Though Thailand is rich in colorful festivals, a traditional Thai ordination is a somewhat austere affair. The Shans, by contrast, follow a custom of holding elaborate ordination ceremonies. Legend has it that the first Buddhist novice was Prince Rahula, the Buddha’s own son, who gave up his lavish lifestyle to follow his father’s spiritual teachings. On the last day of Poy Sang Long, the new novices exchange their jeweled robes for the saffron cloth of the monkhood. While the Shans are devout Buddhists, only a few of the boys will stay more than a few weeks in the monkhood due to study or family commitments. But when they leave they will have completed an important rite of passage, and be seen as “spiritually ripened” in their parents’ eyes.