Description |
Ok Om Bok Festival (steaming rice nuggets), also known as the moon worship festival, is held on the 15th day of the Kdoeh month according to the Buddhist calendar (October of the lunar calendar), after the harvest is completed, to give thanks to the Moon - lord of the harvest. Families in a hamlet invite each other to set up an altar to worship the moon at the beginning of the hamlet, displaying flat rice flakes, fruits, incense, and pairs of cotton slathons, covered with layers of golden paper, sparkling magically. Taking the altar as the center, children sit in the inner circle, elderly people sit in the middle circle and young people sit in the outer circle. When the moon rises, the oldest person in the village steps up to preside over the ceremony of burning incense and praying to worship the moon. After that, the subject performs the ritual of feeding flat rice to young children. After filling the child's mouth with nuggets, the master of ceremonies asked "What do you dream about?". The children's dreams are the prayers of the Khmer people to the Moon, the Buddha.
After breaking the feast, there is the release of wind lanterns - a folk game that is both entertaining and seasonal.
The Moon worshiping ceremony in the alleys was completed, and people gathered at the temple grounds to attend the ceremony. Groups of people sing and dance, telling historical stories about Buddha, Phum Soc, and their homeland. The next day, the Phum Socs organized Ghe ngo (boat) racing. Ghe ngo is a cultural symbol, the race is for the honor and glory of the Phum Soc.
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