As part of the series of activities of the "Spring Colors in All Regions of the Country" Festival in 2025, the Thai ethnic people from Nhu Thanh district, Thanh Hoa province reenacted an excerpt of the Singing and Dancing Ceremony under the Cotton tree (Kin gong Booc May).
The Kin Chieng Boọc Mây ceremony takes place at the beginning of the new year, with the purpose of thanking the gods, holding a festival to celebrate after a year of hard work, praying for peace, health, and good crops. The joyful and bustling atmosphere is truly a strong bond connecting the Thai ethnic community in the mountainous regions of the West of Thanh Hoa.
Offerings in the Kin Chieng Booc May ceremony
After the Shaman performed the ceremony at Cam Temple and the Bong tree erection ceremony, the Shaman and the villagers offered the gods new rice. The Shaman and the villagers performed the "Tan Nuong" ceremony (inviting the Heavenly Muong to attend the Kin Chieng Booc May), the Shaman invited the gods to drink wine; then, the Shaman prayed to the gods to ask for water from the Bong tree to pray for coolness for the villagers.
The main part of Lam cha Kin gong Boọc May, the Mo master worships the gods from the Bong tree, reads the spell (secret words) to ask the gods to perform some "magic", many movements belong to the magical spell. Next, the Mo master and the Bao cho, Sao cho (maybe also the attendees) perform some acts simulating production labor and cultural activities through movements, but the lyrics (everywhere) are mixed with humor, including the acts Buffaloes come back to plow the fields, Cows from the sky come back to play in the Muong Luong Gian, Chickens from the jungle...
After that, the shaman prayed to the gods to tell fortunes for the villagers, each person picked flowers and gave them to the shaman, except for a few "special" cases where the shaman gave them flowers to take home. Whoever got that was extremely lucky, it was taboo to arbitrarily pick flowers and destroy the Bong tree. Next, the villagers organized a dance such as: dancing with the Bong tree, beating gongs, rattling the bamboo, jumping on bamboo poles and some other games.
The villagers and the Bao Cho and Sao Cho listened to the advice of the Bong tree and the words of the Shaman. At the end, the Shaman held a ceremony to ask the gods to lower the Bong tree and send the gods to heaven, promising to return next year to organize the celebration.
With unique cultural values, "Kin Chieng Boọc Mây" is the most typical and unique ritual of the Thai ethnic group in Roc Ram village, Xuan Phuc commune, Nhu Thanh district, recognized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017.
Minh Anh (Ethnic and Development Newspaper)
Source: https://baophutho.vn/tai-hien-trich-doan-nghi-thuc-kin-chieng-boc-may-cua-dan-toc-thai-tinh-thanh-hoa-227953.htm
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