2011 Festival Robe Offering and Loy Krathong Ceremony at Wat Thai

he in North Hollywood is holding a major festival celebration this weekend called the 2011 Festival Robe Offering and Loy Krathong Ceremony.

Teresa Chung of the Thai Association of Southern California said there will be "cultural performances, a beauty pageant, a ceremony to show respect to the water goddess and make a wish, and lots of Thai food."

North Hollywood-Toluca Lake Patch attended the robe offering last year (see attached video), which marks the end of the three-month Buddhist Lent Retreat, the traditional rainy season in Thailand, when monks remain at a single monastery instead of traveling around. This time is spent studying and is a common season for young men to become ordained as monks.

At the end of the rainy season, monks are able to travel around again and attend to their social duties. To celebrate, Buddhists from around Los Angeles lined up outside the temple to offer food, new robes and other goods to the monks. It is a common tradition for Thai Buddists to welcome monks back into the community with offerings during the celebration.

The Loy Krathong is as old as Thai heritage, according to theworldview.com, and "represents a close bond between Thai culture and water. The festival takes place on the full moon night of the twelfth lunar month when the water level is high and the climate is cooler. Participants ask water spirits to sail away their troubles in their krathongs, which are containers traditionally made from banana leaves and carrying offerings of incense, lotus flowers and small money."

The Loy Krathong is also considered a very romantic time where beauty pageants are held as part of the ceremony and "couples can get an insight into the future of their relationships by watching whether their krathongs float together or drift apart."

The events are taking place from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. this Saturday and Sunday. If you have never been to the Wat Thai, it is one of the most spectacular and awe-inspiring structures in the entire San Fernando Valley. 

Visitors to the festival are asked to park at the nearby Kaiser Permanente Panorama City Hospital at 8250 Woodman Ave. and take a shuttle. 

Here is the schedule for Saturday:

11:00 a.m.       Food presented to the monks

                       Music performance by students of Wat Thai of Los Angeles

12:00 p.m.       Performance by kindergarten students of Wat Thai

12:15 m.         Traditional dance performances by students of Wat Thai of 

1:00 p.m.         Opening Ceremony

• ·         Speech by Phrarajadhamvidej, Abbot of Wat Thai of Los Angeles
• ·         Speech by President  of  Event
• ·         Welcome and Opening by Consul-General Damrong Kraikruan
• ·         Royal Anthem
• ·         Speech by City representatives and certificates presentation

2:00 p.m.    Miss Noppamas Pageant

• ·         Welcome by committee chair, introduction of MCs and judges
• ·         Round I
• ·         Traditional dance performances
• ·         Round II - balloons
• ·         Final round of contestants
• ·         Announcement of Miss Noppamas  and runner-ups
• ·         Announcement of Krathong Contest winners

5:30 p.m.    End of Saturday’s program

Here's Sunday:

9:30 a.m.          Alms food offering to monks

10:00 a.m.        Music performance by students of Wat Thai of Los Angeles

11:00 a.m.         Performance by kindergarten students of Wat Thai

11:40 a.m.         Traditional dance performances by students of Wat Thai

1:25 p.m.           Noppamas Junior Contest for children

2:00 p.m.           Unity cloth procession

2:30 p.m.           Presentation of unity cloth

3:00 p.m.           Krathin ceremony

3:30 PM           Performances by students of Wat Thai of Los Angeles

4:00 p.m.           Various performances by local artists

5:30 p.m.           End of robe offering and festival