Spirit house
Let an agent explain spirit houses and their role, relay forms, rituals and regional variation from cultural and anthropological sources, describe etiquette for visitors, and distinguish spirit houses from temples and household altars, respectfully.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions
Understand What a spirit house is.
Definition
Definition and role.
Definition
Definition.
- What is a spirit house, and what spirits does it house, as practitioners and scholars describe? definition
- Is the question about a spirit house, a temple or a household altar? boundary
Forms
Forms by country.
Forms
Forms.
- How do Thai, Cambodian, Lao, Burmese and Vietnamese spirit houses differ? definition
- Which entry fits the specific tradition? action
Practice Rituals and offerings.
Rituals
Installation and offerings.
Rituals
Rituals.
- How are spirit houses installed, and what daily offerings are made? provenance
- Is the presentation respectful? boundary
Etiquette
Visitor etiquette.
Etiquette
Etiquette.
- How should visitors behave near spirit houses? provenance
- Which references are standard? provenance
Meaning Beliefs and change.
Beliefs
Beliefs.
Beliefs
Beliefs.
- How do animist, Buddhist and Hindu elements combine in spirit house practice, as anthropologists describe? provenance
- Which sources are cited? provenance
Change
Modern change.
Change
Change.
- How are spirit houses changing with urbanisation, and what happens to abandoned ones? provenance
- Which entry fits Thai folk religion? action
Context Culture and craft.
Craft
Craft.
Craft
Craft.
- How are spirit houses made, and by whom? provenance
- Which entry fits Thai crafts? action
Culture
Culture.
Culture
Culture.
- How do spirit houses appear in film, literature and tourism? provenance
- Which entry fits Southeast Asian folk religion? action
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Physical world and living systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- PHY
- Domain
- PHY.BLT
What it is Filled
A small shrine, usually raised on a post or pedestal and shaped like a miniature house or temple, placed outside homes, businesses and public buildings in Southeast Asia, notably Thailand where it is called san phra phum, as well as Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, to house guardian spirits of the land and receive daily offerings of food, incense and flowers; spirit houses blend animist and Buddhist or Hindu practice and are installed with rituals at auspicious times.
Why it exists Filled
Let an agent explain spirit houses and their role, relay forms, rituals and regional variation from cultural and anthropological sources, describe etiquette for visitors, and distinguish spirit houses from temples and household altars, respectfully.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Miniature house form
- Guardian spirit focus
- Daily offerings
- Southeast Asian distribution
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Mock or present the practice as superstition.
- Move, damage or remove a spirit house or its offerings without the owner's consent.
- Treat a spirit house as a temple or ancestor altar.
- Sell or advertise spirit houses using sacred imagery in a way the community would find offensive.
Only with a human decision
- Relocating or disposing of an old spirit house, which follows its own ritual.
May
- Describe spirit houses and the beliefs and offerings around them, noting differences between countries.
- Advise visitors to follow local customs, such as not touching offerings or a shrine.
- Help an owner who asks to find a recognised practitioner for placing or moving a spirit house.
Moral aspects Filled
- Spirit houses are part of living religious practice and deserve respect.
- Careless handling by outsiders can cause real offence and distress.
Who is affected
- Households and businesses that keep them
- Local religious practitioners
- Visitors
Owners Filled
Steward
The household or business that keeps the shrine.
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q123159276 - registry parent class
related
- Vietnamese temple - in registry terms, though spirit houses are found across Southeast Asia
- shrine - in general terms
- guardian spirit - of the land
- Thai folk religion - and neighbouring traditions
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.spirit-house
- Wikidata: Q1442187 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1442187)
Direct properties required Filled
- typical height: about 1-2 m - on pedestal
Recognition required Filled
- Miniature shrine for land spirits
- Thai san phra phum, Cambodian, Lao, Burmese and Vietnamese forms
- A temple is a full building; a household altar honours ancestors or deities indoors
- A miniature house or temple on a pedestal, often ornate, with offerings and figurines.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- explain the shrine and role
- relay forms and rituals
- describe regional variation
- distinguish from temples and altars
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Disrespectful presentation of living practice
- Confusing with temples or ancestor altars
- Overgeneralising across countries
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- No legal regulation; ritual conventions for installation and disposal
- Heritage protection for historic shrines in some places
Context of use required Filled
- Housing guardian spirits and receiving offerings.
- Thai san phra phum and san chao thi
- Cambodian spirit houses
- Lao and Burmese nat shrines
- Vietnamese spirit shrines
- spirit houses for businesses, hotels and public buildings
- modern and abandoned spirit houses
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q1442187: Spirit house - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Spirit house - general description of the item
Open questions
- Should san phra phum be a separate entry?
- How should anthropological sources be linked?
- Is the registry parent Vietnamese temple appropriate?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q1442187/spec.json