Hae Pha Khuen That Festival Hae Pha Khuen That Festival is celebrated at the Phra Borom That Chedi. The pagoda is considered to represent the Lord Buddha and is believed by locals to possess unsurpassed righteousness as it contains holy relics. Every year Buddhists pay homage to the pagoda by organizing a procession and wrapping a religious cloth around the pagoda. This festival is held twice a year, during Makha Puja Day (the 15th full moon night of February) and Wisakha Puja Day (the 15th full moon night of May). Local people take part in a parade called the “Hae Pha Khuen That” By taking part in it, Buddhists believe that this will bring them good fortune and success in life and a lot of them come, even some from far away. In the old days, Thai Buddhists would prepare a long piece of white cloth painted with the story of the Buddha’s life. This cloth is known as the Phraboth cloth. Then, in a parade, they would carry this to the temple where they would wrap it around the pagoda that houses Buddha’s relics. People don’t always have time prepare such a cloth these days, so many of them carry cloth that is either colored white, yellow or red instead. Thais define the Phraboth cloth as a rectangular piece of cloth in various sizes with sacred paintings of Buddha, including his life and former life. It also includes Sutra (or text) not only as objects of devotion and sources of inspiration, but also as a visual aid to illustrate Buddhist teachings. After the Sukhothai Period, however, the significance of the Thai Phraboth cloth tradition has been largely neglected all around the country except in the North where Toong Flags are still popular as a decoration, especially in ceremonies and processions. Phraboth Puja (Worshipping the Phraboth) On the full moon day of the 3rd lunar month, Phraboth Puja, or Makha Puja day, is a very special occasion celebrated at the Phra Borom That Chedi (or the Great Tooth Relics Pagoda) of Wat Phra Mahathat. Firstly, it is believed that Buddha’s tooth relics have been enshrined in this great pagoda for thousands of years. Secondly, this day is observed as the day of the Ovada Patimokkha : the fundamental teaching of Buddhist ideals and practices. Four types of Phraboth Puja been prepared for all – ordinary Phraboth, Long Phraboth, Phraboth Toong Flag and the Phraboth Prayer Flag. All have several paintings with Buddhist verses on traditional white, yellow and red cloth. They are accompanied with the twelve zodiac signs to represent either the year or the long history of Nakhon Si Thammarat as the zodiacal city of the Indochinese Golden Peninsula