Forest Monk Bound as a Gecko: An ascetic who harbored a dying psychic attachment to a dry tree trunk was reborn within it as a gecko (Tokto). Tormented for aeons, he appeared in a vision to his lay disciples, entreating them to forge and donate metallic banners ("Tung Lek Tung Tong", fashioned of iron and brass) to the Sangha. This meritorious act instantly dissolved his reptilian embodiment, restoring his soul to human rebirth.
- The Hunter and the Colossus of Phayao: A hardened hunter who had slaughtered game and aquatic life for thirty years walked past Wat Sri Khrom Kham in Phayao. Seeing cloth banners fluttering serenely before the colossal seated Buddha (Phra Chao Ton Luang), he was seized by remorse, gathered cloth remnants, stitched a banner, and offered it to the icon. Upon his death, hell-wardens hurled him toward the molten bronze cauldrons; instantaneously, the banner he had consecrated flew down into the abyss, wrapped around his body, and carried him triumphantly to the heavens.
- The Fatal Fall in the Vihara: In the year 908 CS, a devotee ascended to the timber rafters of a temple hall to suspend a painted devotional banner (Tung Roop Phap). Slipping from the scaffolding, he broke his neck and died instantly. The fluttering banner miraculously caught his departing spirit in mid-air, bearing it directly to the Chulamani Stupa in Tāvatiṃsa Heaven.
Tung Sam Hang: Surrender to Death and the Triple Refuge
In Northern Thai mortuary practice, the most solemn artifact leading the funeral bier to the cremation grounds (Pa Chaa) is the "Tung Sam Hang" (The Three-Tailed Banner). Fashioned from pure white mulberry bark paper (Sa) or unbleached cotton (Pha Dip), it spans 2 to 3 hand-spans in width, exceeds a meter in length, and is severed at its base into three distinct tails.
This design encapsulates a dual existential riddle:
- Absolute Capitulation to King Death (Majjuraj): The pristine white cloth functions as an international ensign of surrender, warning onlookers that all mortals—regardless of lineage or material wealth—must ultimately yield to mortality.
- The Triple Gem as the Sole Cosmic Vessel: The three bifurcated tails symbolize the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha. They proclaim that when consciousness is severed from the mortal vessel, only refuge in the Triple Gem possesses the ontological power to bridge the chasm of Samsara and steer the departing spirit into a peaceful afterlife.