Laos is officially Buddhist, and the national symbol, the gilded stupa of Pha That Luang in Vientiane, has replaced the hammer and sickle even on the state seal. Still, there is a good deal of animism mixed in, particularly in the baci (also baasi ) ceremony conducted to bind the 32 guardian spirits to the participant's body before a long journey, after serious illness, the birth of a baby or other significant events that happen in the life of a Lao person.