Lonely Mouth

by JG Learned

Fishing is a sensible hobby as it provides not only relaxation and time to meditate close to nature, but also serves the purpose of providing food for the family. But fishing is fishing and this isn't about fishing.

A trishaw driver naps in the shade of a building. A police car on the side of a highway, ostensibly as a warning to speeders, shows two booted feet of a sleeping gendarme sticking out the open door. A food vendor drapes herself around the back of her chair, quite perfectly asleep. A truck driver lies blissfully under his truck in the heat of the day. A dog asleep in the middle of the road raises one lazy eyelid at an approaching vehicle and lets it shut again. A seemingly boneless cat appears to be dripping off a chair. The art of relaxation is still very much alive in Southeast Asia.

A friend, somewhat disenchanted with Thailand, once disparagingly said of these people: “Their hobbies are eating and sleeping – what else is there to know about them?” Well, for a start he forgot to mention bathing. It's a fact that Thais elicit great pleasure from these simple pastimes. They bathe at least twice a day. They seem to be constantly eating, yet almost never get fat, and they have no problem falling directly into a state of slumber without a toss or turn, on uncomfortable looking surfaces. And wake up with a smile. The people of Isan (Northeastern Thailand) have a charming expression, “nawn saep” which translates literally as ‘delicious sleep', usually expressed after a particularly satisfying kip. They know how to obtain the greatest satisfaction from the basic pleasures of life.

My wife, a petite woman, when asked why she ate constantly between meals (usually 4 a day) replied after a moment's consideration, “Ngow pak” – ‘lonely mouth'. It's more than an oral fixation though. It's simple pleasure; it's a small celebration. While Thais do seem to be a very busy people with their mouths – chattering, eating, drinking and smoking – it's an appreciation of life, and of allayed subconcious fears of not having food to eat, or peace to sleep. There is a sense of security innate within these simple acts. A Chinese woman said, “We work so that we can eat”. But my wife wasn't Chinese and never equated the two.

Though my friend spoke with some rancor, there is an element of truth in what he said, as far as the Thai conception of ‘hobby' is concerned. The majority do not really understand the concept; it is an import from the west. Only two responses were elicited from a class of Thai high-school students when asked if they had any hobbies: the first admitted to being a stamp collector. Asked how many stamps he had in his collection he replied “Four”. A girl confessed to considering camping her hobby: her response as to how many camping trips she'd made was “One”.

Hobbies normally only develop when there is considerable free time in which to follow one's own interests, apart from those of family and community. Most forms of entertainment in Asia are traditionally of the communal sort, rather than based upon individual pursuits and desires. There is little time or inclination to devote oneself to self-interests apart from those of the family.

Hobbies are a luxury, previously limited to the upper class, whose lives provided ample time for leisure and the arts. Industrialization created the middle class, who naturally emulate the upper classes, as far as their social and economic situation permits. They came from the bottom and are on the way up. Pursuit of individual interests becomes possible only where there can be a clear distinction between activities of normal routine and activities apart from the necessities of daily living. This gives license to the development of the concept of ‘hobby'.

It also augurs the beginning of the weakening of the essential family unit. The industrial revolution never happened in Southeast Asia and the middle class didn't really begin to develop until the 1960s. A basically agrarian, largely self-sufficient economy developed into a consumer society within a relatively short time. It's convenient and good for the farmer to take a siesta during the hottest hours of the day but impossible for the factory or office worker, whose idea of pleasure takes on a wider, more varied definition. His ‘time-off' takes on the nuance of my time off, his family apart from his work.

The farmer has the immediate support of family and community, at work and play. In fact the Thai words for work and celebration are the same word – “ngan”. Food and rest are the reward for their toil. A full belly and a dreamless sleep are two of the best available pleasures to the man who can fully appreciate them. Food and sleep are requisite to life. In a pastoral system where ‘social security' is not an abstract concept - a system of numbers, monthly payments and remunerations - family is social security. Being old is not an onus, but an accepted fact in the cycle of birth and death. The oldest take care of the youngest while the strongest do the hardest work. Having food to eat and share and a roof over one's head and a bit of shade in which to nap are outward manifestations of basic security.

It has been said that living in one place is like reading only one page of a book. After all, what is the purpose of travel if not to learn? But to travel and live in foreign countries without trying to understand the reasons for customs, traditions, ways of life and diverse perspectives of reality is perhaps even worse – to travel within one's own artificial, cultural bubble unwilling to accept reality around us; viewing the world through a protective shell, imagining that we are apart from what we see and hear and smell; comparing, judging, flipping through the pages of that book without really reading them. Perhaps we take the basic pleasures too much for granted. Perhaps we should learn something from these people – something we have forgotten.