#mambo.speaks

First off, I'd love to address all of my new followers as of late (not sure when these posts will officially make it out of the drafts but I'm writing this as of October 9, 2025), and especially to all of my new mutuals, welcome welcome! I started actively posting on my blog last year, getting my footing in gifmaking but also dedicating a space for all of my rambles and hyperfixations. I started coining tags like mambo.speaks, mambo.gifs, and of the like, creating content for my favorite groups and drama series for y'all to enjoy (I enjoy it the most but I love sharing my joy with everyone who receives it).

I hope that everyone is loving Khemjira as much as I have, not only has it instantly become one of my favorite QL series of this year, but easily became my top five of all time. Although I am not Thai nor practice Theravada Buddhism or Animism as I practice Mahayana Buddhism and live in the US as a Vietnamese person whose parents immigrated during the 70s and 90s, I've really enjoyed catching so many details that non practitioners may overlook or completely miss. I mentioned more details of this experience in my 3 Favorite Khemjira Scenes post, which has garnered so much love and I appreciate everyone's time reading it even in its short form! Using that post as a launching pad for my own series of analyses (one of my best friends @jupitersdirection really pushed for me to write about this topic so I thank her for the encouragement!), I'll discuss some main concepts of the Dharma under the cut, focusing mainly on the Eight Sufferings that were outlined in the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, the first sermon given by Gautama Buddha.

Disclaimer: Although I try my best to be a devoted follower of the Buddhist religion and philosophy, my interpretation and understanding stems from an experience within not only the Asian diaspora, but within the small dot of Buddhist practitioners within the Bible Belt of the American South. Growing up in within a religious and racial minority, the Buddhist customs and culture are nowhere nearly as accessible as those residing and growing up in countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, etc. Of course, people still find ways to access these communities, whether online or on-site during significant religious events and ceremonies, but nothing compares to having a dedicated community that you're able to engage with regularly, even better if your country's society participates in Buddhist practice. However, I do hope that the information and analyses I present to everyone not only becomes just a small part of the whole in introducing Buddhist ideology to an unfamiliar audience, but also provide more context and applying the knowledge to Khemjira's themes and why we all fell in love with the series in the first place. From my experience learning the Dharma from my own self study after taking refuge as a child, being present alongside my masters and fellow monastics, discussing with other fellow Buddhists of varying traditions and sects, Buddhism and attaining "buddha-nature" really is about becoming an observer of the world rather than solely an engager of the world. Because I love noticing bits and pieces of how the Khemjira team has approached the story through the Buddhist lens, it's only become a very enriching experience each week. I won't be dabbling into the shamanistic or animistic practices, I won't really be dabbling into the execution of the horror or lack of according to some, and I won't be dabbling into any of the magic practices as it's not my forte nor a part of my own religious practice.

First thing's first: thank you so much for showing so much love for my first post regarding Buddhist concepts and teachings found in Khemjira. Not only has it been informative and educational for non-believers or those who are what many monastics I've learned from coined the term "Buddhist by culture," I've also been able to do my due diligence and learn/relearn many of the Dharma teachings myself. I think it's very important to make sure that the information being provided is well researched and concise, since for some people, SEA QL may be their first introduction to Buddhism and Buddhist culture. I believe it's my responsibility to honor the Dharma and to explain these teachings through examples of pop culture and media, as fiction rooted in real practice and way of life can become a powerful tool in developing understanding and introducing people to a perspective outside of their own.

What inspired this post was my trip to India last year in December, the first time I had traveled internationally since I was a child before my father passed away. My family is Buddhist, which my parents took my older brother and I everywhere in the US to visit many Vietnamese temples. I took refuge early on in my childhood (my Dharma name roughly translates to "liberation," my master jokes it's because I'm a "free lady"), still attending summer camps, retreats and of the like from childhood into adulthood. My father passed away when I was a child like Khem, as coincidentally enough, my mom ordained and became a monastic just like Khem's dad! It's been two years since she ordained and interestingly enough, life keeps showing me new ways of dissecting, interpreting, and analyzing the world around me.

When I was on this trip, it had been incredibly introspective, and felt like I had unlocked a newfound connection between me and my spirituality. From visiting the holy sites and infamous places where the Buddha had experienced pivotal points of his lifetime such as his birth place, his enlightenment, his first sermon and others, the energy you make contact with there is indescribable. Because my Vietnamese isn't very proficient, one of my masters (which I had initially met as a layperson before he ordained when I was a child) that attended the trip made an effort to explain the significance of the sites, as well as teaching me the Dharma as if I've gained new eyes. This was when I really understood and resonated with the Eight Sufferings, my life makes more sense since I've understood the teachings when I did. When watching Khemjira, I kept making such connections, and felt inspired to create dedicated gifsets to each form of suffering in our lives. Each gif will lead you to the set itself, where you can explore and have a more nuanced understanding of each scene during the series.

My disclaimer has been stated in the first post, so I don't think it's necessary to rehash that once more if you've already read it. However, because these topics themselves can be quite intensive, I have split the Eight Sufferings into the following posts:

1) Birth, Old Age, Sickness, and Death 2) Separation from the Loved, Encounter with the Unpleasant, and Not Getting What You Want 3) Constitution of the Five Aggregates

Enjoy and thank you so much for your interest! 🙏

The Eight Sufferings: Birth

In Buddhism, one of the main concepts that we must understand is the reality of impermanence, which I had introduced in my initial post discussing the Four Noble Truths. The world is incredibly vast, while being minuscule all at the same time. Our understanding of time, space, permanence, feeling, etc, can be amplified or deafened through our own awareness in each moment and interaction we encounter throughout life. Birth plays a significant role that involves many individuals that make up that shared experience: the mother, the child, and those impacted by the introduction of new life, such as the father of that child or relatives.

Although we view the birth of a child being a "miracle" and celebrate the creation of life, most people underestimate the drastic changes that occur during a mother's pregnancy from conception to child rearing, many changes that impact the mother permanently for the rest of her life. Physical alterations such as sickness, bodily functionality, or mental alterations such as postpartum depression, personality disorders, strained relationships, etc, and in most dire of scenarios, death of the mother and/or child. We see various scenarios of how the birth of a child impacted not only the mother characters of Khemjira, but those associated with the child such as the fathers and the various wives or new lovers of the fathers.

What is at risk due to the existence of this singular child which knows nothing because they are have not developed their own autonomy or consciousness, or on the flip side, the inexistence of this child? The stability of a couple's future as a family unit, financially and political gain through heirship, power and immense wealth for generations to come. What may be viewed as the ultimate gift of a woman lies a glorified reality that leads down many sinister roads, towards lives filled with resentment, grief, entitlement, neglect, disgust, trauma, and so much more when left unaddressed and lacking honor for such a courageous act.

However, the duties of a mother, which we've mainly witnessed through Khem's mother, are insurmountable, devoted, honorable, and most importantly, will exceed all realms. Knowing the demise of her son is near, she does everything in her power within the spirit realm to protect her son, from other spirits, consulting with her past lover now as a monastic, speaking with the Grand Master as well as Paran, the soon to be during his adolescence as well as him as a shaman master. I see my own mother and her efforts to protect my brother and I in Khem's mother, that no bounds will prevent them from loving their children unconditionally, which inevitably saved Ramphueng from encountering more suffering and causing suffering upon others. Witnessing the strength of a mother's love was stripped from her before she ever started to honor the morality of her son, she sought for forgiveness, reminding all of us that what has once consumed our life source can easily be transformed into something greater and more honorable, seeking a life of salvation and compassion over a life of vengeance and hatred.

