{"id":19831,"date":"2014-07-04T08:44:00","date_gmt":"2014-07-04T08:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/time-of-illumination-traditional-candle-festival-marks-the-start-of-buddhist-lent\/"},"modified":"2014-07-04T08:44:00","modified_gmt":"2014-07-04T08:44:00","slug":"time-of-illumination-traditional-candle-festival-marks-the-start-of-buddhist-lent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/2014\/07\/time-of-illumination-traditional-candle-festival-marks-the-start-of-buddhist-lent\/","title":{"rendered":"Time of illumination: traditional candle festival marks the start of Buddhist Lent"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) invites international and local travellers to join the Thai <\/span><\/span>
\"unnamedBuddhist community nationwide in marking the start of this year\u2019s Buddhist Lent from <\/span>11 \u2013 13 July<\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span>

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Legend has it that when the Lord Buddha was travelling and spreading his teachings, it was traditional for ascetics to retire to retreats during the rainy season. This period was known as vassa and was aimed at preventing crop damage during vital growing periods.<\/span><\/div>\n

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For modern Buddhist monks, it is a time of retreat and reflection. Buddhist Lent, or Khao Phansa<\/em> as it is known in Thailand, lasts for three months. During this period, monks stay within their temples for study and adhere strictly to the teachings of the Lord Buddha.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Mr. Thawatchai Arunyik, TAT Governor said, \u201cTo mark the start of this auspicious period, Buddhist devotees and the Thai people nationwide organise special celebrations that also reflect local traditions and beliefs. This gives tourists the chance to really connect with some of Thailand\u2019s more unique festivals and immerse themselves in some delightful local customs that can\u2019t be found elsewhere.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n

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Among some of the more unique celebrations marking Buddhist Lent in Thailand this year are:<\/span><\/div>\n

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\"Part<\/span><\/dt>\n
Part of a colourful procession of many beautifully crafted candles at Surin Khao Phansa Festival<\/span><\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
International Wax Candle Festival and Wax Candle Procession<\/strong>, from 11-14 July<\/span> at Thung Si Mueang, Ubon Ratchathani, acts as a showcase for some of the world\u2019s best examples of candle carving with masterpieces crafted by artists from Bulgaria, Costa Rica, India, Malaysia, Mexico, Spain, Ukraine, the United States of America, and Thailand.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Korat Candle Festival<\/strong>, from 11-13 July<\/span> at the Tao Suranaree Monument, Nakhon Ratchasima, is a display of exquisitely carved candles that will depict the story of the Lord Buddha, the royal projects in honour of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej and the many historical attractions of Nakhon Ratchasima.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Candle Procession and Elephant Back Merit Making<\/strong>, from 10-11 July<\/span> at the Monument of Phaya Surin Phakdi Sri Narong Changwang, Surin boasts a procession of nearly 100 elaborately-decorated elephants carrying some of the town\u2019s most highly-revered monks around town in a unique and memorable merit-making ceremony.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Tak Bat Dok Mai (Floral merit-making) and Royal Candle Festival<\/strong>, from 11-13 July<\/span> at Wat Phra Phutthabat, Khun Khlon sub-district, Saraburi, is a unique festival in which Buddhists will present Dok Khao Phansa<\/em> \u2013 traditional yellow and white blooms \u2013 to monks ascending the temple steps to pay respect to the Buddha\u2019s Footprint as well as wash the monks\u2019 feet as a way of making merit and washing away sins.<\/span><\/div>\n

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\"Local<\/span><\/dt>\n
Local artisan of Ubon Ratchathani carefully carves the candle for the province\u2019s most celebrated festival.<\/span><\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
Aquatic Phansa Festival<\/strong>, on 11 July<\/span> at Khlong Lat Chado, Phak Hai, Ayutthaya, marks Khao Phansa<\/em> in a unique way with a long and colourful procession of boats carrying candles to the temple. There are also several other activities that reflect the local way of life the people at the canal-side village of Lat Chado.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Pattaya Candle Festival<\/strong>, from 9-10 July<\/span> at Pattaya Beach Road, highlights candle processions that start from Central Beach Road to the Walking Street as well as a candle carving competition and candle floating competition \u2013 all set to reflect the local and traditional lifestyle in Pattaya.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Suphan Buri Candle Festival<\/strong>, from 11-13 July<\/span> at Wat Pa Wat Pa Lelai Woravihara, presents the spectacular procession of candles around the province\u2019s main town as well as local folk performances, candle procession competition and candle floating decoration competition.<\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) invites international and local travellers to join the Thai Buddhist community nationwide in marking the start of this year\u2019s Buddhist Lent from 11 \u2013 13 July. Legend has it that when the Lord Buddha was travelling and spreading his teachings, it was traditional for ascetics to retire to retreats during the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19831"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19831\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/traveloscopy.com\/travel-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}