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Rueam Trod (Songkran), Khmer Tradition in Thailand ชื่อเรียกอื่น : เดือนที่จัดงาน : April เวลาทางจันทรคติ : เดือน 5 สถานที่ : Tambon Ta Bao, Prasat District, Surin Province : Northeast ภาค / จังหวัด : Surin ประเภท : ethnic rites,festive rites/rites for social auspiciousness ประเพณีที่เกี่ยวข้อง : คำสำคัญ : trut (ceremony at the close of each year),Trut Songkran (local New Year),Khmer ผู้เขียน : Pattanan Oatjetsada วันที่เผยแพร่ : 16 Aug 2016 วันที่อัพเดท : 20 Sep 2017 คำอธิบายประเพณี โดย Pattanan Oatjetsada | 8 Aug 2016 The harvest season is over. Rice is stored in barns. Sons and daughters just got married around the first months of the year. Then comes the fifth month or kae-jet, from about the end of march to April, when residents in the Khmer communities in Thailand are ready to make merits and do meritorious deeds for a good cause. For Surin people, the first waxing moon day of the fifth month is the first day of their merit-making activities. Many take a break from work. The first day is known as bon lerng phanom (literally merit-making on the mountain). The center for their traditional, religious activities since the old days has been the Sawai Mountain located in Tambon Na Bua of the Mueang District in Surin Province. Believers will trek up the mountain in order to pay respect to the sacred spirits dwelling up there, also to pray for good things in life to happen. Trekking there is believed to bring good health and well-being. Those who miss this first day activity can do the tom-tooj (a short break of 3 days off work from waxing 1st-3rd, month 5th). During this period, they do no work for themselves, but rather will do something for their communal society. They go round checking public utilities such as public buildings and facilities, then do the necessary repairing work. On waxing 4th-7th they come back to do their own work. Then starts the 7-day tom dhom (a long break, from waxing 8th-14th of the 5th month). Songkran or the New Year is celebrated right after this dhom. The celebration includes an important time-honored activity of doing the dance “rueam-trod” (New Year dance), the purpose of which is to solicit some money from community members to be used for a good cause i.e. for merit-making and maintenance cost of public utilities. In the past, the temples were the centers of these types of social work. The fifth-month rueam trod merit-making in Tambon Ta Bao, Prasat District, Surin Province The fifth-month merit-making tradition has been observed almost continually until the present day, despite a few interruptions or discontinuations over the years. Two prominent community leaders Nart Chuchuenboon and Suriya Dhanikul have been trying to keep alive this cultural tradition which, they said, at one point almost disappeared. It was the late Phra Kru Sophonboonyakit (Luang Por Kan Katapoonyo), district patriarch of Amphoe Prasat and abbot of Wat Ummarinthraram in Ban Ta Tiew) who had advocated the continuation of their cultural practices. That was the time when the people of his generation became community leaders. He convinced them that it would be a shame if they were to let heritage practices die. Finally, the folk performance was revived with the help from some old village folks, despite the fact that the young successors cannot do as well as the older generation folks who taught them. In time past, the 5th-month tradition of the Ta Bao locals was observed on the 1st waxing moon day too. But as is the case now, the people rather start at the Tom Dhom time – from waxing 8th until waxing 14th of the 5th month. Quite uniquely about this village is that residents from several villages will gather at Wat Ummarinthraram to celebrate the Songkran. In the villages, they do the traditional dance on the 8th waxing moon. They may do it for 1, or 2, or 3 days as it suits them. This could be partly because now there are fewer dancers, also fewer “tang khao” or dance leaders. The main purpose of doing the rueam trod is to collect donations as the troupe goes from house to house before finally heading off to the temple. In those days people would give alms of either cash or chickens (or silk threads, silk pieces). The common practice now is to donate money, drinking water, drinks, whisky, beer. The dancers collect these things all for charity. Generally the donated money is allocated to the village fund, the children fund, and to the village temple. Therefore the reuam trod is not just a type of folk performance for the sake of fun during the kae-jet merit-making event. It is significantly a fun way to raise money that goes to a good cause. The rueam trod dance troupe: 1. “Tang klao” leads the dancer group. They make their rounds to ask for donations. Tang klao also chants prayers in the rite of making holy water. The water will be sprinkled over the residents of each household who come out to welcome the group. 2. “Mae pleng” or song leader is the lead singer. 3. “Chorus” is all the dancers who sing and dance following the song leader’s initiations. 4. Music is from an ensemble consisting of the drums, the cymbals (ching and chap), the pan sair, and other musical instruments available in the community, including also a truck equipped with an audio system. 5. Bunches of flowers, candles and incense sticks tied up together – these are put in the donation bowls/boxes/containers. How the reaum trod is done: On the appointed day, tang klao and mae pleng will ask all the dancers to assemble at a particular spot in the village. The dancrs then traditionally pay respect to kru pleng (music teachers). Ritualistic items for the occasion are footed trays filled with flowers, candles and incense sticks, and whisky. Tang klao conducts the rite, and ends it by sprinkling sacred water over the dancers while saying blessing words. Mae pleng sings a song 3 times before setting off with the troupe to visit the houses, for donations. In front of each house, mae pleng sings, asking permission to go in and to ask for alms. Tang klao then goes inside the house to get the donation. The house owner has made preparations to welcome the troupe. Outside, they have some water pails, around which the dancers walk and dance and sing. The residents have prepared flowers, candles and incense sticks, drinking water, refreshments and other things that they will hand over to tang klao. Tang klao will chant blessing prayers, then sprinkle sacred water on the residents, another act of blessing. The house owner puts some facial powder on tang klao, and on the dancers outside too. After this, with the water in the pails they throw and splash at each other, cooling themselves in the hot weather. Before the troupe leaves for other houses, mae pleng sings the goodbye song and blesses the residents, wishing them luck for their livelihood. The belief is that welcoming the rueam trod troupe will bring wealth, fortune and well-being to all members. The festive Songkran is celebrated on the full moon day of the 5th month. In the early morning, Wat Ummarinthraram is already packed with the people coming from several villages. They attend the religious rite, which is followed by the Songkran rite and the parading of the Buddha image around the temple pavilion. Paraders carry banners they have specially made – the dod tuang, and go 3 rounds around the pavilion. Later the banners are put around sand piles and on the ritual altars, which are meant to venerate celestial beings, ancestral spirits and Mother Earth. In the afternoon, the reaum trod troupe coming back from the villages will bring the money and other donations to the temple. The atmosphere is a hilarious one. It is fun time for all. Alms are presented to the monks. Next is the rite of bathing the Buddha image. Sacred water is brought ritualistically to bathe the image, and to pour on the elder’s hands as a gesture of respect. Songkran celebrations in the past were really full of fun, and a lot of people would join the traditional fun games of “rueam-un-rey,” “sa-bah,” “chong,” etc. The fun activities lasted until waning 4th, the last day of Songkran. To end the celebrations, they had the last parade “Doan Jung Ka Ron” in order to send home the ancestral spirits who had come for the festival. Lavish food was prepared as supply for the spirits. Then they played those traditional games again for one last time before doing the last merit-making of offering alms of food to the monks, which happened very early on the next day. The 5th month merit-making festival thus ended as the people welcomed their new farming season. พิกัดภูมิศาสตร์ : Rituals, Ceremonies and Local Festivals in Thailand Database.

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