The Eight Sufferings: Old Age

For many people, Buddhism can be easily adopted into philosophical conversations that discuss life's mysteries and biggest questions, addressing many events and circumstances that are innate to the human experience. The concept of age from when we're young is an identification marker: ask a little kid how old they are and they'll show you with their fingers with pride and potentially a smile worth while. The concept of age after reaching a certain threshold into your early stage of adulthood such as your 20s and 30s, eventually it becomes a number that simply indicates the very harsh realization that we're one year closer to our ultimate demise. However, this very concept of age to an elder slowly makes its way back to becoming a badge of honor, marking the essence of longevity, strength, and wisdom.

There are many elders in the Khemjira story many influenced the young characters through their presence and involvement. Peem's grandfather becoming his primary source of familial unconditional love and guidance, despite being short lived due to his grandfather's old age and physical state. Grandma Si and other villagers who helped raise and assist Peem during adolescence and becoming their master. Khem's father ordaining after the death of his mother, fulfilling his duty as a parent by incurring merit and karma to protect his son, ultimately dedicating the rest of his life to the Sangha.

Because I grew up not only in a Buddhist and Asian household, but also within the American South, paying homage and honoring our elders had been instilled in me from a very young age. I also have older parents so that sentiment overcomes me more often now that my mom has entered her mid 60s as I've entered my mid 20s, that there is only so much time left to spend the rest of our lives together and I want to make every moment count. Many people take the lives of our elders for granted, unknowingly and sometimes, unwilling to extend compassion and kindness towards them due to impatience and apathy. However, our elders are our primary sources of history, of knowledge, of adaptation, of acceptance, of lived experience. Their physical bodies may still be in tact, but if you do not take the opportunity to assist in keeping their minds active, they slowly wither away. What they need most is our presence, even more now than ever in a culture and society that's shifted to frightening heights in terms of hyper individualization and independent.

What I find incredibly comforting is the ability to insert myself in the various roles and dynamics I'll encounter during my lifetime, which we've been able to witness through the Khemjira characters. Khem's sensibility interacting with the older generation of villagers, eventually being treated as though he is one of their own children. Paran taking his responsibility over his role as the master shaman of the village diligently, undermining his own youth and disregarding his own duties towards himself and his entitlement to a life filled with pursuits of happiness and love. Jet growing up in the village and becoming dependable and reliable as an adult, leading the next generation of the village and allowing the elders to relieve their own duties. Charn undergoing his own personal growth through strengthening his maturity, no longer being the observer but becoming an active creator of his own life having newfound belief in a philosophy and way of life that resonates with him. When we were children, the adults in our village did everything in their power to raise us up, it's now our time to do the same as they enter old age. It's our time to give back to them, they've worked hard taking care of us, now it's time for us to do the same.

In my eyes, aging encompasses a plethora of experiences: mental age, physical age, experiential age, etc. How we speed up or slow down the process of self aging, finding joy in the many things life has to offer to us. Coincidentally, I'm writing this as Halloween had just passed, sparking many interesting conversations between me and my clients, as well as my fellow coworkers. Youth is accessible through discovering and accepting joy with open arms, no matter your physical age. Dress up for the occasions as the seasonal festivities of the year come and go, participate and engage with the people around you no matter the age, it's only "childish" if you perceive it as such, and as one of my coworkers answered when asked what her secret is for looking so young for her age:

"Make sure you laugh and smile all the time, because there's a lot to be happy about."

The Eight Sufferings: Sickness

This particular suffering is very near and dear to my heart, which is why I resonated with Khem and Peem as we gained insight into their childhood/adolescence. Growing up, I was probably around Khem's age when my father passed away from cancer, an illness that affected both my father and mother around the same time of them being diagnosed. Unfortunately for my father, he had reached the later stages of his lung cancer, causing him to pass away by the end of that same year he had been diagnosed. For my mother, after undergoing surgery and chemotherapy, she has been cancer free for years now, living her life as a Buddhist monastic similarly to Khem's father in the series!

Sickness is an experience that plagues us all, having little regard on age, gender, race, etc. Chronic illness introduces itself and possesses a destructive nature, at worst, ripping families apart. Knowing that the mothers of Khem and Peem had endured such physical pain, many overlook mental fatigue and guilt the unwell experience. For both mothers grieving their ultimate end, that prayer can no longer withhold them from their severed reality from their loved ones, especially their young children.

Khem's child self wishing to see spirits if that meant continuing to be in contact with his mother beyond her death is incredibly heavy for a child to experience and understand: I was one of them as well. Peem longing for the touch of his mother, even well into his adult years: I'm in that same position in life as well where all I long for is my father's embrace and affirmation. Witnessing the damage that overcame my own parents and their physical body, to a point where my father was too weak and frail to speak that his voice is but a faint memory, it changes your psyche and your soul. You become desperate and can only hope and pray that health may have mercy on you and your loved ones, that no one should part ways too soon. As I got older, understanding the gloom and dread that trapped my father in the confines of his own illness, having to come to terms with accepting an early departure from the earth and his family, there is now a stronger emphasis on mental and physical wellbeing and maintaining it.

Keeping in mind the limitations of your own physical and mental endurance, engaging with the world through physical interaction and intellectual realization and thought. Honoring your ailments as they arise and fall, fostering mindfulness and incorporating meditative practices into your daily living. Reminding ourselves that we cannot expect longevity with a weak body and mind. As my mom said when I was growing up: you never know what happens tomorrow.

Cherish your life and your autonomy while it's still yours in its entirety. Address those points of contamination within your life head on but with compassion and curiosity, physical or mental, and making deliberate choices that entitles you towards a healthier life. We are only given this singular physical body we can't project our shadows like Por Kru does LOL so it is our responsibility that we must love it, nurture it, and care for it. It is our life source, our life line, and our means of taking us further in life if we so desire, even if it means remaining strong until our very last breath.

The Eight Sufferings: Death

Living in a timeline where news of advancement and innovation are easily accessible on social media and the Internet, I've noticed one discussion point brought up in various settings: the concept and acceptance of mortality and sometimes, the rejection of it. Many people find relief knowing that medicine and science are addressing the plights of aging and living into old age, introducing solutions that slow the aging process and theoretically, may assess whether or not immortality is feasible in the near future definitely beyond our current life span.

Many people have an innate fear of death, but it's important to assess where this fear derives from because it can vary from person to person, culture to culture, belief system to belief system. For some, it's fear of the unknown and knowing there is a very little chance that you'll be able to return and inform others of what you experienced between realms. For others, it's fear of spending an eternity in an unforgiving place such as Hell. Sometimes, it's fear of dying a painful death. Often times, it's fear of parting with a beloved knowing that such a permanent outcome is irreversible, and grief is a lifelong experience that simply have better days than most.

Between Khem and Peem, I relate to Khem's bond between him and his mother, feeling as though my own bond between my deceased father exceeds physicality and finding comfort in his presence spiritually. Knowing the emotional baggage Khem experiences facing with world with one less of a strong presence in his life such as a parent, the constant reminder that someone so precious and valuable will no longer be by your side can be extremely damning. This is something that I feel like many people approach mortality in a superficial manner, from lack of direct experience and inability to sympathize with the person right next to them. To me, it's important to recognize and assess the stages of grief someone is in, especially in such a vulnerable state of mind where everything is taxing: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.

That's what I found special about the bond between Khem and Peem, both people enduring similar circumstances of loss, grief, further denying themselves of any fulfillment in fear of harming those around them, through their own selfishness, their own ignorance, or their own negligence. However, loss and grief are a part of life, big and small, and not limited to the literal definition of death itself. Although there are many iterations of physical death in Khemjira (Khem and Peem's mothers, Ramphueng and Ketkaew's sons, Thong and Ake, Grandma Si, to name a few), this sentiment can also be extended to mental and emotional mourning, such as Charn and Jet mourning their past lives and their inability to have their happily ever after.

