On the evening of November 12, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Soc Trang organized the opening ceremony of the Loi Protip (water lantern release) and Ca Hau boat performance in 2024, attracting the participation of representatives of pagodas from districts, towns and cities in Soc Trang province; 20 Protip boats and 4 Ca Hau boats made the water surface of the Maspéro River shimmer and sparkle with many brilliant colors.
This is one of the series of activities taking place during the 6th Ooc Om Boc Festival - Ngo Boat Racing in Soc Trang, Mekong Delta region and the 1st Soc Trang Culture, Sports and Tourism Week, 2024.
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| Colorful Protip and Ca Hau boats on the Maspéro River. |
Loi Protip (water lantern release) is a unique cultural festival originating from Buddhism and developed according to the economic conditions and social life of the Khmer community. From a legend associated with religion, it is to worship the fang of Buddha Shakyamuni kept by the Naga snake god in the Dragon Palace. In addition, Protip also symbolizes the lower teeth of Buddha remaining in the lower world to protect sentient beings. Loi Protip also means to thank prés thonni (Earth god) and prés kong kear (Water god). Because according to the concept of the Khmer people, after a year of labor, production and living, people have polluted nature, so people hold a ceremony to apologize. When releasing water lanterns, people want to remember the grace of nature for blessing people to do business and live peacefully and wish for better things for the following year. Because of their great dependence on nature, especially water, the Khmer people believe that water is a form of matter that has existed in the universe since ancient times and plays an important role in human life. Loi Protip has been deeply ingrained in the consciousness of the Khmer people and has been maintained from generation to generation. Moreover, Loi Protip also reminds people to return to nature, clean up the living environment, and protect land and water, which are two important factors that help maintain the existence of humanity.
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| The water lanterns are modeled after the architecture of main halls or towers with the frame made of wood or metal to create stability; the body, roof tiles, and top of the boat are shaped from cardboard; the outside is decorated with flowers, lights, and incense, and the inside is decorated with offerings. |
Ghe Ca Hau is understood as a boat for the Venerable, the Venerable, the Prestigious People to sit and direct the boat teams competing in Ngo boat races. In addition, Ghe Ca Hau is also used to transport food, drinks, orchestras... to serve and provide logistics for Ngo boat teams in races and on the racetrack. Currently, Ghe Ca Hau is no longer used in Ngo boat races of the Khmer people as before, but with the awareness and responsibility in preserving the daily life items, which have unique cultural values in the spiritual life of the people, some ancient Ca Hau boats with elaborate designs and decorations are still being preserved and displayed by Khmer pagodas in Soc Trang.
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On the Maspéro River, in addition to the lanterns shaped like local pagodas that are elaborately designed, creative, stylized, and in harmony with the shimmering river space, there are also vividly and beautifully restored Ca Hau boats. |
In his opening speech, the Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Son Po province said that the performance of Loi Protip and Ca Hau boats this year has many unique cultural colors, contributing to the 6th Ooc Om Boc Festival - Ngo Boat Racing in Soc Trang, Mekong Delta region and the 1st Soc Trang Culture, Sports and Tourism Week in 2024, making the festival atmosphere more jubilant, bustling, rich, diverse, creating typical cultural products; serving tourism development in the direction of regional and regional linkage, associated with the implementation of the goal of preserving and promoting the traditional cultural values of ethnic minorities, contributing to building and developing an advanced Vietnamese culture, imbued with national identity, meeting the requirements of sustainable national development.
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| The Loi Protip (water lantern) and Ca Hau boat performances in 2024 contribute to honoring the beauty of traditional material culture of ethnic minorities. |
The Loi Protip (water lantern) and Ca Hau boat performances in 2024 contribute to honoring the beauty of traditional material culture of ethnic minorities. From there, it helps to diversify the propaganda, promotion and introduction of unique cultural heritages of Soc Trang province to domestic and foreign tourists, promote socio-economic development, and enhance mutual understanding between cultures.
Source: https://thoidai.com.vn/soc-trang-nhung-chiec-protip-va-ghe-ca-hau-ruc-ro-sac-mau-tren-dong-song-maspero-207203.html
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