khmer sources

At the gateway to ancient temples and roads, stern stone figures stand guard. These are believed to protect both the human and divine visitors against evil spirits, and they go by the collective name of ting moung. The same name and principal applies to the more humble, scarecrow-like creatures made of straw-stuffed old clothes that are often seen at the gates of houses in rural Cambodia. Like their stone counterparts, they always bear a fearsome expression. Even the poorest of families can afford to create a scary face on the bottom of an old cooking pot to serve this purpose, and farmers often use the same figures in their fields to scare away birds and wandering evil spirits alike.

But with bird flu sweeping Asia, the ting moung have suddenly become even more prevalent. Faced with a mystery disease spread in ways even scientists are still puzzling over, the people of the Cambodian countryside have turned to their old allies, and now they guard against avian influenza. The ting moung have silently stood guard against infectious diseases such as cholera, plague or small pox for centuries, and are also deployed to discourage the evil spirits of malaria and dengue fever, so the fact that people put faith in it when the specter of bird flu raises its head is not so surprising, given the lack of alternatives for the poverty stricken and often poorly educated people of the villages.

Mr Meach Ponn, 72, advisor to the Council of Khmer Customs and Traditions at the Buddhist Academic Institute, says belief in the ting moung has existed for centuries. "From before I was born, my grandparents and their contemporaries all believed in this kind of thing. During my childhood, I was scared of their powers," he says. "Often when there is an outbreak of infectious disease that attacks human beings or livestock, villagers believe that evil or wild spirits are menacing their lives, so they have to build the ting moung to resist those spirits.

The belief in ting moung is a type of psychological animism, like worshipping or praying, and since animism existed in Khmer society pre-Angkor, we can guess that belief in ting moung also predates that time." Mr Um Sok is the director of the Department of Culture in Kompong Thom province. He says that research has revealed that the belief in the ting moung existed in the post-Angkor era, and probably before it.

"Some people do not believe in the ting moung because there is neither reason nor evidence to prove its effectiveness," he says. "But the belief that the ting moung scarecrow used in the fields can scare away animals that want to come and destroy the crops is provably true, and thus makes the theory of ting moung acceptable to many in other roles, and so the ting moung, placed at the gate in front of people's houses or at the entrance to a village may also be able to ward off evil spirits or infectious diseases. Otherwise, belief in it would not have existed until today."

"Some rural people consider ting moung to be the king of all angels or spirits. Beside the ting moung, some Khmer people may also cut a piece of the chrolordai tree to hang on the fences of their houses or at the doorway as a substitute for the ting moung, and people in some villages such as in Sambo district of Kompong Thom province always make ting moung every year during the dry season as a community endeavor.

The people gather together to pray to the village spirits once this ritual is finished, in the hopes of warding off all kinds of bad luck." So it should not come as a surprise, with fear of bird flu raging in provinces such as Kandal, that districts such as Dangkao and Kean Svay are making ting moung and putting them in front of their houses. A woman from Veal Sbov commune, Kean Svay district, has put a freshly made ting moung outside her home. Although she has more faith in her creation than in doctors or vets, she doesn't want to be named for fear of being laughed at by city folk.

"After hearing the announcement about the outbreak of severe bird flu in Vietnam and Thailand on the TV, village elders asked their children to build ting moung and put them in front of their houses to ward off that disease," she says. Mr Doeu Sarath, 32, director of the Khmer Volunteer for Commune Development Organization, says the dolls are a common sight in the countryside, providing hope and confidence. "My organization works closely with people's communities in rural, mountainous areas where mosquitoes are rife and disease is common.

Every time I go there, I always see ting moung in front of villagers' houses," he says. "People usually make ting moung during the cropping and the harvest seasons, especially during seasons when their children get sick easily or when their domestic animals get infected with diseases. Sometime, people even burn the ting moung to ward off bad luck.

This custom is seen in provinces such as Prey Veng, Svay Rieng, Takeo, Kompong Speu and Kompong Cham." Din Prum, 72, is a lay Buddhist priest attached to the Royal Palace. He is a firm believer in the power of these ancient guards. "In fact, whenever a phenomenon takes place, our people always make ting moung with a fierce look to scare off spirits so that they will not enter their villages. This belief is true and has been a custom of our people since ancient times," he says.