Because death is seen and portrayed in such disarray and absolute torment, people fail to recognize the opposite side of the coin: the release of physical and mental anguish that is occupying this body. That clinging does nothing but prevent one from moving forward, the natural course life carries on. The primary example for this clinging is Ramphueng and her dedication in avenging the premature death of her son, allowing her vengeance to overcome her spirit to a point of harming the reincarnation of her son that had existed in the same time frame as Khem. Even in practices like tarot, death is viewed as a shedding and newfound second skin, simply alluding to the conclusion of an arc of life. The natural course one must follow in stripping themselves of the person they once were, engaging with those who are no longer with them, physically or spirituality, it's a reminder that everything is fleeting and it's time to continue moving forward to bring novelty into your life once again for it to flourish. And with such fleeting, finding strength and acceptance in the present moment and aligning one's spirit and calling with what's right in front of them, eventually death no longer becomes intimidating, but encourages us to do our very best each and every day with few regrets. Choosing love, choosing honor, choosing compassion, choosing loyalty, choosing resilience, choosing acceptance, choosing reality. In my personal experience that sums itself up in the words of Thich Nhat Hanh:

The art of happiness is also the art of suffering well.

Y'all made it towards the end, we did it! This post has been worked on for a few days now since it's been pretty slow at my job but man, this last week of October was so busy for me and I felt like I wasn't able to dedicate 100% of my brain power to collecting my thoughts. I hope these posts have been informative and helpful, and when we all plan on rewatching Khemjira, you're able to understand the nuances with fresh eyes and a newfound level of cultural/spiritual/religious context! I already have the other parts drafted and will be worked on slowly but surely, however, if anyone has any curiosities or questions, or would like my own personal interpretation about certain aspects of the story or the characters arcs of Knemjira, I'm more than happy to address and analyze if that can help bring clarity!

I was tagged by @gotmehookedonthekpop (thank you so much and I hope you're having a lovely week so far!), the game originally started by @dramalove247 here <3

How to Play: Pick 3 of your favorite scenes from Khemiira and post using the hashtag: #khemjira game (or make your own rules!)

Ritual/Ceremonial Scenes

I've shared on multiple occasions that I'm Buddhist through this blog but I practice Mahayana Buddhism as a Viet person living in the US. I've also shared on here but also with my tumblr mutuals in private about going to various retreats and other Buddhist functions at temples/other establishments across the country and outside of my city. One Singaporean nun who practices Tibetan Buddhism shared her sentiment at the past retreat I've attended, that when she was growing up in Singapore before immigrating to the US, Buddhist culture was embedded in the everyday lives of their society, an experience that isn't as replicable within the US no matter how intertwined certain communities are. As an avid viewer of Thai media, to see Thailand continue to portray such experiences and cultural nuances in their drama series, I find it incredibly heartwarming and even long for such experiences in my own communities which will always be sparse and little to nonexistent sometimes. The participation of Buddhist youth portrayed in these series through layship, religious functions, attending retreats, whether as audience members, performers, etc, is so beautiful to me as a fellow member of the Buddhist community. Even though in countries such as Thailand where Buddhism is ingrained in daily life that wouldn't be the same otherwise, it makes me grateful and hopeful that I'll be able to experience such connection more often with my own communities as time goes on, because we all are capable of living life with "Buddha-nature," and I can tell that every single person working on Khemjira has embodied such radiance and light.

What I find so impactful about Khemjira and how not only has it captured the hearts of international viewers, but their domestic viewers as well: the dedication the cast and production has in creating such an beautiful and impactful series. Although they've shared their experiences with the spirits and other paranormal activity occurring while filming in the village, through the crew and actors' sincerity and efforts, all the scenes showcasing sermons, prayers and blessings, rituals, etc, most definitely reached beyond the human realm and made contact with the deities and other celestial beings! Their karma created from not only showcasing Thai rural life, shamanism, disconnection between nonbelievers and believers, but also inspiring other actors and production crew to take notes and work with utmost sincerity and awareness towards how their livelihood affects not only themselves as actors, but the viewers as well, I feel blessed to exist in the same timeline as this series blossoms into its own, definitely a series that'll be remembered for the ages. May they be blessed and prosper in their respective careers, continue to create inspiring and impactful work, and reach the viewers and criticisms made by those who are currently unable to see past their own judgment and bias, hoping that they'll turn a new leaf and change their minds 🙏

Incantation/White Magic Scenes

I loved how the Khemjira cinematographers and editing team brought this series to life, from the VFX to attention of each episode and what motivates each character in that particular moment. I joked about how I related to Jet when he talked about being Pharan's "number 1 disciple" as I hold such a position with my own Buddhist master when I took refuge as a child, but witnessing the strength and earnest determination in protecting Khem, I adore Jet's characterization along with his wit and selflessness. Throughout the series, you can see how devoted he is as a follower, praying with sincerity and dedication to the deities and other Buddhist figures. Well, sometimes he be sleeping and almost getting into fights with other people who shit on his master but we'll ignore that cause we all got our flaws LOL. I believe that's why his incantations and other white magic are incredibly powerful, and I can't wait for him to show us more!

Despite all efforts in keeping distance between him and Khem, I love the small details in Pharan's incantation scenes, something that I admire Keng for his attention and preparation for his portrayal of his character. As the master of the village and even witnessing the dedication my own master has through his own advisement over his followers as a Buddhist monk, there is barely any time or room for these individuals to act upon their own volition. However, as mentioned in the latest episode by Grandma Si, Pharan is a shaman, not a monk, and one of her wishes is for him to welcome someone to care for him once she's gone. It's the natural course of life after all.

Although his mind is averse in Khem's presence in his life at the beginning of the summer once the university club arrives in his village, Pharan slowly breaks down his walls little by little. In Buddhism, there are the Eight Sufferings, some of which Pharan experiences from Khem during the beginning of their story: suffering from encountering something or someone unpleasant (his aversion once he recognized his affinity with Khem and chose to reject it), suffering from being separated from something or someone pleasant (ie. his family members whom have become deceased from sickness and/or old age), and suffering from not getting what he wants (his innate desire for romantic love and partnership, but his fear of suffering from the eventual loss of his loved one). I love witnessing the progression Pharan experiences from his time participating in everyday life as a shaman, slowly building up boundaries between himself and those who desire a deeper connection with him (ie. Prim), while at the same time, confronting his own boundaries and tearing them down after accepting what is tangible, real, and only existent in the present moment: Khem.

After spending time with Charn as an viewer but alongside Jet as they both navigate their feelings for one another, I adore the quietness that is Charn's innate strength and character. I find the contrast between Jet's spontaneity and Charn's calmness to be charming and refreshing between these two characters, almost like the concept of yin and yang being shown to us in a multitude of ways. How despite Jet's hostility towards Charn at the beginning of their story, Charn has always been honest in his curiosity towards Jet, and is willing to protect Jet through his dedication to his practice and concentration. Even though it's clumsy at times and could have been dangerous at other times, Charn's affinity towards Jet even from their past lives have trickled into their current lifetime, which only makes me excited to see more of what they're both willing to explore about one another.

Community/Coming Together Scenes

Although the main cast is consisted of the youth, from university students to young adults entering their 30s and onward, I love the participation of everyone in this small ecosystem and village. How Jet practically knows everyone from the community no matter the age, how Khem and Charn acknowledge their presence as guests in the village and learning their way around a lifestyle beyond what they're used to, how the elders entrust their community in the hands of their fellow members and their master no matter the age. It's a dynamic that I feel like we miss out on in many series, limiting our ability to experience all these characters and how they engage with the world around them outside of their own group's parameters and obligations. Do they respect their elders? Are they mindful and receptive of lifestyles outside of what they're used to? Do they even participate in such experiences due to their own unfamiliarity or arrogance? So many questions that get answered throughout this series, and I love every bit of it!

