Songkran Water Festival - Chiang Mai _ Thailand
The Songkran festival (Thai: เทศกาลสงกรานต์, pronounced [tʰêːt.sā.kāːn sǒŋ.krāːn]) is the Thai New Year's festival. The Thai New Year's Day is 13 April every year, but the holiday period includes 14–15 April as well. The word "Songkran" comes from the Sanskrit word saṃkrānti (Devanāgarī: literally "astrological passage", meaning transformation or change.
New year traditions
The Songkran celebration is rich with symbolic traditions. Mornings begin with merit-making. Visiting local temples and offering food to the Buddhist monks is commonly practiced. 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 of one's sins and bad luck.
As a festival of unity, people who have moved away usually return home to their loved ones and elders.
As a way to show respect,
younger people often practice water pouring over the palms of elders' hands. Paying reverence to ancestors is also an important part of Songkran tradition.The holiday is known for its water festival which is mostly celebrated by young people.
Major streets are closed for traffic, and are used as arenas for water fights. Celebrants, young and old, participate in this tradition by splashing water on each other.
Traditional parades are held and in some venues "Miss Songkran" is crowned.”
where contestants are clothed in traditional Thai dress.
Songkran in Thailand
Central Region People in this region clean their houses when Songkran approaches. All dress up in colorful clothing.
After offering food to the monks, the people will offer a requiem to their ancestors.
People make merit such offerings as giving sand to the temple for construction or repair.
Other forms of merit include releasing birds and fish. Nowadays, people also release other kinds of animals such as buffaloes and cows.[citation needed]
South Southerners have three
Songkran rules:
Work as little as possible and avoid spending money; not hurt other persons or animals: not tell lies.[citation needed]
North In the northern region of Thailand 13 April is celebrated with gunfire or firecrackers to repel bad luck.On the next day, people prepare food and useful things to offer to the monks at the temple.
People have to go to temple to make merit and bathe Buddha's statue and after that they pour water on the hands of elders and ask for their blessings.
East The eastern region has activities similar to the other part of Thailand,
but people in the east always make merit at the temple throughout all the days of the Songkran Festival. Some people,
after making merit at the temple, prepare food to be given to the elderly members of their family.
Songkran elsewhere
Songkran is celebrated as Sangken in northeastern areas of India and in Bizu, Boisuk, Shangrai, and Boisabi in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh, as the traditional New Year's Day by the Indigenous people and Buddhist Community.The Sangken festival is celebrated by the people of the Khampti tribe. The festival is also celebrated by Singpho, Khamyang,
Tikhaks (Tangsa) and Phakyal community of Arunachal Pradesh, and Tai Phake community of Assam. Sangken generally falls in the month of 'Naun Ha',
the fifth month of the year of the Khampti Lunar calendar coinciding with the month of April.
It is celebrated in the last days of the old year and the Lunar New Year begins on the day just after the end of the festival.
, celebrated by South Indian State of Kerala also falls during the same timeframe.
It is predominantly a harvest festival where 'Kani' or a visual treat is seen as the first view in the morning.
In some villages in south , especially Karnataka, a festival called " celebrated in which every household keeps a barrel of water mixed with chalk and turmeric to throw on passers-by.
The date of coincides with that of Songkran in Thailand and Thingyan in Myanmar, not with the dates , which is a north festival.
In other calendars
Songkran occurs at the same time as that given by Bede for festivals of Eostre—and Easter weekend occasionally coincides with Songkran (most recently 1979, 1990, and 2001, but not again until 2085.)
Downsides
Accidents
"Thai people should think about what we want and how we want to promote the image of our country.
Do we want to be known as the hub of the water party with booze and a high death toll? Or do we want to be known for having a beautiful culture that no one else has"
—Prommin Kantiya, director of the Accident Prevention Network (APN)
Police statistics show that the death toll from road accidents doubles
during the annual Songkran holiday. Between 2009 and 2013 there were about 27 road deaths per day during non-holiday periods and an average of 52 road deaths per day during Songkran.
