a glass into a vase, drop by drop, concludes most Buddhist ceremonies including donation celebrations and feasts. This ceremonial libation is done to share the accrued merit with all other living beings in all 31 planes of existence. While the water is poured, a confession of faith, called the hsu taung imaya dhammanu, is recited and led by the monks. Then, the merit is distributed by the donors, called ahmya wei by saying Ahmya ahmya ahmya yu daw mu gya ba gon law three times, with the audience responding thadu, Pali for "well done." The earth goddess Vasudhara is invoked to witness these meritorious deeds. Afterward, the libated water is poured on soil outside, to return the water to Vasudhara. See also Lakshmi Kisshōten -- Lakshmi's Shinto counterpart Bodhisattva Phra Mae Thorani cult of Vasudhara peculiar to people of Burma, Cambodia, Thailand and Laos References Further reading Getty, Alice. The Gods of Northern Buddhism. Online HTML version Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1928. Pal, Pratapaditya. Art from the Himalayas and China. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003. Pal, Pratapaditya. Art of Nepal. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985. Shaw, Miranda. Buddhist Goddesses of India. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2006. External links The Gods of Northern Buddhism / Online HTML version with Footnotes and Images HimalayanArt.org AsianArt.com http://threeroyalwarriors.tripod.com/vasudhara.html Bodhisattvas Buddhism in Nepal Female buddhas and supernatural beings Buddhist iconography Tibetan Buddhist deities Buddhist mantras Twenty-Four Protective Deities Earth goddesses