Bun Bang Fai or Rocket Festival
The majority of Thai people are farmers, so there are various traditions involved in agriculture such as Bun Bang Fai or the Rocket Festival. Thai superstition and animistic beliefs have also led to many rites and activities in this festival such as the offering of gifts to holy beings.
The Rocket Festival or “ Bun Bang Fai “ is a regional festival and an occupational tradition which is held in the second week of May at the beginning of the rainy season. Rice farmers are often affected by natural disasters such as floods and droughts, so they become superstitious and perform various ceremonies to ensure plentiful rain during the coming rice-planting season. In many provinces in the North, and particularly the Northeast of Thailand, such as in Yasothon, Ubon Ratchathni, surin etc., the people have used rockets at this festival for centuries.
According to legend, a rain god named Vassakarn was known for his fascination with fire. To ensure that the farmers have enough rain for rice cultivation, they send home-made rockets to the heavens carried out where the god resides. This tradition is still.
In the folktale named “ Pa Daeng-Nang Al “, it was told that a drought had happened long before Phaya Khom,Nong Al’s father, announced the competition of fire rocket shooting. Pa Daeng, who was able to fire his rocket to the greatest height married to Nang Al, and finally was able to induce rain.
The preparation and launching of a rocket as a tribute to the rain god is a communual affair. The festival organized not only by villages but also by cities.
After weeks of preparation, villagers under the guidance of Buddhist monks finish making rockets, launching platforms and decorations. An average rocket is about three to four meters long. This length does not include the bamboo tall which helps the rocket maintain a vertical position during liftoff and for the rest of the flight.
In the afternoon of the festival day, rockets are carried in a procession to the launching site. Villagers are dressed in colorful traditional costumes, and the regional dance and musical instrument of the northeast called “ Kaen “, a set of bamboo flutes bundled together, are employed. Rockets are placed on the launching platforms and ballads are sung in praise of the beauty of the rockets. The climax of the festival is the firing of the rockets. The rockets are fired one by one from the launching platforms. Each liftoff is greeted by cheers and noisy music. The rocket that reaches the greatest height is the winner, and the owner receives a reward. But the owners of the rockets that exploded or failed to fly are thrown into the mud for fun.
I would like you to come to the Rocket Festival sometime. Hoping to be your travelling guide throughout
จากหนังสือ..” ฌทศกาล งานประเพณีท้องถิ่น “ ระดับมัธยมศึกษา กรมวิชาการ กระทรวงศึกษาธิการ
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