Songkran, many of us are unaware of this term but for many of us and our Asian neighbors it is a time of the year to celebrate the New Year. Songkran is celebrated once every year in each and every corner of Thailand in mid April. Songkran is a traditional Thai New Year consider as one of the most popular and joyous occasion in Thailand. Songkran is full of fun, ceremonies, customs, and rituals. Songkran spans for three days. Songkran is a Buddhist New Year’s festival officially starts on April 13th and ends on April 15th.In big cities and popular part of the Thai kingdom New Year celebration lasts for a week. We can simply imagine its popularity and celebration by imagine in a way how people celebrate Christmas in the west or how people celebrate Diwali in India.
Songkran, sounds peculiar because it is a Sanskrit word means “a move, change or ascendingâ€, which refers to the move of the sun into the Aries zodiac. “Originally this happened at the vernal equinox, but as the Thai astrology did not know about the precession the date moved from March to April†(“Astrological calculationâ€). Songkran is the word widely used, but the actual word is “Troot Songkranâ€. Troot and Songkran are two separate words. Troot means “to cut “or “separation “, that is, the end of old year.
So traditionally April regarded as both end of old year and the New Year. In this way festival includes celebration of the end of the year “Troot†and the beginning of a new year “Songkranâ€. The phases of the moon and the lunar calendar also play an important role in formation of the Thai New Year. According to the old Thai lunar calendar, the Thai New Year is astrological and lunar features.
There is a strong relationship among Buddhism, Tai origins and the Thai New Year. These days the official Thai New Year falls in the fifth month of the Thai lunar yea