subject: Cambodian New Year, a joyous celebration [print this page] Cambodian New Year, a joyous celebration Cambodian New Year, a joyous celebration
The Cambodian New Year, or Chaul Chnam Thmey as it is called in the Khmer language is celebrated with great fervour throughout the southeast Asian nation. Representing the conclusion of the harvest season the three day long festival falls on the 13th or 14th of April in the Western calendar.
Many traditions are associated with the New Year festival. The whole family visits the local temple to obtain blessings from priests and monks. A hill of sand is created within the grounds of the temple and it is adorned with five flags, one in the centre and four on the sides. This is considered to represent the Buddha and his four foremost chosen disciples.
Cambodians mark the festival by sprinkling holy water on family and friends on their faces at dawn, on their chests at midday and their feet at night time. This is considered to bring good luck. Nowadays people also throw coloured water and powder on each other; the coloured water represents the varied facets of life which will unfold in the future.
The three days of the New Year festival are celebrated with a distinctive set of customs. Moha Sangkran' is the name given to the first day of the celebration. It is thought that on this occasion the angels of God came down to the world to undertake its creation. To receive these blessed angels the people illuminate and clean their homes. Family members keep a statuette of Lord Buddha on a special altar with candles, flowers, scented water, incense sticks, food and drinks.
Vanabot', the second day of the festival is marked by charity towards the less fortunate, with alms provided to the poor. Gifts are also exchanged by family members and in some workplaces, employees receive financial incentives and gifts.
Meanwhile on the final day of the New Year, Leung Sakk', Cambodians clean the statuettes of Lord Buddha with perfumed water; this is said to usher in plentiful rain in the coming year. Children also wash the feet of elders and receive their blessings.
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