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Festivels |
| Festival for the month of September and October 2011 |
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| Phuket Vegetarian Festival |
| 26th September - 6th October 2011 |
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The Phuket “Vegetarian Festival” (“jia chai” in local Hokkien Chinese dialect) is one of the great spectacles of Asia. It’s comparable to the Brazilian Carnival - very glamorous, very awe-striking and is bound to give the spectator a few shudders. This annual festival is the most colorful and dramatic celebration introduced by local residents of Chinese ancestry. The festival takes place during the first nine days of the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar, usually in late September or early October. It has been an annual event since the first festival was held in 1825 in the Kathu District of the island. When according to legend, a popular opera troupe (“ngiu” in Thai or “pua-hee” in Hokkien dialect) on tour from China mysteriously fell seriously ill from an unknown malady.
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The whole opera troupe then kept to a vegetarian diet to honor two of the emperor gods, Kiew Ong Tai Tae and Yok Ong Hong Tae and because of the diet change, they became well again. The situation created great interest with the people of Kathu, who asked how can this be? They were told that the vegetarian rituals in addition to the attendant ceremonies that were practiced had been the cause of their cure. Upon learning this information the people of Kathu embraced the faith enthusiastically. So, the Vegetarian Festival originated as a healing event for the ill-fated. It promotes physical and spiritual recovery through ritual practices that cleanse the body and mind while strengthening the faith and it is also observed with great reverence.
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Prior to the 9 key days of the festival, there is a fasting period of several weeks. During this period the participants, the followers and devotees have to cleanse their mind and prepare for the strenuous obsessions by the Nine Emperor Gods. In order to do so and be well prepared for this ritual, everyone needs to follow 10 important rules:
1. Cleanliness of bodies during the festival |
2. Clean kitchen utensils and to use them separately
from others who do not join the festival |
3. Wear white during the festival |
4. Behave physically and mentally (think benign thoughts,
don’t tell lies) |
5. No meat eating |
6. No sex |
7. No alcoholic drinks |
8. People during mourning should not attend the festival |
9. Pregnant ladies should not watch any ritual |
10. Ladies experiencing a menstrual flow should not attend the ritual |
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The afternoon before the festival begins, a great pole at each temple is raised, called the “Go Teng pole”, with which the gods are invited to descend. At midnight the pole is hung with nine lanterns, signalizing the opening of the festival. Two important gods are also invited down at midnight to preside over all ceremonies: these are Yok Ong Hong Tae and Kiew Ong Tai Tae.
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In order to invoke the spirits and being able to perform all the grueling tasks, the participants of the processions congregate at their respective temples at dawn. Noise, smell and vision all play an essential part at this stage; the temple drums are beaten and the bells are ringing. The rooms of the temple and the temple-yard are opaque with smoke from fires and burning sandalwood. Hundreds of candles are lit on the altars and illuminate the many holy statues, depicting Chinese gods and emperors, Buddha, legendary animals and other mythological figures. Men gather on one side of the altar, women on the other. The whole ceremony becomes an organized chaos. At this point in time the Spirits announce their arrival and facial expressions change. The bodies of the “ordinary people” are becoming mediators of the Nine Emperor Spirits.
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Festivals & Events in Thailand |
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Bangkok China Town Festival |
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Songkran Festival |
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Loi Krathong |
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Vegetarian Festival |
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The Grand Candle Festival |
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Kite Flying Festival |
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Asian Barred Ground Dove Cooing Competition |
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Blooming Krachiao Flower Festival |
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Tak Bat Dok Mai Festival |
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Phi Ta Khon & Bung Lung Festival |
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The Royal Ploughing Ceremony |
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Bun Bang Fai Rocket Festival |
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Illuminated Boat Procession |
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H.M. The Queen's Birthday Celebration |
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H.M. The King's Birthday Celebrations |
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Phuket Carnival |
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One after the other walk, hop or run out into the yard, where a team of helpers are ready to pierce their faces and bodies with the appointed tools. Individually people stand in line, enchanted, enlightened or in ecstasy. All are full of spirit, are bobbing up and down, uttering sounds, dripping with saliva, while waiting for the rod, hook, chain or branch made of steel, plastic, glass or wood to penetrate their tender flesh.
These processions are the key events of the festival. Aside from this, there are other ceremonies throughout the festival, notably; the invocation of the gods Lam Tao (who keeps track of the living), Pak Tao (who keeps track of the dead), the processions of the gods' images, feats of the Ma Song - like bathing in hot oil, knife-ladder climbing and fire-walking etc.
The Vegetarian Festival is an astonishing spectacle, but not recommended for the faint hearted, performed not by actors but by the common citizenry. On the morning of the last day of the Vegetarian Festival elaborate dragon and lion dances are held, along with many mind-bending acts of self-mortification in front of the clock tower in the center of Phuket Town. This frantic ceremony lasts into the evening, as thousands of people clog the streets of Phuket setting off great strings of firecrackers to bid a final and extremely noisy farewell to the gods.
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