Ok Om Bok is one of the oldest festivals of Khmer people in Tra Vinh. It begins at the full-moon day of the tenth lunar month in Lunar Calendar. This year, it will take place from November 16th to November 22nd, which will be established in some main places such as the Conference Center of Tra Vinh Province, Long Binh River and Ba Om Pond.

In this festival, there are lots of activities, for example: Praying for the Moon, Kathina’s Parade, Boat Racing(Um Tuk Ngo) and so on. In the other word, this is a festive occasion for people to pray for a new and a good harvest.

Kathina’s Parade is organized once a year. Kathina is a Buddhist festival which comes at the end of the Vassa, the three-month rainy season retreat for Theravada Buddhists in some countries in Viet Nam like Can Tho, Soc Trang, Kien Giang, Vinh Long, Bac Lieu, An Giang, Hau Giang, Ca Mau and Tra Vinh. Kathina is one month and beginning after the full-moon of the tenth moth in the Lunar calendar. In this festival, lay woman and lay man will be prepared Khmer’s traditional clothes by their own, and then, they parade around the temple for three times and crave for their health, their lives,...

During the full-moon night, Khmer’s family members congrerate in front of the communal pagoda or their houses and prepare Khmer’s special feast with green rice flackes, ripe bananas, fresh peeled coconuts and mangoes to offer to the moon. When the moon rises, the offering ceremony begins with all family members sitting flat on the ground and clasping their hands in wait for the moon to rise. After that, an old man ( Ar Char ) expresses their gratitude to the moon and prays for the next crops and their health. They pray to the Moon for bumper harvest all the year round, prosperity and happiness.

Especially, in the full-moon night, there is a special activity which has very meaningful and interesting, it is “Flying wind lantern”. When the wind lanterns begin to drop, the entire space becomes sparkling with the cheers and attracts the viewer’s attention. Along with the rising and funny music, a whole space is funnier.

Beside that, Boat Racing (Um Tuk Ngo) is one of the most attractive activities of the Khmers. The race draw hundreds of thousands of Khmer people in the region and tourists nationwide. On the Long Binh River, it takes place the exciting Boat racing in the echoing sounds of the Five tnes of the Khmer;s traditional musical scale and the resounding encouragement shouts of thousands of audiences. The racing teams come from different town and districts on the territory of Tra Vinh Province and nearby provinces bring a noisy and stirring atmosphere for the festival.

Ok Om Bok Festival is an important festival in Khmer people’s life. It becomes the symbol of aspiration, beautiful soul and rich emotional life of people to supernatural forces. It not only contributes to conserve and promote traditional cultural indentity of Khmer community but also a unique tourism product to attract visitors in the world.

Name: Nguyen Thi Xuan Dao

Class: DA18NNAE

Student’s code: 110418276