If you've made it to the end of this lengthy post, thank you so much for your time! I really wanted to make this post special because I absolutely love this series and what it's been able to offer to us. Whether you're a native Thai viewer, an international viewer, whether you're familiar with Thai and/or Buddhist culture, it's been nothing but enjoyable up until this point! I can't wait for more :D

Greetings! I couldn't fall asleep (honestly, I think you could say my mental health is triggering some insomnia recently but I'll be chatting with my therapist soon so we can get to the bottom of it), so I hope this post can find those who have been tuning into each post in this series, or have been missing Khemjira as much as I have. Enjoy <3

As someone who still has so much to learn about Buddhism despite me growing up in a Buddhist household, the Five Aggregates, also known as the Five Skandhas in Sanskrit, is something that can be intimidating to come across at first glance, but with the examples shown in Khemjira, I hope the explanations will help clarify certain aspects of what makes the series so wonderful and applicable to our daily life.

These five aggregates explain how we perceive and process our life experiences, from a superficial standpoint to an intellectual and emotional standpoint. Each experience comprises of the following in order: Form, Feeling, Perception, Mental Formation, and Consciousness. Each aggregate is ever changing and impermanent by nature, from the physicality, sensation, connotation, thought, to our awareness. Through the understanding of each aggregate, it helps us become self aware of the moving parts that shape our world view, but also how we engage with our own consciousness. With this awareness, we become more cautious, diligent, and level headed, bringing us gratification, joy, and understanding into our lives.

Constitution of the Five Aggregates: Form

Form in the literal sense, is related to our bodily senses, and how each sense helps disclose what makes up the world around us. We engage with each form through sight, scent, hearing, touch, taste, as well as our mind. Each sense makes contact with another form, whether it be a physical object, a sound, a person, etc. The sight of the sun upon the horizon seeping into the blinds of your window, the aroma of sandalwood incense filling your house after morning prayer, the sound of the morning birds, the feeling of your shirt as you dress yourself, the taste of warm green tea.

Through Pharan and Khem's initial first meeting, both of them take in each other prior to introductions or exchanged words. These two individuals do not know each other's personal names, backstories, as well as the intentions for why their karmic affinity has led both of them to come together in this very moment. Although as the viewer, we are aware of how these two characters will embark on their journey to protect and end Khem's curse, in the real world, only so much can be known about a person before they speak, before they even make their appearance known, and before they impact our lives for the better or worse.

Constitution of the Five Aggregates: Feeling

Feeling arises once we are aware of the form presented in front of us, naturally creating sensations that we classify as pleasant, unpleasant, or indifferent. These feelings manifest through bodily sensations, such as shift in body temperature, change in breathing, or involuntary body movements. When Pharan first encounters Khem, he creates a barrier and distance between the two, we could associate these initial feelings as expressions of indifference, disregard, and borderline dismissal of Khem's presence all together.

After all, Khem's ogling the master to the point where he makes a comment on such an intense stare (he was staring, too so it was only natural in my humble opinion LOL), someone who rarely comes in contact with others outside of the rituals and practices that take place within the village among the villagers. He comes face to face with a young man who is determined, kind, and ready to do what it takes to break his curse, the very curse that turned his youth upside down. However, alongside Khem are the spirits, specifically Chayod, who are not welcomed by the master, recognizing that Khem's karmic debt is more intense than what has been presented to him.

Constitution of the Five Aggregates: Perception

Perception involves our association, ideation, and connection for the forms we come across in our life. Once we come in contact with something that we deem as pleasurable, unpleasurable, or indifferent, we make connections between what we have encountered in the past, and if that information can serve us in interacting with a similar situation, encounter, or person. It can be as simple as recognizing a specific kind of flower that we have seen during childhood, to perceiving a social interaction that gives us deja vu, or trying to make out the intentions and familiarity of another person, why this individual manifests certain sensations upon acknowledgment and awareness.

For Pharan, Khem quickly becomes someone he would rather keep at an arm's reach given the dangers his presence has tracked into his village. However, with due time as Khem continues to pursue Pharan knowing that they are karmically aligned, Pharan recognizes the high walls built to protect himself from experiencing another moment of grief, as he had suffered from the grief of his mother and his grandfather, and if he were heavily involved with Khem, his eventual death will become another loss to grieve once more. He also shields himself from his innate feelings for Khem by doubling down on his devotion towards his duties as a shaman, knowing that his detachment is rooted in separation anxiety, loss of loved ones from a young age, and hyper independence.

Although he is extremely stern towards Khem in comparison to Jet and Charn, he understands that Khem is someone who requires a significant amount of support and protection, however, his callous ramifications had pushed Khem to a point of almost giving up on him entirely, something he would have surely regretted later on. Slowly but surely, he finds himself confronting his own intentions for keeping Khem away, and realizing that his feelings are honorable and does not seek permission to exist. Despite such feelings being unfamiliar and borderline indecipherable at first, Khem's ability to stand his ground and honor his pain from the consequences of Pharan's actions, with time, Pharan recognizes that his feelings exist beyond lust and physical attraction, but something deeper and more special.

Constitution of the Five Aggregates: Mental Formations

Mental formations expand on our perception, formulating emotions, thoughts, and habitual patterns that make up the essence of who we are. Beyond perception, mental formations inform us on the meaning and potential emotions we express towards certain experiences or people. Some feel deeply towards the youth, some feel deeply when listening to complex music, some feel deeply when reliving traumas they have once lived out. With such feelings, clarity soon arises.

With someone as detached as Pharan, busying himself with his duties as the shaman of the village, keeping himself and Khem from venturing into a dynamic beyond shaman and practitioner, Pharan has lived a life of denying himself permission to experience true happiness. Growing up without his mother and father, losing his grandfather due to old age and sickness, and living life knowing that the people he cares most about can no longer escape the natural course of life which ceases through death, Pharan's stoicism slowly wanes as he makes sense of Khem's kindness, his patience, his determination, and most importantly, his intolerance for disrespect towards his feelings.

Although Pharan's inexperience to a point of being novel towards his feelings he has for Khem, Khem does not allow Pharan's recklessness and ambiguity to discourage him, making the appropriate calls in pulling himself back from a cycle of rejection and disregard from a person who is unclear about his own feelings and emotional weight. However, he too, recognizes that the person across from him dealt with his own challenges in the most pivotal moments of his youth, transforming him into the person he currently is, but honing a strong desire to become someone worthy and deserving to be by Khem's side.

Constitution of the Five Aggregates: Consciousness

Consciousness comes full circle from becoming acquainted and familiar with the previous four aggregates, bringing us clarity, resolution, and understanding moving forward. Such consciousness means call to action, recognizing the reality of impermanence, and seizing something before it truly disappears as nothing lasts forever. What comes with consciousness is the confrontation of choice and decision making, that our life does not have to continue down the same paths with predictable outcomes that keep us comfortable, that the choice has always been ours to begin with.

Throughout the series, I'm sure many of us were frustrated with Pharan's behavior and remarks towards Khem. Some may even wonder "Khem is perfect, what is there not to love?"—not everyone truly fathoms the worth and value of what is right in front of them until it is no longer there, not everyone has made it through all five aggregates to come to full resolution and mindfulness. Once we have reached this point of consciousness, we can make informed decisions rooted in awareness, informed decisions that recognize the weight of responsibility we have for ourselves and those we love and wish to honor, but arriving at that point is no easy feat, not even for the most diligent and beloved as Pharan.

Before the introduction of Khem in his life, we can assume that Pharan's life had been quiet and cruising on autopilot, allowing each day to pass after the next. For a shaman, especially one of his caliber, there is a set routine that he rarely deviates from, only becoming acquainted with the unpredictable once Khem and Jet arrive at the village. What had been mundane and repetitive living, Pharan finds what he had yearned for lifetimes: a love that does not wane, a love that he can proclaim as his own, a love that makes him whole again, and this is what he ultimately finds in Khem.

