Showing posts with label Procession. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Procession. Show all posts

Tuesday 10 July 2018

Khao Phansa festivals across Thailand


One of the most charming festivals celebrated in Thailand is Khao Phansa, or Buddhist Lent Day, which marks the official start of the rainy season. It also marks the period when monks traditionally retreat to their temples for a three-month period of study and meditation.

Khao Phansa day itself is a day of special celebration and is held on the full moon of the eighth lunar month which this year falls on 28 July. But many of the celebrations to mark the festival will take place over several days during the last week of July.

Here’s a rundown of what’s on during Khao Phansa 2018 and where:

Ubon Ratchathani International Wax Candle Festival and Wax Candle Procession

Date: 23-28 July 2018

Venue: Ubon Ratchathani City Areas

The International Wax Candle Festival and Wax Candle Procession takes place in Thung Si Mueang Park, Ubon Ratchathani. Teams come from all over the world to compete and the detail on the wax artworks is staggering, with some being colossal in scale. It’s a great place to explore unique local cultures as the locals wear traditional dress and show off their age-old folk dances.

Nakhon Ratchasima Candle Procession

Date: 26-28 July 2018

Venue: Thao Suranari Monument

At the Thao Suranari Monument in Mueang Korat, there will be a wax candle contest, a candle parade, and merit-making activities. Held annually to promote the local art and culture, the festival will also feature a number of cultural activities including Khon, a traditional masked dance performance.

Nakhon Phanom Candle Festival

Date: 28 July 2018

Venue: Wat Phra That Phanom

The Lao-influenced culture of Nakhon Phanom gives a different twist to the Khao Phansa celebrations. The festival centres on the iconic local pagoda of Wat Phra That Phanom and there is always a procession of exquisitely carved candles to enjoy as well as the Miss Candle Beauty contest where local beauties hope to be named winner.

Ayutthaya Aquatic Phansa Festival

Date: 28 July 2018

Venue: Lad Chado market, Ayutthaya

The ancient capital of Ayutthaya hosts very memorable Khao Phansa celebrations, as the candles are taken to the local temples in more than 200 colourful boats that float down the city’s ancient Lad Chado canal. Visitors can also enjoy a taste of rural life, beauty pageants, and local games.

Suphanburi Khao Phansa Candle Procession

Date: 27-28 July 2018

Venue: Wat Pa Laylai Woraviharn, Tambon Rua Yai, Mueang Suphan Buri

Students from local art colleges compete to put on the most impressive candle displays. There are huge sculptures depicting creatures and heroes from Thai myth and these are proudly paraded around town. Visitors also enjoy exhibitions about the ways of life of the local tribal people and colourful displays of folk dancing.

Saraburi Khao Phansa Festival
Date: 26-28 July 2018

Venue: Wat Phra Putthabat Ratchaworamahaviharn, Saraburi

During Khao Phansa in Saraburi, people visit the local shrine of the Buddha’s Footprint where yellow and white flowers are offered to monks (Tak Bat Dok Mai) as a way of making merit. This has become a big event and now thousands of people join to give alms to the monks as they ascend the steep stairs of the shrine.

Nan Candle Festival

Date: 29 July 2018

Venue: Bunyuen Royal Temple, Wiang Sa district, Nan

Visitors can join local people as they offer food to the monks in the morning. Later in the day, they can join the almsgiving of candles to the temple and take part in other merit-making activities that offer insight into the culture of Thai Buddhism.

Source - The Nation

Tuesday 20 March 2018

#Indonesia - Jepitu farmers, fishermen hold thanksgiving ritual for good harvest

Two fishermen fish using a net at the as part of the 'Sedekah Laut Ngalangi' thanksgiving ritual on Jungwok Beach.

Villagers form a procession during the 'Sedekah Laut Ngalangi' ceremony to the accompaniment of 'bende' and 'kendang'. 

 The village procession makes its way from Jungwok Beach to Wediombo Beach during the 'Sedekah Laut Ngalangi' thanksgiving cermony in Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta.

 Jepitu villagers carry a variety of dishes wrapped in palm leaves for a communal feast during the 'Sedekah Laut Ngalangi' thanksgiving ceremony.

A group of villagers row out into the shallows to release offerings into the sea during the 'Sedekah Laut Ngalangi' thanksgiving ceremony. 

https://12go.asia/?z=581915

 The residents of Jepitu village in Gunungkidul regency, Yogyakarta, gathered at Jungwok Beach on Thursday, to perform the Sedekah Laut Ngalangi, a thanksgiving ritual that has been passed down from generation to generation. 

In the Sedekah Laut Ngalangi, the villagers give offerings to show their gratitude for the abundant farm and fish harvest from the rich nature that surrounds them.

The village residents were dressed in lurik, clothing made from a traditional Javanese textile, while several other villagers were dressed in the traditional attire of a warrior of the Mataram Kingdom, complete with swords and spears.

The villagers also brought home-cooked food made from their crop and fish harvests, which included fare such as steamed rice with ayam ingkung, a local chicken dish, marinated  sweet tofu and tempeh, grilled fish, and the mandatory coconut sambal, or chili paste.

The dishes are placed in containers made of wood and bamboo and carefully wrapped in palm leaves, which are then carried by men and women in a ritual procession.

 

Wednesday 16 December 2015

Thailand - Funeral procession of Supreme Patriarch begins


The elaborate 1,383-strong 456-metre-long funeral procession of the late Supreme Patriarch started at 8:01 am Wednesday.

 The procession that moved from Wat Bovoranives and will move along Wat Phra Sumen Road, Phanfa Lilat Bridge, Lan Luang Road, and Krung Kasem Canal towards Wat Thepsirintharawas where the grand cremation will take place at 5.30pm.A large number of Buddhists joined the procession, paying the last respect to the revered monk. 

 

Source: The Nation