The Tenth Lunar Month Festival or Ching Pred Ceremony in Phatthalung, in the South of Thailand

The Tenth Lunar Month Festival or Ching Pred Ceremony is one of the most important traditions of Southern people in Thailand. This will be in the tenth month each year. (September is the tenth month according to ancient Thai calendar.)

The purpose of this tradition is to make merit for our beloved ancestors or relatives who had died. We believe that some spirits had to stay in hell. So, this is the day that those spirits can be released from the hell to get the foods or desserts from us. We can express our gratitude to them through this ceremony. After this, they will return to hell.

Southern people call the spirits who stay in hell as “Pred”. For your further explanation, we believe if our dead ancestors or relatives did good things while they still alive, they will be born in heaven but if they did bad things, they will suffer in hell. Therefore, their descendants make a merit this day (for this year, it is on 6 September) and we believe that those foods or desserts can be sent to them and these can make them feel happy.

The following items are samples of Thai desserts that are specially used for this ceremony in the South of Thailand only. Each dessert has significant meaning:

Khanom Pong – Its shape looks like raft and it is light so we compare this dessert to a raft that is light and floated, this can take our ancestors to happy place.

Khanom La – Its shape looks like fabric so we compare this dessert to clothes for our ancestors.

Khanom Ba – Its shape looks like Luk Saba which we use for playing Saba, one of popular sports of the Southern people – so our ancestors can play Saba during Songkran Days.

After making the merit or after the ceremony finished, we are going to “Ching Pred”.

Ching = take something from others to be our own

Pred = the spirits who stay in hell

“Ching Pred” means people take Pred's foods or desserts to be their own

By doing this, the head of the ceremony will throw the desserts from a high place and many adults and children who wait below try to get the dessert as many as they can because we believe that if we eat the Pred’s desserts, we and our family will have good fortune.

That’s all for The Tenth Lunar Month Festival or Ching Pred Ceremony for that day.

These pictures from my sister can remind me to the old days when I was a little child, I had a lot of fun during “Ching Pred”! I got many desserts in my hands and they were really delicious!

I believe this would certainly bring me good fortune to meet you all here at Steemit, my friends! ;)