Rather than subjecting himself to self denial, detachment, and restraint, Pharan is able to take a breath of fresh air again through the recognition that Khem sees him beyond his status as a shaman, but as Peem, the young man who had suffered loss time and time again throughout his life to a point of avoiding loss all together by refraining from associating with anyone. However, he is no longer afraid of loss, he is no longer afraid of becoming attached, he is no longer afraid to love deeply.

Thank you to everyone who's made it to the end, and wow: congratulations to the Khemjira team for earning such prestigious awards! I hope with this news, these posts will find those who wish to learn more about Buddhism. Even from compiling such analyses, I've been able to learn more about my own faith in hopes that the teachings resonate with y'all moving forward when consuming SEA media. Although I've grown up in the US outside of the SEA experience, I understand that Buddhist culture is embedded in their daily living, but it's another challenge to truly take in the Buddhist teachings and applying them into our own lives. With this, I hope y'all are having a wonderful week and please look forward to more posts from me!

Khemjira in the Eyes of a Buddhist EP.7: The Golden Cicada

So I would love to thank anon for being so gracious, patient, and sending me an ask in my inbox because this is really challenging me on my research skills, this will be considered a little bonus post for the series. I really hope I can be helpful and provide what I've gathered that makes sense and can further inform all of us on the small details that go into this wonderful series. Please note that because I'm not the most familiar with these kinds of cultural symbols, if I have not cited my resource while compiling this post, it is simply my own interpretation and opinion but I welcome corrections and clarification! Enjoy :D

Master Golden Cicada

When I was conducting my research, it was only natural for me to search for "golden cicada," "cicada buddhism," and "cicada thailand" as a starting point. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find anyone bringing up information about the cicada in the Khemjira tumblr tag, nor did I find anything valuable on Twitter. My hunch could also be that some of the information is inaccessible to me as someone who cannot read Thai or other languages supplemental to the context of this series, so if anyone has uncovered any posts or findings, please feel free to share them with me as well! Cicadas as a symbol represent according to Buddhist and Chinese traditions: samsara (reincarnation), impermanence, and good luck.

While I dug for information about the "Golden Cicada," I found myself looking into the fictional character Tang Sanzang, a Chinese Buddhist monk featured in Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en, a 16th century Ming dynasty novel that is based on Chinese Buddhist monk Xuanzang, who took a pilgrimage to India and is most notable for his contributions in translating major Buddhist canon that were in Sanskrit. I was actually able to visit the Xuanzang Memorial Hall in Bihar when traveling with my temple in December 2024, so I find this an interesting coincidence!

The journey itself was riddled with various challenges and hardships, highlighted in Journey to the West and illustrated through Tang Sanzang and other characters such as Sun Wukong (which you may know pop culturally as the Monkey King!). Formerly known in his previous life as Master Golden Cicada and Buddha's second disciple, he is banished to the "Land of the East" due to his own negligence and disrespect towards the Buddhist teachings and the Tatagatha (one of the highest honors of Buddhahood), must endure ten lifetimes and build merit within his final reincarnation that will earn him his return to the Western Paradise. Although I am not the most familiar with Journey to the West, I do remember seeing clips of the various 1990s drama series during childhood haha.

When we conceptualize a cicada, a few of our senses come in contact with such an idea, which I talked about when analyzing the Five Aggregates and relating them to Khem and Peem of Khemjira. We recognize a cicada for its unique physical appearance, its wings, its body, for some people, its eeriness that may appear beautiful for some but hideous to others. Some people may recognize a cicada for its sound, its chirping, its buzzing, its cricketing, its singing. However, cicadas are a powerful display of resilience and character when taking its lifespan into context: once they rise beyond the soil's surface, they are guaranteed a few weeks of life and live for less than two months on average. They are also known for their transformative appearance once they reach adulthood, leaving their former bodies behind as they take on their new form.

Golden Cicada: A Matter of Virtue

I believe when Pong and Khem are cornered by Kla, the arrival of the golden cicada can be representative of the entity that is Master Golden Cicada aka Buddha's (fictional) second disciple, a blessed one compelled enough to make an appearance and serve as protection from the wicked. Confronted by the presence of black magic that is not nearly as powerful as the Master's white magic, I infer due to Kla's vengeful nature and lack of discipline, the golden cicada easily combats the swarm of wasps, even going as far as sending the wasps to surround Kla as he runs away from the scene. In the presence of the honorable and virtuous, ill will and malicious intent never survives, becoming a clear example of the Law of Karma. Due to Khem and Pong's past deeds and seeds of merit through their own compassion, devotion, generosity, etc, they have generated karma that will grant them the fruits of protection from further harm, minimization of further harm, and repellant of further harm.

When the group returns back to the Master's place and Pong's condition is taken care of, Peem and Khem are met with the golden cicada, making a presence in front of Khem himself. After being told by Peem to accept the cicada, it lands gently in the palm of his hand, transforming into a wooden amulet that serves as a memento for prosperity, good luck, and protection when hardships arise. The wooden cicada also serves a gentle reminder of the longevity a cicada can live for, but its concern is not rooted in the span of its life or the hardships it will ultimately come across, it is rooted in its abilities to sing to its heart's content.

Throughout the series, we witness these transformations that Khem undergoes tirelessly, combating each trial and tribulation thrown at him by Ramphueng and others. But one thing that does not cave is his dedication to his precepts and spirituality as a Buddhist practitioner. Just as Ta Sanzang in Journey to the West underwent each reincarnation knowing the difficulties and encounters he will come across during his lifetime as a human, each challenge granted him opportunities to observe the Buddhist precepts and wisdom, cultivating merit that will lead him down a path guaranteed to bliss and happiness.

Despite enduring many challenges and moments of suffering in such a short amount of life, to a point where he could choose angry, resentment, malice, and intended harm towards others, Khem continues to choose peace, he continues to choose love, he continues to choose a more virtuous and humble life, and with such dedication and compassion, and with such diligence and integrity, the world will honor him its duty to protect him from further harm's way. This is what Peem recognizes in Khem, and this is truly what makes Khem so special.

In one of these articles I found during my research, there was a message that resonated with me that I believe could be helpful for those who need to hear it:

You may think, “Well, cicadas have such a short life, of course they must live as much as possible during that time. But humans live much longer. We have time to worry about other things.” Time is relative of course. At Calaveras Big Trees State Park in Northern California, there’s an old redwood tree that’s more than 1,200 years old. These giant redwood trees may be looking down at us, thinking, “Why aren’t these humans fully living and enjoying their lives? Their lifespan is so short. Why are they wasting time, fighting, worrying and chasing after unimportant things?”

For many people, they live life aimlessly, absentmindedly, or have given up entirely and allow their woes, anxieties, and hardships consume them to a point of nihilism. However, when we recognize that it is our duty to become aware of the truths of life and that it is our responsibility to transform for the better before it spirals into the worst, only then do we grant ourselves permission to be truly free from the confines of our own mind and body. For someone such as Khem, Peem, and the other characters of Khemjira who much overcome their own personal challenges, they eventually come to terms with the reality in which we live in a world full of unpredictable terms, ever changing circumstances that are majority of the time beyond our control, and misalignment among ourselves and others. Only then, are they able to truly recognize what matters: what is happening right in front of their own eyes, and who they would like to share that presence with. And what a blessing it is to wake up to that every single day.

Greetings from 2026! I know it's been such a long time since my PT.1 post was released (November feels like such a long time ago, thank you all for being so patient and showing my analyses so much love <3).

Enjoy and cheers to another year with y'all! 🙏

The Eight Sufferings: Separation from the Loved

With the first four of the Eight Sufferings, we encounter these difficulties through birth, old age, sickness, and death, classifying these moments as physical states of being, where no one can escape the cycle of samsara, that we all are born to age, encountering illness in small and large capacity, ultimately passing away when our time is up in this particular physical body. For most people, the innate nature that we all live to eventually die is intimidating and instills insurmountable fear for our "expiration," affecting each person independently. Some are able to come to terms with this reality and live their lives peacefully while others become avoidant and/or anxious, clinging onto the past or the future without any regard to the present moment until it is by far too late.

