BON OM TOUK (FÊTE DES EAUX)
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Cambodia's biggest traditional festival, it marks the end of the annual flood and the ripening of the harvest.
Bon Om Touk, the festival of the receding waters, is Cambodia's biggest traditional festival. Ritually set on the full moon of Kattik (November), it marks the end of the annual flood, the reversal of the Tonle Sap's current and the ripening of the harvests. According to tradition, it corresponds to the return of the fertilizing Nâga to the riverbed. The king moves to his floating house, anchored opposite the royal palace, and must remain there for three days. Every day, decorated dugout canoe races provide a spectacle much appreciated by the capital's population. The last day of the ceremony is marked by the severing of the leather thong that crosses the river. A Brahmin, sword in hand, mounted at the bow of a pirogue driven by seven men, slowly approaches this symbolic barrier holding back the waters, hesitates for a long time, then cuts it off with a broad gesture. Then the whole group of pirogues rushes past the royal house amid shouts and chants, while the huge, round moon rises over the horizon. The highlight of each of these days is the floating games festival. A boat erected as an altar stops in front of the king, who lights a few of the hundreds of candles on board, followed by members of the royal family, dignitaries and guests of honor. This is followed by a procession of junks and boats topped by illuminated allegories and decorative motifs.
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