Alms giving in Lao Buddhist tradition

The tradition here is Theravada, linked to lineages that cross the Mekong into Isan, Northeast Thailand. The chants that echo from the temple halls are in Pali, though the pronunciation is Lao. You see the script on temple walls and old manuscripts, sometimes in the elegant curves of Tham script, a writing system for the Dhamma.

This practice follows a calendar marked by the rain. During Vassa, the rains retreat, monks remain in their monasteries. This period culminates in kathina, when laypeople offer new robes. Major festivals like Makhabucha and Visakha draw crowds, as do pilgrimages to That Phanom (ธาตุพนม), a revered stupa across the Thai border.


A Legacy Carved in Stone

The Buddhism of Champasak is rooted in the Lan Xang (ລ້ານຊ້າງ - "Land of a Million Elephants") kingdom, which established Theravada from the 14th century. Later, as the Kingdom of Champasak, its ties with the Siamese Sangha of Ayutthaya and Bangkok shaped its ritual style and temple architecture. Under French Indochina, the wats were centers for local education. After 1975, the Lao Buddhist Fellowship Organization began to coordinate Sangha affairs, a structure that remains today.



Wat Phou, a great architectural masterpiece of the ancient Khmer Kingdom

This history is visible at Wat Phou. The main complex is a UNESCO site of pre-Buddhist Khmer origins, its stones dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu. Now, Theravada practice coexists with these ancient foundations.



The Wat Phou Festival

The annual Wat Phou Festival sees Buddhist ceremonies and processions, with offerings made to nearby monasteries, weaving the old site into the fabric of contemporary devotion.


Places of Practice

In Pakse, the wats are community hubs. Beyond morning alms, they host Dhamma talks, Pali classes for youth, and rites for funerals and merit-making. The architecture speaks of cross-currents: layered roofs, naga balustrades, and ordination halls, or sim (sima - ຊິມາ), whose murals depict scenes from the Jataka tales of the Buddha’s past lives.

Along the Mekong and in Si Phan Don - the Four Thousand Islands, small monasteries anchor village life. Their rituals are tied to the land and water—blessings for the fields, for boats, and kathina ceremonies that arrive by flotilla, crossing the river channels.


The Fabric of Faith

Life here is structured by the concept of bun/boun (ບຸນນ), or merit. There are ceremonies (ບຸນຄຸນ - boun koon) for house blessings, for transferring merit to ancestors, and for communal almsgiving. On observance days, laypeople renew their five precepts. The sound of faith is a melodic Lao style of Pali chanting, accompanied by the drum and long trumpet in processions. Devotion focuses on Buddha images, relic stupas, and protective chants.

The Mekong is a conduit, not a border. Influence from Thai Isan and Cambodia is seen in temple feasts, the style of monks’ robes, and educational exchanges. Monks from Champasak may study in Pakse, Vientiane, or across the border in Ubon Ratchathani and Bangkok.


The Current of the Present

Practice today is a cycle: alms-rounds at dawn, laypeople giving dāna (ຕັກບາດ - tak bat; alms giving), evening chanting and meditation. The meditation taught is often breath mindfulness or recollections, presented in accessible ways. The year is marked by festivals — Boun Khao Padap Din (ບຸນເຂົ້າປະດັບດິນ - hungry ghost festival) and Boun Khao Salak (ບຸນເຂົ້າສະຫຼາກ - Laos festival of ancestral remembrance) for the departed, Boun Awk Phansa (ບຸນອອກພັນສາ) to mark the end of the rains, and candlelit boat festivals on the river.



Boun Awk Phansa marks the end of the rains retreat and the following it, the observation of Kathina

The temple’s role extends beyond the spiritual. It is a place of education, moral guidance, and community mediation. Youth groups learn chanting and cultural arts, ensuring the rhythm continues.


For the Traveler

When you enter these spaces, you become part of their order. Dress covers shoulders and knees. Shoes and hats are removed. Keep your head lower than that of a senior monk. When you give or receive, use both hands.

A donation, whether for food, medicine, or the upkeep of a building, supports the Sangha’s simple needs. It is a direct participation in the rhythm of giving and receiving that sustains this ancient way of life.