From my own experience, it's important for us to mentally prepare ourselves for a day that will come for us all, it is the nature of life, it does not need to be internalized as scary or something we must avoid completely. The sooner we come to terms, the sooner we can truly cherish and accept what comes and goes in our lives with as much awareness and understanding as we are capable of, the sooner we can live every single day with gratitude and acceptance, the sooner we can live every single day without regret or unpreparedness for what simply is the next step, the sooner we can live every single day with dignity, grace, honor, and within the present moment.

Peem's experience with separation from his loved ones began with his death of his mother at a young age and the abandonment of his father following shortly after. He lost his grandfather who raised him alongside the village later on, becoming the master that devoted his energy and protection towards the very community that continued to raise him through the absence of his own family. After the passing of Grandma Si, he is destabilized when directly facing these traumatic events, further justifying his separation anxiety, that everyone he loves will ultimately meet their demise, knowing that there is absolutely nothing within his power to prevent such severance.

He becomes detached and indifferent to becoming acquainted to others, rooting himself in his duties as the master of the village and the shaman his disciples depend on. Distracting his own grief and sorrow by committing himself to such duties, compensating his own autonomy to love freely, his own elders worry that they will depart this world unsure if he has anyone by his side to care for him in their absence. Although at the beginning of the story, Peem is stoic, calculative, observant, and devoted to his practice, and as Buddhists, we understand the truth of living life moderately and with an upright attitude, we call this the Middle Path/Way. In order to life a life filled with peace, tranquility, balance, and with little to no expectation, we live in balance, detached to what is impermanent, and recognize that what is more important is what is right in front of us, and rightfully for us.

As the story progresses and Peem begins to understand his feelings towards Khem, he lowers his guard and enables his devotion and integrity beyond many lifetimes to honor him with utmost support and aid when helping Khem survive beyond the parameters of his curse, giving himself permission to love again within this lifetime. After all, his blessing bestowed while living as a guardian naga was revealed in episode 10:

As for Phuchagin, for he gave his life to save you, I have granted him a blessing: in every lifetime, he shall be cherished by both mortals and gods.

Khem becomes more defeated and pessimistic over the course of his youth, concluding that the cycle of suffering and violence inflicted by Ramphueng's vengeance will cease once she claims his life and therefore, end the curse bestowed on Khem's reincarnated souls. Even though we see how precious his life is through the eyes of his best friends, his family, as well as his lover, Khem accepted the termination of his life if it meant satisfying Ramphueng and ultimately protecting his loved ones from harm's way.

For someone who had watched every single one of his loved ones who stuck by his side make such sacrifices to end his curse, to encounter such deep devoted forms of love and affinity that enables each person to find their way back to one other within his lifetime, it granted him a newfound strength after spending much of his youth ruminating in nihilistic and reckless behaviors. The strength and protection from those in physical human realm knows no bounds as he receives protection from those in the spiritual realm, such as his mother, Chayod, Grandma Si, Aek and Thong. The sincerity that transcends realms and lifetimes, only aided in Khem's realization and autonomy over his own life and story moving forward, not only for himself, but for those whose quality of life enhances alongside his presence. Rather than subscribing to a tragic ending, he chooses compassion, he chooses understanding, he chooses love, exercising the ultimate Buddhist principle.

I too, have suffered from the passing of my father prematurely, I was eight years old. Encountering the physical sufferings through my parents, as both had been diagnosed with cancer early on in my life, I was confronted by such fleeting feelings before fully understanding what the concepts of "death" and "sickness" really entailed. What was once a deep wound and burden on my heart transformed into a more nuanced understanding of life's impermanent nature that does not blossom through fear, but blossoms through acceptance and grace. Through the lens of Peem and Khem, both had learned early on in their lives how precious human life is, how precious our time is with those we love, therefore, we must not take their presence for granted. Cherish the limited time we have with those we love deeply, knowing that the end is always near. Something my mom always told me growing up (who is also an ordained Buddhist monastic just as Khem's father is!):

You never know what happens tomorrow.

Most of us may not adopt the right mindset to differentiate moments in life that are within and not within our control, but it is important for us to actively develop our discernment if we wish to live more fulfilling lives. Correlation ≠ causation, which had been reiterated throughout the series, that it is ultimately up to us to practice awareness and deescalate moments of delusion and falsehood firsthand. It is not our job to take ownership of trauma and suffering that does not belong to us, but it is our job to express gratitude and affirmation as though it's as easy as breathing, knowing that life is filled with instability and turmoil. It is important to keep a calm and open mind, recognizing the origins of suffering and steadily project ourselves down a path of compassion and empathy for ourselves and others.

The Eight Sufferings: Encounter with the Unpleasant

The unpleasant can be identified in many iterations: crossing paths with someone you do not like, having to do something you do not want to do, enduring circumstances that you can no longer avoid, etc. For Khem, knowing that his death is what will ultimately satiates Ramphueng's revenge, for Peem, knowing that everyone he loves will depart from his life, burdening himself with a life of impartiality and solitude, for Jet, knowing that his best friend's death is nearing and he cannot do anything beyond protection, for Charn, knowing that Jet was his lover in their previous lifetime with potential that they will not be together again, for Chayod, knowing that his own selfishness caused the severance between himself and his brother but his greed for Khemmika's return on his love reigns more importance. In more minor plot points throughout the series, we witness this with Jet's retaliation towards his classmates for disrespecting his village's traditions and way of life, with Peem's immediate avoidance of Khem's advances despite knowing that they were lovers in a past life, with Khem's mother protecting him against Chayod before his change of heart.

These unpleasant moments seep into many facets of our daily lives. We tolerate those who we believe are beneath us or undeserving of our time or energy, those who create dissonance and unrest in our minds and especially in our hearts, we are met with circumstances that we would rather avoid at all costs, that bring us extreme discomfort or fuel our delusions from our own mental formations. These people can be our friends, family, employees, coworkers, classmates, community members, etc. These experiences can occur at home, school, work, our place of worship, our meeting places where our communities interact, and more so in online spaces like social media.

However, what's most important when combating circumstances that may not be the most desirable is the understanding and application of acceptance, detachment, and/or indifference. That we do not live or exist to be liked or loved by everyone, that we ourselves, do not always like or love every single person we encounter every single day. This world is full of hypocrisy! But rather than assigning each moment or interaction with a defining meaning, or clinging onto the concept of "first impressions," we can leave those interactions behind us without the need to internalize each and every single one of them. And sometimes, we can return to such pretense with a more learned understanding of those who we have misunderstood, reinterpreting such moments and redefining our ties with others with empathy and non judgment.

Many of us cling onto this pressure to perform and operate in a certain manner or image, to be the most desired, the most likable, the most put together, the most successful, the most charismatic, etc. It provides us a sense of security, a sense of purpose, a sense of meaning, but this pressure always leads to exhaustion the longer we adhere to a role in someone else's play pretend. Whether from our parents, our peers, our teachers, our communities, or ultimately, ourselves. However, that will only prolong one's inability to live a relaxed and authentic life, one that is true and innate to ourselves without an agenda or a means to an end, a life where no matter where we go, we are honored, considered, and loved devotedly.

This however, does not mean completely disregard any form of disrespect and malice towards you and those you care about. The way one of my Venerables had described it during a retreat I attended:

If an armed robber crosses paths with you, you do not invite the robber to harm you. You are entitled to defend yourself and others from harm's way. We practice compassion, yes, but we also practice self protection and the minimization of harm to ourselves and others.

