Rain praying festival is a fascinating spiritual activity of white Thai people in Muong Sang commune, Moc Chau district, Son La province. Praying for rain is crucial to Thai people as it ensures a bountiful and prosperous year ahead.
For Thai people in Muong Sang commune, the rain praying ritual is the most important event of the year. The night before the event, the community carefully prepares offerings and food. An indispensable part of the ritual is a tree decorated with hand-crafted birds and insects made from bamboo splits and small cages. Early in the morning, Thai women gather and bring water back to the village for the ritual. Locals are excited for the ceremony.
After the ceremony ends, Thai people along with tourists participate in the festive activities. Drum rolls and gong sounds begin with harmonious traditional songs and people start dancing. The ritual is now not only an important spiritual and cultural activity of Thai people but also an attractive tourism product.
The rain praying ceremony of Thai people in Muong Sang commune, Moc Chau district not only sends a message of desire for bumper crops and the prosperous life of farmers but also affirms that people and nature have cohesion with each other. The preservation and promotion of the cultural values of the rain praying ritual will contribute to protecting the environment while creating unique tourism products to attract tourists to Moc Chau.-VNA
