The main festivals of Dai people

The main festivals of Dai people are Water-splashing Festival, Summer Festival (closing festival) and Summer Festival (opening festival).

1. The Water Splashing Festival, also known as the Buddha Bath Festival, is usually held in June of Dadaili, which is equivalent to mid-April of Gregorian calendar. At the Buddha Bath Festival, we should wash away the dust for the Buddha with clear water, and then splash water on each other to wish each other peace. Later, it gradually developed into a pot and barrel, and it became more and more fierce, with drums, gongs, splashing water and cheers. In Xishuangbanna, the Bathing Buddha Festival was promoted by the government as the "Water Splashing Festival". Every year, traditional entertainment activities such as dragon boat racing, flying high and flying lanterns and various song and dance parties are held, attracting tourists from China and all over the world.

2. Summer Festival, also known as "Harvest Festival", originated from the rainy season settlement custom of ancient Indian Buddhists, and was introduced to Dai areas. Dai people who believe in the spread of Buddhism to the south usually hold a summer sacrifice ceremony on September 15 (the middle of June in the lunar calendar), that is, "summer sacrifice". Buddhist temples in Dai villages should beat drums to tell people that the festival has arrived. Buddhists gather in Buddhist temples to chant Buddhist scriptures, and believers prepare food, flowers and paper money to wait for the "Buddha" in the temple. Then, it entered the three-month "Summer Festival". In summer, monks are forbidden to go out to give lectures, believers are forbidden to travel far away, men and women are forbidden to talk about marriage, and large-scale celebrations are forbidden. Monks should recite the scriptures with peace of mind, and people should concentrate on production.

3. Summer Festival is also called "Opening Festival", which corresponds to "Summer Festival". Summer Festival is generally held in 65438+February 15 (mid-September of the lunar calendar), which symbolizes the end of the three-month "summer festival" and can lift the ban since the summer festival. Monks can go to temples to preach and raise money, and men and women can also talk about marriage. On the day of summer festivals, Dai people will wear costumes, bring food, flowers, wax paper and coins to the Buddhist temple to worship Buddha and listen to scriptures, and hold grand celebrations, dancing lanterns in the shape of birds, animals, fish and insects around the village, setting off fireworks, lighting lanterns, dancing elephant's foot drums and other entertainment activities.

The Dai nationality is one of the ethnic minorities in China, and it has ties with Yunnan and Vietnam in Baibu and Baiyue. It has historical and cultural origins with the Shan nationality in Myanmar, the Lao nationality in Laos, the Thai nationality in Thailand and the Ahong people in Assam, India, and its language and customs are similar to the above. It is called Dai in Thailand and Laos. The Dai nationality is a cross-border ethnic group, which is closely related to the Shan nationality in Myanmar, the main ethnic group in Laos, the main ethnic group in Thailand and Ahongdai in Assam, India. The total population of Dai (Dai and Shan) in the world exceeds 60 million.