The festival of the city pillar,Intakin Festival, is held annually for seven days and seven nights to invoke blessings for peace,happiness and prosperity for the city and its residents. The festival takes place in one of Chiang Mai's original temples; Wat Chedi Luang , during the seventh lunar month, as the rainy season in Thailand starts.
We were so lucky to be in Chiang Mai in time to attend the opening night of the festival.We were not sure what to expect, but as we were getting closer to Wat Chedi Luang,we could hear the monks chanting,see the crowds aggregating and smell the burning of incense mixed in with the distinctive aromas of Thai cooking. Our senses were overwhelmed trying to analyze everything taking place.As we passed a stand that,to us,looked like it was selling flowers, the attendant lady handed me a brochure and was trying to tell us something. After looking at the brochure(or the little of it written in English), and trying to put her words together, we understood (or we think so anyway) that she was trying to tell us to get a tray to participate in the activities of the festival. We placed some money in the donation box,answered the question about our birthdays, and grabbed the two prepared trays handed to us.
The trays had flowers,joss sticks,candles and a cup of lustral water. For a minute, we were not sure what to do with the tray,but as we entered the temple grounds, we saw people sprinkling the lustral water on a Buddha image sitting elegantly in the middle of the courtyard;surrounded by flowers, candles and worshipers. Glancing at the brochure handed to me, I learned that the Buddha image I was standing in front of , is called "Fon Saan Haa", which literally translates to "One hundred thousand drops of rain", and the belief is that by sprinkling it with blessed water, one will be blessed with good health, and rain will fall in the right amounts in the right seasons. So in the line we stood, and our cups of lustral water we poured on the revered Buddha image.
As we were about to leave the stand, a local guy approached us, and instructed us to light our birthday candles in front of the Buddha image for more blessings.There are seven different candles, one for each day in the week, and everyone lights a candle of the day they were born. So I lit my Sunday candle, and Bill lit his Friday candle.
The other crux of the Intakin Festival revolves around a ceremony called "Tam Boon Khan Dok", the way of merit making by offering flowers and joss sticks to the bowls in the forecourts of the temple. So we walked around the temple, placing our tray contents in the bowls until we ran out. And since in my church, we light candles,place flower arrangements in front of religious icons, and believe in holy water, participating in the festival did not feel strange, just different. It was very touching to get to experience, first hand, a faith that is different than mine.People in Chiang Mai are very kind and friendly, and I believe their culture,shaped by Buddhism, plays a big role in that.
The city pillar, that the festival is named after,was constructed during the reign of King Mengrai, the founder of the city of Chiang Mai. In the past, it was housed at a temple in the geographic center of the city, but when that temple was ruined, the city pillar was moved to Wat Chedi Luang, and it is housed in its own shrine,where it can't be seen in other time of the year than the Intakin Festival. Even during the festival, only men are allowed to enter the shrine; women may only view the pillar through the entrance portals. Bill took a photo of the city pillar for me.
After asking for rain, lighting candles for blessings, making merits by giving flowers and touring the beautiful temple(which I will show photos of tomorrow), we sat down to watch Thai dancers performing religious dances; very elegant calculated moves with many hand gestures.
And of course, no festival outing is complete without sampling the many food stands in and around the temple grounds. Unfortunately, the camera batteries were dying, so I couldn't take more photos.
We had a fabulous evening at the Intakin Festival, and wish to be in Thailand again for this one and others.
Comments (5)
I love seeing how people of different cultures and faith interact with and honor the Divine. What a wonderful experience to get to participate in this!
Posted by Annie | June 17, 2009 7:25 AM
Posted on June 17, 2009 07:25
Fascinating post, Candi. As you mentioned, the reason behind the offerings do not seem foreign to our own religious practices.
I love the idea of lighting a candle on the day of the week you were born. I never looked up what day of the week I was born until now; it was a Monday.
What’s in those skewers?
Posted by María I. | June 17, 2009 11:36 AM
Posted on June 17, 2009 11:36
Annie,we really enjoyed it. It amazed me (and still does) how faithful the people in Chiang Mai are.
Maria, I was intrigued by the idea of candle birthdays too.
The skewers have various sorts of sausages, I tried the chicken sausage, and it was very good. However, I did not brave the other meats, since I don't really care much for them.
Posted by candi | June 17, 2009 2:11 PM
Posted on June 17, 2009 14:11
How exciting to be able to participate in this festival. Interesting that only men are allowed to enter the shrine. Good thing Bill was there with you so you could at least see pictures. The food looks wonderful!
Posted by girasoli | August 24, 2009 1:30 AM
Posted on August 24, 2009 01:30
I was there too. The beauty was overwhelming!!! Paul
Posted by Paul Venne | February 27, 2010 10:23 PM
Posted on February 27, 2010 22:23