Religious Tourism

Photo: myasianplanet.com

The Songkran festival is celebrated in Thailand as the traditional New Year’s Day from 13 to 15 April. The word “Songkran” comes from the Sanskrit word saṃkrānti, or literally “astrological passage”) meaning transformation or change. It coincides with the rising of Aries on the astrological chart, the New Year of many calendars of South and Southeast Asia. The festive occasion is in keeping with the Buddhist (Hindu) solar calendar.

Songkran is a celebration that embraces goodwill, love, compassion, and thankfulness, using water as the means of expression. Songkran festival has been celebrated in Bangkok and several regions in Thailand as well as in Southern China, Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia.

IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK

Songkran celebration is rich with symbolic traditions. The morning begins with merit-making. Visiting local temple and offering food to the Buddhist monks are commonly practiced; however, on this specific occasion, performing water pouring on Buddha statues is considered an iconic ritual for this holiday – it represents purification and the washing away all of their sins and bad luck. As a festival of unity, people who have moved away usually return homes to their loved ones and elder family members. As a way to show respect, younger people often practice water pouring over the palms of elders’ hands. On the same occasion, paying reverence to ancestors is also an important part of Songkran tradition.

What to do during the Songkran Festival

To celebrate Songkran, there are many activities throughout Thailand according to regional tradition. Some of the activities include:

People always clean their house when approaching the Songkran Festival. Everyone dressed up in colorful clothes. After people present food to the monks they will offer a Requiem to the ancestors who have passed away. People also has the other merit such as pagoda which is intended to give sand to temple for construction or repair. Other forms of merits is releasing bird and fish. Nowadays, people also release other kinds of animal, for example, buffalo and cow.

People have to go to temple to do merit and bath Buddha’s statue and after that they have to pour water on the hands of revered elders and ask for their blessings. Some people, when they finish giving merit at the temple, prepare food to be given to their elderly members of their family.

Thai government has declared the Songkran Festival an extended public holiday to enable people to return to their hometown and reunite with others in their community. In addition the government also designated 13 April the Day of the Senior or Elderly. The occasion marks the appreciation for the senior population for their years of contribution to the family and country, and 14 April is Family Day to celebrate family love and togetherness.