This is an aspect of Khem's personality I adore, especially during episodes 6 and 8. If someone exhibits inconsistent behaviors or patterns, the circumstances do not change from your own micro adjustments in your own behaviors and approaches. It is important for us to recognize and develop a deep understanding of ourselves and what is pleasant or unpleasant to us, but the accuracy of that understanding can only exist when we live in alignment with what simply "is" and whether or not the existence of someone or something disrupts our quality of life and peace of mind. Confronting our own value systems, how we treat ourselves and our minds, how our self esteem and consciousness takes shape beyond ourselves, such as the treatment (or mistreatment) we face every day by others.

Through Peem's inconsistencies, insecurities, and hesitation in pursuing a relationship with Khem that deeply undermines Khem's sincerity and efforts, the only alternative is to sever ties for his own peace of mind and protection over his dignity. Only then, had Khem's absence truly weighed on Peem's heart and mind, recognizing how a person with such a kind, sincere, and graceful demeanor adored by all is rare to come by, and even better, this person is destined to be together with him again, as they had been for several lifetimes.

For the right person, directly confronting our own misguided beliefs and delusion, holding ourselves accountable and seeking forgiveness for our own wrongdoings and inflicted harm on those we care about transforms lives and relationships, which fortunately for Khem and Peem, such forgiveness and acceptance rewarded them handsomely. When confronted with the unpleasant, it is important to greet it not with immediate disgust, belittlement, or judgment, but to approach it with detachment, indifference, and undisturbedness. But in some cases, greet it with curiosity, compassion, and empathy for the person across from you.

The Eight Sufferings: Not Getting What You Want

This suffering is pretty self explanatory, and similarly to the previous suffering, can manifest in so many iterations. Whether it be a person, a job, a goal, a lifestyle, there are so many ways to internalize such a damning feeling that at worst, dismantles everything that we know and love. For some, not getting what they want results in retaliation, depression, anxiety, avoidance, self denial, discouragement, etc. However, what sets someone apart from when we are denied something we desire or crave: their ability to withhold their pain and hurt, exhibiting kindness, consideration, and patience for themselves and others. This is a quality I saw in Charn's attitude when befriending Khem and Jet, eventually forming a more intimate relationship with Jet as their journey unfolds.

Charn already developed a curiosity for Jet, someone who is quite opposite to his own personality. Jet is proactive, lively, loyal, and considerate to those he cares about. He is also discerning, has a strong sense of justice, and is extremely playful, speaking his mind even when met with push back or confrontation. Being drawn to such a person, it only sparked Charn's interest more, solidifying his understanding of his feelings once he recognized Jet as his soulmate reincarnated in his dreams. However, his feelings and pursuit over Jet were put on the back burner as Khem's time was running out, and Charn understood this, not wanting to pressure Jet into a relationship that both people had not fully weighed the pros and cons.

Someone who holds high regard for Khem as a person and is willing to do everything in his power to protect his life, as well as Jet's practice with white magic alongside Peem as his master, Charn entered a chapter of life with very little experience with what the other characters find normal and ingrained in their personal livelihoods, allowing his instincts and giftedness to become a strength in reaching their goals. Although a few of their classmates denounced the legitimacy of the village's traditions and finding their spiritual practices and beliefs foolish, Charn remained levelheaded and respectful, a characteristic Jet notices as they spend more time with one another.

Although some people found Jet's inaction towards Charn's advances frustrating, I think many people forget that personal attraction is well...personal! Someone may be the most attractive and qualified person on paper that anyone would love to get their hands on if given the chance, but that is simply not how attraction works, especially when someone has a lot going on which require their immediate attention more over the state of their love life. When your priority is to save your best friend, embarking on a journey filled with high stake encounters with spirits and other threats, love and romance might not be the top priority on your list of things to occupy your brain with. Internalizing the fact that someone who likes you is someone you might like back, it requires a lot of attention, thinking, and confidence in acknowledging such feelings. After all, such a chance that someone may be able to return your feelings is little to none, especially for a character like Jet who is used to navigating life on his own.

Of course, that does not mean that Charn does not run into his own moments of jealousy and mild possessiveness, we are all human after all! When someone as attractive as Kachen come into the picture, someone who already has an established history with the person you are actively pursuing without a clear line drawn to indicate where you both stand, it is only natural to confide in your own insecurities when you are not given immediate reassurance, when the status of your relationship is still up in the air after all you have been through with one another. However, both people truly understand the weight of their intertwined fates once there is a true risk presented in front of them, the risk that their happy ending is at stake once again.

Knowing what he knows after seeing his past as Jin, living in another lifetime where their love could not flourish, such a fear takes over Jet, pushing him to recognize what is most important: the person who has been there all this time. Rather than subjecting himself to a life of avoidance, taking risks to love and care for someone so deeply will come at the cost of confronting the ambiguity, the hesitation, the inaction, the prolonged wait, therefore pushing Jet to finally come to terms with his love for Charn.

Yes, it is very important for us to take our time when it comes to pursuing love, establishing committed relationships with others with full awareness of what such a commitment entails, and recognizing that we are walking down a new path with deep understanding of what we are getting ourselves into. However, remember to live in the present moment, live life knowing who continues to choose to be by our side through each and every moment along the way. When we plant ourselves in a past that is no longer feasible to return to, or in a future that can manifest into something beyond our wildest imagination, we fail to ground ourselves in a present moment that can be quiet, soft, comforting, resilient, inspiring, and most importantly, filled with an infinite amount of love and adoration without needing to plead for it. Do not deny yourself a pursuit of happiness that is not taxing, is not performative, is not a means to an end, is not fleeting, but a pursuit of happiness that is perfected to your own liking and desire, one that only comes once each lifetime.

Wow, thank y'all for making it to the end! It actually took me a few days to keep coming back to this post with fresh eyes (the draft itself has been sitting here since the end of October huhuuuuuu), I felt like I wasn't able to really collect my thoughts for a bit and deliver my message meaningfully. Traveling had been taking a toll on my physical health a bit, but I've been hydrating myself and drinking Emergen-C as well! I still have a little cough and mucus, but not anything that can't be resolved with some much needed rest and medicine.

I needed to take the time to make an appreciation post for Junior that's playing Faifa in Perfect 10 Liners. I'm sure that those who read the novel may have different opinions on how the source material is being translated on screen, but since I've only been watching the series, I'll just address my perspective from there.

In the beginning of the series airing, I was introduced to many new actors, as main roles or supporting roles. I knew ForceBook, Perth, AouBoom, and other actors such as Pepper, MarcPoon, JJ, etc. I haven't seen Junior or Mark in anything so they hadn't sparked much interest from me at the start. However, that's changed since the airing of episode 13.

We see the differences between the three brothers Newton, Yotha, and Faifa, roughly understanding that their mother and father split while Newton and Yotha grew up with their father and Faifa with their mother abroad until he was sent back to Thailand. Out of all the siblings, Yotha is the most resentful of their mother, which was illustrated in episode 13 when she visits them at their dorm. While watching the series, Faifa is described as this happy go lucky social butterfly who seems to migrate from group to group, connecting with many people with very little effort. He is someone who thrives off of taking care of others, we see this best with Wine and Gun (this scene with Wine is from episode 11).

However, his kindness also comes with a strong sense of justice if it stems from the defense of those he cares about, which becomes Gun after Yotha and Klao get hurt after leaving Newton's bar. I've seen lots of people tearing up Warich, Klao, Yotha, or all three in terms of their problematic behaviors, but that's not my focus nor do I condone how reckless they all become towards one another. I have a deeper appreciation for how Faifa has no hesitation in defending Gun against Yotha, who is truly the victim being caused the most harm from everything happening between those three individuals.

Faifa becomes the first person at Gun's aid and recognizing his state of shock, as we see the stark difference in Yotha's life and Gun's: the difference between someone who denied himself love vs. someone who basked in it. While Newton becomes indifferent to Yotha's behavior, I'm sure due to him also growing up in the same circumstances as Yotha, both of them have their own unstable relationship with emotional regulation and conflict resolution that becomes unhelpful and perpetuates the cycle of self sabotage and stagnation.

