::::::::: Wax Castle Festival::::::::::
October 1st through October 4th will see yet another festival celebrating the end of Buddhist lent ( Ok Phansa ), The Sakon Nakhon Wax Castle Festival.
The ancient tradition passed down through the ages, originated with the people of Sakon Nakhon carving elaborate trees from poles made of bees wax that they would take to the temple as an offering to make merit. This tradition has grown over the years from ornate trees to elaborate carvings of Buddhist temples and shrines completely made from bees wax.
Sakon Nakhon Wax Castle FestivalAccording to Buddhist religion upon death a person passes on to another life, the quality of that next life is determined by meritorious acts and or good deeds performed in this life. If the person practices the principles of Buddhism and engages in acts of devotion in their life they will gain merit and that merit will accumulate and lead to higher spiritual enlightenment in subsequent lives where they will live in the upper tiers of heaven. If that person doesn’t gain merit then they will be reborn to a life that is worse than their present life.
The wax castles symbolize the ideal spiritual life that one aspires to in the next life. The wax castle festival falls into the Buddhist precept of merit as communal merit making. Many who are blessed with merit coming together for the greater good of the community. This is a special time of the year for families to get together and reunite in merit making activities. The family and community come together with the monks in an expression of Buddhist devotion that strengthens and bonds the family and community with the temple.
Originally, beeswax was given to the monks so as they could make their own candles and light the temples from this gift the monks moulded and carved the wax into different kinds of flowers and attached them to banana tree trunks and offered the carvings to the temples. Gradually over time the offerings became more sophisticated and moulded sculptures were developed into many different shapes, such as castles, temples and shrines. These magnificent and at times massive wax sculptures are paraded around the city to illustrate the skill of their creators. If you visit the temples in advance of the festival you may be lucky to see the sculptors actually work on these intricate and beautiful works of art.
This is truly another Thai festival that must be seen. It’s four days of non stop activities includes the Royal boat parade, a light and sound show, a large community dinner and closing with the Wax Castle Parade.