{{no footnotes, date=November 2009 Yantprapidta

Khatha ( km, គាថា) ( th, คาถา), or "

Gatha ''Gāthā'' is a Sanskrit term for 'song' or 'verse', especially referring to any poetic metre which is used in legends, and is not part of the Vedas but peculiar to either Epic Sanskrit or to Prakrit. The word is originally derived from the Sansk ...

", as originally called in Pali Language), is the Khmer and Thai name used for Sacred

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or ''Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhism ...

prayers,

mantras A mantra (Pali: ''manta'') or mantram (मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit, Pali and other languages believed by practitioners to have religious, ma ...

and other magical

incantations An incantation, a spell, a charm, an enchantment or a bewitchery, is a magical formula intended to trigger a magical effect on a person or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung or chanted. An incantation can also be performed during ceremo ...

. Khatha are used in general by Thai people for a great many purposes; be it for protection, charm or business ventures, there is a Khatha which can be summoned. The word Khatha, or "Gatha" in Pali, means "

Speech Speech is a human vocal communication using language. Each language uses Phonetics, phonetic combinations of vowel and consonant sounds that form the sound of its words (that is, all English words sound different from all French words, even if ...

", and thus the original meaning of the word implies that Khatha were used only as spoken language, and not written form. In spite of this fact, the word Khatha is used to refer to both that which is spoken, and also written.

Uses of Khatha

Khatha are used in

Buddhist chanting Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, by Thai

Ruesi ''Rishi'' () is a term for an accomplished and enlightened person. They find mentions in various Vedic texts. Rishis are believed to have composed hymns of the Vedas. The Post-Vedic tradition of Hinduism regards the rishis as "great yogis" or ...

practitioner for their magical spells, inscribed on

Thai Buddha amulet A Thai Buddha amulet ( th, พระเครื่อง; ), often referred to academically as "votive tablet", is a type of Thai Buddhist blessed item. It is used to raise funds to help the temple's operations. A Thai Buddhist monk will give a ...

s and yantra cloths, as well as being the main body of content in Sak Yant tattooing; The sacred yantra tattoo designs are both filled with Pali Khatha, as well as being used to embellish the spaces between each of the designs too. Image to the right shows a sacred yantra used in

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

as amulets and

shamanistic Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...

sak yant Yantra tattooing or Sak Yant ( th, สักยันต์ ) is a form of tattooing using Indian yantra designs. It consists of sacred geometrical, animal and deity designs accompanied by Pali phrases that are said to offer power, protection, fo ...

Khatha inscriptions

When a Khatha is inscribed on paper, cloth, metal, skin, or any other surface for that matter, it is traditionally done using the Ancient

Khmer script Khmer script ( km, អក្សរខ្មែរ, )Huffman, Franklin. 1970. ''Cambodian System of Writing and Beginning Reader''. Yale University Press. . is an abugida (alphasyllabary) script used to write the Khmer language, the official la ...

(known as " Khom" in Thailand). The ancient Khmer script is only permitted to be used for sacred or scriptural texts, and never for common speech or everyday matters. This alphabet is considered by some Thai people to be extremely sacred and to possess spiritual power within the letters. This is the lettering seen used in

Sak Yant Yantra tattooing or Sak Yant ( th, สักยันต์ ) is a form of tattooing using Indian yantra designs. It consists of sacred geometrical, animal and deity designs accompanied by Pali phrases that are said to offer power, protection, fo ...

tattoos.

Uses of Khatha

Khatha inscriptions

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