Thailand has the second-highest traffic fatality rate in the world, with 44 deaths per 100,000 residents.
Approximately 70 percent of the accidents that occurred during the long holiday period were motorcycle accidents.About 10,000 people per year die in motorcycle accidents.
During the 2014 Songkran festivities, 322 deaths and 2,992 injuries occurred from 11–17 April. Drunk driving and speeding were the leading causes of accidents,
in which most involved were motorcycles and pickup trucks.
During the "seven dangerous days" of the Songkran festivities in 2016,
from 11–17 April, 442 persons died and 3,656 were injured in road accidents, up 21.4 percent from 2015.
The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) says a total of 110,909 people were arrested and 5,772 vehicles impounded at road safety checkpoints across the country between 9–16 April.
Arrests
Police arrested a British tourist in Chiang Mai on the first day of the 2016 Songkran holiday, 13 April, for violating the junta's ban on indecent dress.
In a water fight the culprit was topless, wearing only short pants, but no shirt.
He was taken into custody, fined 100 baht, then released. Temperatures in Chiang Mai reached 41 °C that day.
A man was arrested during Songkran 2016 for posting a video of a topless woman dancing during the 2015 Songkran festival.Police said Jakkrapatsorn Akkarapokanan, 29, was charged under the Computer Crime Act for posting the year-old video of a woman rolling up her wet shirt to let revelers touch her breasts. Jakkrapatsonr was released on a 100,000 baht bond.
Police said they attempted to find the topless woman in the video to fine her 500 baht for indecency, but the one year statute of limitations had expired.
Intellectual property
Celebrate Singapore
In 2014 "Celebrate Singapore," a large two-day Songkran-style water festival,was planned for Singapore and the event was promoted as the "largest water festival party in Singapore".
However, controversy emerged when the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Deputy Governor for Tourism Products,Vilaiwan Twichasri, claimed that Thailand holds exclusive rights to celebrate Songkran and planned to consult with officials at the Department of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Culture to discuss a potential lawsuit.
The Deputy Governor's view was supported by numerous Thai citizens on social media websites. Chai Nakhonchai, Cultural Promotion Department chief, pointed out that Songkran is a traditional festival shared by many countries throughout Southeast Asia, while historian Charnvit Kasetsiri stated that no single nation can claim ownership of a tradition.
On 25 March 2014, the Bangkok Post reported that the Singaporean government had intervened in the festival's content and there would be no water-throwing, no water pistols and no public drinking. The festival was also reduced to a one-day event.
SONGKRAN – WATER FESTIVAL IN THAILAND
Songkran is the festival that marks the beginning of the New Year in the traditional Thai calendar.
It used to be held on the full moon of the eleventh month, which coincided with the beginning of the northern spring, when the sun started moving northwards.These days the date is fixed, and each year the festival is held over three days from April 13-15 (though it may begin earlier and end later, depending on the year and the region).
Festivals similar to Songkran are held at about the same time in Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, and in the Yunnan region of South-West China.
The name Songkran (สงกรานต์) comes from the Sanskrit ‘sankranta’, meaning a move or change.
SONGKRAN IN THAILAND
Songkran used to be observed only in Northern Thailand, leading some to believe that it was originally brought to Thailand by the Burmese.
It is now celebrated all over Thailand, although the celebration in the northern city of Chiang Mai is generally recognized as the most authentic example, and also the most intense.
SONGKRAN 2017
The official dates for the Songkran festival in Chiang Mai are Thursday, 13 April 2017 to Saturday, 15 April 2017. The fact that Songkran is falling on a weekend this year means that Monday 17 April, 2017 will also be a bank/government holiday.
This is the most important festival of the year for Thai people, and they know how to make the most of it. All government offices will be closed for the duration of the holiday, and many businesses will give this time off to their employees.
TRADITIONAL SONGKRAN
Traditionally, Songkran was a time when Buddha images from private homes and temples were cleansed with specially perfumed lustral water. In many cities, Buddha images are taken from the temples and paraded around the streets for this purpose.