Although Faifa has a free spirit that's fairly lighthearted around Yotha, his more gloom and reserved counterpart, Faifa still has the confidence and strength to stand his ground against Yotha in multiple ways. Just because you're able to understand the features of someone's trauma and where their behaviors stem from, does not mean anyone should enable such behavior that creates a domino effect and harms the person they care about most, the person who has worn his heart on his sleeve only for it to get trampled on and wounded over and over.

Whenever Yotha yells at Faifa for treating Gun like an object after Kong and Gun switch rooms, this is the first time we see someone directly addressing Yotha where it hurts most, which Faifa advocates for Gun and his decision to distance himself from Yotha's toxicity where he has no one else to blame but himself. In a different timeline, Faifa could have easily sided with his brother due to familial loyalty, finding himself sympathizing with Yotha's parental neglect growing up as well as his past relationship with Warich that ended in heartbreak to the point of no longer believing in love. However, despite dealing with his own childhood traumas, Faifa chooses to do the right thing and protect Gun, someone who had become a strong friend while changing his brother little by little.

Tagged by Eboni @negrowhat and Steph @nonglukest lovelies <3 I'm finally getting to my tag games (this is my sign of life for y'all hahaha), I appreciate y'all for your patience!

Post 6 (and only 6) gifs/pics of the QLs you personally consider essential viewing for fans of the genre—emphasis on “personally.” These are your feels, so no need to pick series you don’t like just because they seem "important". Feel free to explain your choices or not. Then tag 6 friends for their 6.

Love in the Big City

As I'm typing, Lily of the Valley by DANIEL just so happened to be playing in the background, which its lyrics really do relate to what LITBC is about.

My love is a flower in your hands Our time I'll give you something Unforgettable My feelings forever

What I love about Go Myung as a character and the different relationships he navigated, he must confront various circumstances and experiences not from himself, but from those he exclusively dated or pursued. How each one of us comes from our own walks of life, how each moment reinforces and informs the essence of who we are, and eventually coming to terms with the truth of choosing who we want to be, not who we're expected to be. Each relationship was treated preciously, how each relationship required different needs to fill each other's voids, and how each relationship allowed Go Myung to evolve and answer to life's troubles with a calmer mind, recognizing that although he's all he has, HE is all he has, and that's a beautiful thing.

It's also a nice portrayal of how love matures as we age and grow older, or how life's demands ultimately humbles us, recognizing that what matters most is our pursuit of happiness. When Go Myung was younger, his challenges involved his pessimism towards his own romance, believing that there might not be a love story for people like him. As he grew older, his challenges involved the perception of others towards his queerness, particularly the one who wishes to explore him behind closed doors but ridiculed him and those like him in public, and for denouncement. When he entered his first long term relationship well into his adulthood, his stagnation and bittersweetness for life pushed the person that mattered most to him. In the end, despite going through almost every experience of grief life has to offer, he continues to rise, and he continues to embrace the world with open arms. We have a choice: be consumed by our circumstances, or be transformed by them.

Moonlight Chicken

Being able to see how queer characters navigate their queerness at various ages and coming to terms was so interesting to me, especially because most of us are not fortunate enough to be surrounded by queer folks to share their different perspectives. I was attending a Dharma talk recently on Zoom and asked the venerable sharing about what we as young Buddhists can do to help generate good karma/merit not for just ourselves, but for others, specifically our elders, which he responded: allow your elders to share their knowledge and wisdom, give them opportunities to share their experience, therefore, allowing them to practice mindfulness, compassion, and understanding.

We see how each main character, Jimmy, Wen, and Li Ming confront their own queer identities, by avoidance, by acceptance, or by curiosity. However, each one of them through their own interaction and dynamics with one another, they're able to serve as mirrors for one another, gentle reminders of "This is where I'm at, and I don't want you to experience unnecessary harm." "I see where you're struggling to come to an understanding about yourself, because I too, was in that same spot." "I may be young, but I don't want to live in the shadows and let my love pass me by due to my own fears." Each one plays a huge role in how each person comes into their own, becoming braver, stronger, and courageous. At the end of the day, we can allow our fears to consume ourselves beyond ruin, or we allow our fears to inform us that none of this lasts forever, so make every moment count.

Love is Better the Second Time Around

I love a romance that showcases "right person, wrong place," and how although we may know someone for however long we do, it's not fair to treat them as though they're still the version of themselves we left behind in our past. Communication is what makes or breaks many people and the dynamics they share, as well as assumption and stubbornness. Out of all the series I enjoy, I feel like the writing of Miyata and Iwanaga captured two people that could exist in reality, their strengths and weaknesses, their motivations and fears, their trust issues and detachment.

I wish we could have another season with these two, especially because such storylines use their coming together again as a couple as the main climax, therefore leaving very little room for us as the viewers to enjoy them together. However, their connection and build up to the climax of their story was incredibly deep and heartfelt, sometimes making me fantasize what my own romantic life could be like if someone of my past loved me during my absence (doubt it but it's interesting to think about for sure).

Khemjira

One of my absolute favorite series of all time, and one of my favorite series I've written analyses for from a Buddhist perspective. This series was so rich and drew me in as a Buddhist (although I'm Vietnamese and practice Mahayana Buddhism, whereas Thailand is predominantly Theravada Buddhist), and I really appreciated just how much research so many of us fellow Khemjira lovers (such as my lovely mutual @hinmotion and her #khemjira info tag!) in providing context and further explanation of what's portrayed in the storyline, especially for those whose first introduction to Buddhist practices and teachings is through Khemjira.

There is so much depth and representations of love has no bounds, whether a parent and their child, a lover to their lover, a friend to their friend, a teacher and their disciple, in the human realm, the spiritual realm, and even the celestial realms, what happens to us is ultimately determined by our own merit/karma. What good we do for ourselves and others will return to us tenfold, what wicked we do for ourselves and others will return to us tenfold. In the end, we all get what we ultimately need to repay back for our past lives, however, all is not lost if you choose compassion, you choose love, and you choose forgiveness.

School Trip: Joined a Group I'm Not Close To

I didn't think I was going to enjoy this series as much as I did, and funny enough, one of my other best friends was also watching this as it was airing separately from me, so it became our little series we'd share news and other things back and forth with one another. I've always been a fan of school settings in dramas, especially ones that mainly focus on coming of age and youth through shared memories and experiences between the characters. What I found so endearing was how Hioki's character was not just your typical loner who lacked relationships before the introduction of the other protagonists, but that he had established relationships prior to meeting Watarai.

This to me, is one of the most relatable and one of the most realistic portrayals of school times and having to meet new friends as you move along in the grade levels. Eventually, you move to new classes or schools and have to start from square one if your friends aren't in the same shared spaces, especially if you're someone that has a hard time sticking out or making friends on your own. The traits and qualities Watarai found commendable and attractive in Hioki, I understood completely on why someone like Watarai would fall for someone like Hioki. Hioki naturally has a pull to him that gravitates the comfort of all potential friends, he has a relaxed attitude when his anxiety settles, and his ability to just say yes to things without needing to dwell too much on how certain portrayals of himself could be perceived by others, it's very admirable to exist in your own right without arrogance or shame. Just a happy in between.

A Man Who Defies the World of BL

One of the silliest JBLs that I always seem to go back to for all the laughs and giggles possible. What I love about JBLs so much is that there's just a little bit of everything that I would ever ask for: melodrama, slice of life, fantastical, comedy, etc. The characterization of Mobe always makes me smile, especially when I'm watching the seasons with first time watchers. Similarly to Hioki, Mobe is one of those characters whose quirkiness and wit, as well as him staying true to his own antics and outlandish reactions to the world of BL, you can't help but become attached to him. I need to rewatch the seasons again, I've been needing more feel good series after watching a lot of recently aired horror and psychological thrillers.