| NAGA
NEW YEAR FESTIVAL ( CHIN TRIBE ) |
Naga New Year festival for 2003 will be
held in Lahe Township, around 7th to 19th January 2003. The Naga people
are one of the Chin tribes that live in the mountains, valleys and plains
of the most remote places at West & North West of Myanmar. Chin hills
and Chin culture is still known as hidden treasure of Myanmar.
Homemade rice wine is the most important drink for all occasions. At the
New Year Celebration, endless cups of rice wine are drunk, bison and wild
boar meat roasted are eaten, tribal dances performed with loud drums.
There's a flight from Mandalay to Khamti, the only air link to reach Lahe
(a) Layshi. From Khamti to festival place is again by truck and by boat
through the mountains and valleys.
Accommodation at the festival place is very basic. |
| KACHIN
MANAW FESTIVAL ( KACHIN TRIBE ) |
Yearly traditional Kachin Manaw Festival
of 2003 will take place in Myitkyina around January 11, 2003. The Kachin
Manaw festival is to bring in the New-year and to celebrate the good harvesting
year. The date will be announced again soon.
Among the races, the Kachin or Jingpaw is the largest ethnic races of
Myanmar living in the North & Northeast of the country. The Kachin
(or) Jingpaw are Buddhist or Christians, or Animists. As they celebrate
the festival according to their traditional way all Kachin clans of different
area gather to the ground and dance together.
Accommodation at the festival place is very basic. |
| INLE
LAKE ANNUAL PHAUNG DAW OO PAGODA FESTIVAL ( SHAN ) |
The most venerated Phaung Daw Oo pagoda
Festival will take place from 7th October to 24th October 2002 in Inle
Lake. The 4 Buddha statues from Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda are taken around
the Lake on Gilded Karaweik royal barge towed by the decorated canoes
paddled by leg rowers. The ceremony of the festival will be held at every
famous village around the lake. The royal barge will make stopover at
such villages for overnight and celebrate ritual service, dance &
music through out the night. The contests of leg rowers are held during
the festival.
The most interesting dates are 07 - 09 Oct, 13 - 15Oct and 23-24Oct' 2002. |
| KAKKU
( PA-0 ) |
| Kakku Pagoda complex is situated 26 miles
South of Taunggyi. It is the most venerated Buddhist temple complex of
Pa-O ethnic people. It is over 2000 stupas in Myanmar, Shan and Pa-O styles.
Pagoda festival falls on Full Moon Day of Tabaung ( Mid-March ) every
year and takes about one week. Pa-O people from all over Shan states gathered
at Kaku Pagoda festival and they highly believe in Buddhism. It is accessible
by road and rail from Taunggyi and by car and trek from Nampan of Inle
Lake. |
| BALOON
FESTIVAL ( SHAN ) |
Balloon Festival in Taunggyi ( Shan State
) held on Full moon day of Tazaungdaing.
The natives make their own designed balloon for this special occasion.
People from all over Shan States and all over Myanmar gather in Taunggyi
to celebrate the Full Moon Day of Tazaungmon with Balloon Festival. This
year the festival will be held on 17th November 2002. |
| Festivals form the core of Myanmar social
and religious activities. Full moon day of each month of Myanmar calendar
has its own festive occasion. Following is a list of well known festivals
in Myanmar: |
| Thingyan
Water Festival : |
This traditional festival falls around 13th
April and ushers to the Myanmar New Year. It is the merriest festival
held for three or four days when people pour water over one another and
there is much singing and dancing at decorated pandals. Boys and girls
also go round in cars and enJoy themselves splashing water at one anotber.
Pouring water is believed to cleanse the body and mind of evils of the
year that was left behind.
There is merriment and fun galore. But it is not all fun and play; the
elderly and the pious perform a lot of meritorious deeds to usher in the
New Year. People keep Sabbath; go to pagodas; and offer food and alms
to monks. Children and youths too welcome the New Year by paying respects
to their parents, teachers and elders. To gain merit, fish and cattle
are also set free. Through merriment and fun and through meritorious and
pious deeds, the Myanmars usher in a New Year. |
| The
Kason Festival : |
| It falls on the full moon day of Kason according
to the Myanmar Calendar (early May). The full moon of Kason is a day of
threefold significance - the day the Buddha was born, the day He attained
Enlightenment and the day of His demise. Men and women of all ages go
to pagodas in procession to pour water on the sacred Bo Tree. This is
done as a mark of veneration to the Buddha who attained Enlightenment
sitting under the Bo Tree. |
| The
Waso Festival : |
| Full moon day of Waso in July commemorates
the Buddha's first sermon. It also marks the beginning of Buddhist Lent.
New robes and other temporal requirements are offered to the monks in
the pomp and pageantry. Young people also go out and gather flowers of
the season to offer at the pagodas. |
| Thadingyut
Festival (Festival of Lights) : |
| This festival held on the full moon day
of Thadingyut in October marks the end of the Budditst Lent. It lasts
for three days during which houses and streets in cities and towns are
brilliantly illuminated. Pagodas are also crowded with people doing meritorious
deeds. It is not only a time of joy but also of thanks giving and paying
homage to teachers, parents and elders. |
| Tazaungdaing
Festival : |
| This festival is held on the full moon day
of Tazaungmon according to the Myanmar Calendar (mid-November). Houses
and public buildings are colourfully illuminated everywhere. Kathina robes
and other requisites are offered to the Holy Order at Kahtein festival
(ceremony of offering robes to monks). The offering of Mathothigan is
held on the eve of the Full Moon Day of Tazaungmon. Mathothingan is a
robe that is woven in a day. Today, teams of weavers compete with one
another to complete weaving robes overnight. The woven robes are then
offered to the great images of Buddha. |
| Phaungdaw
Oo Pagoda Festival : |
| The festival of Phaungdaw Oo Pagoda in In-le
Lake in the Shan State held in October is the biggest occasion of the
Lake. The images of the Buddha from Phaungdaw Oo Pagoda are placed on
an decorated royal barge called Karaweik (Mythical bird) and taken around
the Lake, stopping at villages for people to pay homage. The festival
is held with great pomp and pageantry. Fun fairs and dances are also held.
The unique and most interesting event of the festival, is of course, the
holding of boat races participated by leg-rowers -- both men and women. |
| Pagoda
Festivals : |
| Pagoda festivals are held for each pagoda.
These festivals could be viewed as the Myanmar equivalent of western fun
fairs. In a pagoda festival, one can find food stalls, toy shops, shops
selling sundry consumer goods, magic shows, puppet shows and dramas. People
-- young and old -- simply love to have a stroll around the place where
there is a pagoda festival. |
| Elephant
Dance Festival : |
En route from Yangon to Mandalay, there
lies a thriving town called 'Kynuk-se in Upper Myanmar -- situated some
26 miles to the south of Mandalay. This town is noted particularly for
the elephant dance which is performed at annual Light Festival in the
month of Thadingyut (October). The main feature of this festival is the
elepant dance accompanied by colourful pegeantries -- on live size white
paper elephant decked with regal trappings carries on its back a replica
of the sacred Tooth of Buddha or some relies of an Arahat while a black
paper elephant follows as the finale of the procession. Each of these
paper elephants is borne and animated by two men inside. The black paper
elephant dance merrily to the procession music and thus it is the centre
of attraction during the carnival.
Nowadays, the elephant dance no longer sticks to its native town alone.
It has become one of the highlights in many auspicious celebrations throughout
the country. |