Also at this time sand is taken to the temples, sculpted into shapes like stupas (chedis), and decorated with colorful flags. At this time, many people take the opportunity to carefully clean their houses and to make New Year resolutions, promising to do good deeds and refrain from doing bad ones.
MODERN SONGKRAN
A feature of the celebration was that some of the lustral water used to bathe the Buddha images was collected. It was then gently poured onto elders and family members as a sign of respect and to ensure good luck and prosperity in the coming year.
What has happened in modern times is that this aspect of the celebration has become its central theme, and has become much more intense.The result is that Songkran now resembles a three day water-fight in which any weapon, from high pressure squirt guns to buckets filled with icy water, is considered fair game.
It has become very popular with younger Thai people, and the younger tourists from overseas, who see it as three days of fun, rather than a religious festival. In fact, most Thai people are happy to take part in this fun aspect of Songkran, particularly as April is usually the hottest month of the year, when temperatures can top 100º F (40ºC).
Every year there are calls from political and religious leaders to moderate the festival, particularly in light of the horrendous carnage on the roads, but every year these calls are ignored.
SONGKRAN IN CHIANG MAI
Chiang Mai offers plenty of opportunity to enjoy both the traditional and the modern aspects of Songkran. On the first day of Songkran (Wan Maha Songkran) a procession of Buddha images placed on specially decorated floats, accompanied by marching bands from local schools and detachments of various civic groups, makes its way from the railway station to Wat Phra Singh in the center of the old town. All along the route citizen throw lustral water onto the images to ritually cleanse them, and so gain merit.
Leading the way is the famous Phra Sihing image, which is then placed in front of the temple at Wat Phra Singh so that people can continue to cleanse the image for the rest of the festival.This procession is nearer the true spirit of Songkran and, while there is plenty of gentle water-splashing, it is free of the ebullient hooliganism on display elsewhere in the town.
The sand sculptures can be seen at temples all over Chiang Mai. The sand is usually carried into the temples on the afternoon of the second day (Wan Nao), and then sculpted and decorated on the morning of the third day (Wan Thaloeng Sok).
Also on the third day, devout Buddhists will bring offerings to the temple, often dressed in traditional clothes. Ceremonies will take place at the viharn, or central meeting hall, of the temple. Flags will be placed on the sand sculptures and symbolic supporting sticks placed under the large Bodhi tree that is usually found in the temple precincts. Back at home many devotees will offer lustral water to elders and senior family members.
CHIANG MAI WATER FESTIVAL
As for the modern Songkran, the water madness is evident everywhere, but is particularly intense around the moat. The city authorities make a brave attempt to clean up the moat at this time. It is drained, cleared of obstacles and then refilled and aerated, in the expectation that many young tourists and locals will be swimming in the moat, having dived in, or fallen, or been pushed.
Even so, those joining them are advised not to ingest any of the water. Young people will drive around in tuk-tuks with the hoods down, equipped with water guns and buckets of icy water. Fire will be exchanged with pedestrians, motorcyclists, other young people riding shotgun in the back of pick up trucks, and just about anyone else who gets in the way.Those wishing to take part will find plenty of vendors willing to supply them with guns, water, ice and cans of beer. Those people riding motorcycles will need to take special care. In recent times the actual beginning and ending of the water splashing period has become more elastic, so expect to be suddenly soaked in icy water in the days just before and just after the official Songkran festival period.
SONGKRAN RULES
It may seem like unrestricted mayhem, but there is etiquette to be observed. Monks and pregnant women are not considered valid targets.
You do not splash or shoot water inside restaurants, hotels or people’s homes. Most importantly, once the sun goes down, people go home to change into dry clothes and a general cease-fire then comes into effect. Tourists who do not understand these rules can find themselves in trouble both with offended victims and with the police. Observe what the Thais do, and you will not go far wrong.
THINGYAN IN MYANMAR
Neighboring South East Asian countries have similar festivals at about the same time. In Myanmar the festival is known as Thingyan.
