Ok Phansa

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Ok Phansa , actually Wan Ok Phansa ( Thai วัน ออกพรรษา ; translated roughly “end” or “end day of the rainy season”), takes place at the end of the monsoon season in Laos and Thailand and is an important religious holiday .

background

The exam time Phansa lasts three months on Pali 's that time Vassa ( "rainy season"). It begins at the beginning of August and begins with the holiday of Khao Phansa . The last weekend of October is Wan Ok Phansa , it is also a public holiday. In the three Phansa months, the monks withdraw to their respective wat (monastery and temple) and devote themselves intensively to meditation . The goal is the search for spiritual enlightenment. Until Ok Phansa the monks are allowed to leave their wat for a maximum of five days per month.

The Kathin ceremony takes place on the day after Ok Phansa .

Lai Ruea Fai

In the provinces of northeast Thailand and Laos located on the Mekong, Wan Ok Phansa is celebrated with a spectacular festival called Lai Ruea Fai ( Thai ไหล เรือไฟ Lao : Lai Huea Fai ; translated as “Illuminated Boats”): over a distance of around 260 kilometers along the Mekong Ornate bamboo boats up to ten meters long, decorated with torches , lanterns and fire wheels, drive up and down. Fireworks rockets and flares are traditionally fired along the river . Also Kong Ming lanterns allowed to rise. With the festival, people and monks celebrate the return of the Buddha from the Tavatimsa heaven, where, according to tradition, he preached to his mother during the rainy season.

At the time of Wan Ok Phansa, the mysterious Naga fireballs are occasionally sighted over the Mekong and neighboring provinces .

literature

  • J. Gordon Melton: Religious Celebrations. An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations. Volume 1. ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara (CA) 2011, p. 126, entry Boun Ok Phansa .
  • Laurence-Khantipalo Mills: Buddhism Explained . Silkworm Books, Chiang Mai 1999 (6th edition), ISBN 9747100851 , pages 80 & 175.

Individual evidence

  1. Heinz Bechert, Richard Gombrich (ed.): Der Buddhismus. History and present. 2nd edition, CH Beck, Munich 2002, p. 371.