Dolta ceremony of the Khmer people

Khmer Donta Festival is held at the end of the 8th lunar month, is one of the important festivals, considered by Khmer people as the second New Year of the year.

In fact, the Donta festival begins on the 16th day of the 8th lunar month and lasts until the last day of the 8th lunar month every year. During this time, Khmer families often bring rice, fruits, cakes, etc. to the temple so that monks can make offerings to the souls of the deceased and pray for those souls. However, we also know that, during this time, monks are in their summer retreat (1) and this is also the time when families offer food to monks to show respect ( 2). This is what makes the Donta festival have quite profound religious meaning.

The main ceremony of the Donta festival focuses on the last day of the month. Previously, the main ceremony was not only held on one day, but for 3 days, from the 29th day of the 8th lunar month to the 1st day of the 9th lunar month every year (3).

The first day is the day to "welcome" grandparents to eat and go to the temple, the third day is the day to "offer" (grandparents). On the day of worship, some places make a boat (made of banana peels) to bring offerings including a little rice, food, fruit cake, rice, beans... according to the grandparents. On the boat, people also make images of crocodiles and geckos (made of banana peels) attached to the bow and steering wheel (4).

On the evening of the 29th (August), which is the time when the main Donta ceremony begins, a large number of Khmer people gather at the pagoda to join the monks in reciting sutras to pray for salvation, and receive the precepts (the five precepts or the eight precepts). ) and then listen to the sermon. That night, after completing the rituals of the ceremony, everyone came together to organize music and entertainment... The five-tone orchestra was again brought out to serve and everyone sang and danced ram won... At dawn on the 30th, all families prepare sticky rice, rice soup, fruits, and cakes to bring to the temple to offer to the souls of the deceased and partly to give to the monks for use. Just like during the Chol Chnam Thmay ceremony, families who can afford it will make traditional ethnic cakes such as banh tet and banh it to worship, to offer to monks, to entertain guests, and to use in the family. That day, everyone along with the monks went into the main hall (if it was too crowded, people would even go into the lecture hall - sala tieng) to recite prayers for the deceased. The ceremony ends after the monks have lunch and everyone has a community meal at the temple, because each family contributes their own food and fruit for that intimate meal. It is worth noting that during the Donta festival season, especially on the last day of the month, among the offerings brought to the pagoda are round rice balls or sticky rice, called "bai banh". It is known that this type of rice balls and sticky rice balls "bai banh" are mainly used to worship ghosts. During the Donta festival season, they are often left outside the temple grounds (where only poor people take them to eat) (5).

Due to the nature of contributing food to worship the souls of the deceased, to the ghosts, for monks to use as well as for community meals, especially "bai banh" which is the main holiday of Donta festival (the 30th). /8 lunar calendar) is called "phchum banh" day by Khmer people, meaning "cake contributing" ceremony. The Donta ceremony is therefore sometimes also called the "Phchum banh" ceremony.

After finishing the rituals at the temple on the morning of the phchum banh day, everyone returns home to worship their grandparents, called the "lotus chaktum" ceremony. According to Khmer tradition, grandparents' worshiping ceremonies are often held at the family of the eldest person, where there is an ancestral altar. Normally, the ceremony is held at the parents' home and all family and children will gather to worship the grandparents. Depending on the financial ability of each family member, people can contribute more or less, in cash or in kind (rice, sticky rice, fruit cakes...). People make feasts, light incense and lamps to offer to their grandparents and ancestors, pray for their souls to be saved, and pray and pray for their grandparents' blessings. In some places in the southwestern provinces, Khmer people still keep the custom of making boats to bring offerings to him and this boat is released into the river. After that, people invite neighbors and friends to come together to eat, drink, and have fun until evening... In short, through the rituals, time, and way of organizing the ceremony, it can be seen that the Donta festival is a combination of forms of agricultural rituals with ancestral worshiping ceremonies and Buddhist ceremonies to atone for the sins of the dead (6). The nature of the agricultural ceremony is shown through the time of the ceremony associated with the period of rice growing (pregnant rice) with the custom of "giving rice to the rice"... The nature of ancestor worship is shown through the form of offerings. Offering offerings to the deceased "grandparents" (Donta) and on this basis, the Buddhist "pardon for the sins of the dead" ceremony has been integrated into the Donta festival. The "unification" of the meanings of the Donta festival has made it important in the Khmer community festival system in general.