The date of this festival is still calculated using the traditional lunisolar calendar, and thus has no fixed date, but is normally held some time in April.
In Myanmar this holiday is associated with a Hindu myth in which the King of the Brahmas had his head cut off by the King of the Devas. An elephant’s head was joined to the body of the King of the Brahmas, so creating the god Ganesh. The head however had such dangerous magic that it had to be carefully carried around by a princess devi for a year.Thingyan represents the time when the head is passed on for safekeeping to another princess devi for the following year. Water-splashing is as much a feature of this festival as the Thai Songkran, but much stress is also laid on pageants, beauty contests, music, comedy shows and dance performances.
On the third day of the festival devout Buddhists in Myanmar will wash the hair of elders and senior family members. Also on this day fish, rescued from drying lakes and streams, are released into larger lakes and rivers along with the prayers and good wishes of the rescuers.
LAO NEW YEAR
Laos has a similar culture to that of Northern Thailand, and the Lao New Year shares many of the features of Songkran.
The festival takes place at the same time, so those tourists who think they can escape a soaking by going to Laos at this time of year are in for a disappointment. In addition to water, revelers in Laos may also throw white powder or shaving cream.
CAMBODIAN NEW YEAR
The Cambodian New Year, also known as Chaul Chnam Thmey, lasts for three days, usually beginning on April 13 or 14.
The Cambodians are mostly Theravada Buddhists like the people of Laos, Burma, and Thailand and the festival shares some of the features of New Year festivals in those countries, for example building sand stupas, bathing Buddha images in lustral water, offering lustral water to elders, and bringing offerings to the temple.It does not, however, feature the water-splashing and water-fights found in neighboring countries. New Year in Cambodia should not be confused with the Water Festival called Bon Om Thook that takes place in November every year on the Tonle Sap lakeshore, which focuses instead on traditional boat racing.
YUNNAN PROVINCE, CHINA
The Dai minority of the Xishuangbanna Autonomous Prefecture in the Yunnan Province of south-western China also hold similar festivities at this time of year. This is a Thai speaking minority group with a culture very like that of Thailand or Laos. Xishuangbanna is in fact a Chinese rendition of Sipsongpanna, a Thai name meaning twelve thousand rice fields.
Songkran: Thai New Year Water Festival
The annual Songkran Water Festival is one of those events that has to be experienced in person to begin to appreciate the enormity of the spectacle and the uniqueness of the occasion.
In Thailand, Songkran is an annual nationwide party, but beyond the image of playful water-fights it’s an event steeped in tradition and meaning for Thai Buddhists.The word songkran is derived from the Sanskrit language and means ‘move into’, referring to the orbit of the sun moving into each of the houses of the zodiac.
In Thailand, the word songkran has come to be identified specifically with the sun moving into Aries in April (usually on the 13th) marking the end of a 12 month cycle and the beginning of a new solar year.
Thailand still celebrates the Western New Year on January 1st, but Songkran remains as the traditional Thai New Year festival.
Today, Songkran is widely associated with water throwing.This can go on for just one day in places in the south, but can last for a week or more in areas of the north.
The water association has a number of meanings. Water is thrown to cleanse and purify all the ills, misfortune and wrongdoing of the previous year, thus providing a clean slate for the new year ahead.
Throwing water during Songkran is also associated with fertility.
It is a time when Thai people traditionally looked to bring on the rains for rice cultivation and ensure a successful and bountiful harvest.
The festivities were also a time for courtship in days gone by and the trend continues today, though not always in quite such a traditional manner!
Songkran is officially a three day festival.
On the first day, firecrackers are often lit to send the old year on its way and ward off evil spirits, whilst homes and gardens are given a good cleaning.
The most important aspect of the day is the cleaning of Buddha images.
Many towns and cities parade important Buddha images from local wats through the streets.
Local inhabitants then gather to throw lustral water scented with jasmine flowers over the images. The general mayhem of water throwing begins on this day,
with the streets of many towns thronged with people dousing each other with water from buckets, hoses and toy water pistols.
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