Prepared by: H.An | October 2, 2024
(To Quoc) - Katê Tet, the biggest festival of the year for the Cham people who follow Brahmanism, is an occasion for people to remember the gods, kings, and ancestors, and to pray for health and peace.
In the early days of July according to the Cham calendar, the vibrant and joyful atmosphere of the Katê festival permeates the lives of the Cham people who follow the Brahman religion. This year, the Katê festival takes place from October 1-3, and the Cham temples and towers in Ninh Thuan province are once again filled with color as a large number of Cham people from all over the country flock to participate.
In the early morning of October 2nd, tens of thousands of people flocked to the Po Klong Garai tower complex (Phan Rang - Thap Cham city) to attend the main Katê festival. From early morning, the road leading to the Po Klong Garai tower was packed with worshippers. During the Katê festival, Cham people living and working everywhere return to reunite and gather with family, friends, and relatives.
Dressed in traditional attire, the Cham people, graceful with their flowing scarves, stroll up the steps to the majestic, ancient towers. A complete Cham women's outfit consists of a long dress, skirt, diagonal and horizontal sashes, a headscarf, earrings, and a necklace of gleaming black beads.
“I hope that the cultural identity of my people will be known to everyone,” said Dang Quyen, a student from Ninh Phuoc district, happily as she and her family attended the biggest festival of the year for the Cham people who follow Brahmanism. During these days, Quyen and her family decorate their house and prepare offerings to present to the gods and ancestors, praying for health and peace. The offerings at the base of the tower are at the discretion of each family, such as rice, soup, chicken, fruit, cakes, and sweets.
In Ninh Thuan, the main ceremony was held at three Cham temple and tower areas, including Po Klong Garai Tower, Po Rome Tower, and Po Inu Nugar Temple, on the morning of October 2nd, and continued in villages, clans, and families of the Cham Brahman people in the following days. The Council of Cham Brahman Dignitaries of Ninh Thuan province expressed gratitude for the support and facilitation from all levels of government, which enabled the community to organize the Katê Festival in an increasingly solemn and large-scale manner, thereby fostering unity within the Cham ethnic community in particular and the people of the entire province in general.
According to custom, one day before the main ceremony, the Cham people perform traditional rituals, welcoming and carrying the attire of the goddess Po Inu Nugar to the temple to prepare for the main rituals of the Katê festival. On the afternoon of October 1st, in Huu Duc village (Phuoc Huu commune, Ninh Phuoc district), the Cham people received the attire brought down by the Raglai people (Phuoc Ha commune, Thuan Nam district).
According to legend, the goddess Po Inu Nugar, or Mother Goddess of the Land, taught the Cham people how to cultivate rice, weave cloth, and raise livestock, helping them to live a prosperous life. The Cham and Raglai people are like sisters, with the Cham being the eldest and the Raglai the youngest. Due to the matriarchal system, the youngest daughter inherits property and is responsible for ancestor worship. Therefore, all the garments of the kings and gods are kept by the Raglai and only brought down during the Katê festival or the New Year's ceremony.
Following the procession of ceremonial costumes, the Cham people performed an artistic program, gracefully dancing with fans to the rhythmic beat of the Paranung drums and the melodious sound of the Saranai horns, inviting visitors to join in the joyful atmosphere. Ninh Thuan currently has over 50,000 Cham people who follow Brahmanism, living in the districts of Ninh Phuoc, Thuan Nam, Thuan Bac, and Phan Rang-Thap Cham city. In recent years, thanks to the continuously improving socio -economic conditions, the Katê festival has become even more heartwarming.
On the morning of October 2nd, the main ceremony took place at the Cham temples and towers, featuring solemn rituals alongside the procession of ceremonial garments to the towers, such as the opening of the towers, the bathing of the deity statues, the dressing of the deities, and the grand ceremony. On this occasion, the leaders of Ninh Thuan province presented gifts to congratulate the Cham people, expressing their hope that the community would continue to preserve, protect, and promote the unique cultural activities of the Cham people, integrating them with the cultures of other ethnic groups in the province, and contributing to the socio-economic development of the province in the coming years.
With its significant cultural and historical importance, the "Katê Festival of the Cham people in Ninh Thuan province" was included in the list of National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017, contributing to promoting the culture and image of Ninh Thuan province to domestic and international tourists.
Source: https://toquoc.vn/ron-rang-le-hoi-kate-cua-dong-bao-dan-toc-cham-20241002152755761.htm
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