LOY KRATONG AND

KODO FESTIVAL

Loi Krathong is a festival celebrated annually throughout southwestern Thai cultures, (Thailand,Laos,Shan,Tanintharyi,Kelantan,Kedah and Xishngbanna). The name could be translated as "to float a basket", and comes from the tradition of making krathong or buoyant, decorated baskets, which are then floated on a river.Loi Krathong takes place on the evening of the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional lunar calendar; hence, the exact date of the festival changes every year. In the Western calendar this usually falls in the month of November. In 2015 it will be celebrated on 25 November; in 2016 on 15 November.

LOY KRATONG

In November some may wonder what is going on in Thailand when seeing travel magazine ads, posters at your hotel of Thai girls dressing in traditional Thai clothing with a beautiful floating object. That's a sign indicating that Loy Krathong is on its way. In Thai Loy means to float and Krathong means a circular floating object with decoration of banana leaves, flowers, a candle and incense sticks. All these are related to Loy Krathong, an event which does not occur on the same date every year; instead it counts on the full moon night of the twelfth lunar month. People look forward to going out and launching Krathongs together to predict the romance future by the direction the Krathongs float. However, this season is also good for strengthening relationship in family. 

 The history of Loy Krathong is rather obscure. Some believe that Krathong was first created by Tao Sri Chulalak or Nang Noppamas in Sukothai. Others overlook its origin yet focus on the purposes of the ritual: to pay respect to the Goddess of the Water showing their gratitude on their plentiful use of water and ask for forgiveness in the ensuing pollution. Floating the beautiful Krathong away, which is the key activity in Loy Krathong, also refers to flying away misfortune and bad things in the past and asking for good luck in the future. Although it is not a national holiday, many activities other than floating Krathong, are conducted in this festival, such as, contests of Krathong-making and Noppamas beauty pageants, local games and performances and firIf you are in the North of Thailand, you can join this spectacular occasion at Chiang Mai where it is specifically called Yee Peng -floating of lanterns into the sky. Or you can go to Tak where a line of thousand glittering lights are seen on the Ping River . When looking closer, you see that Krathongs here are made of coconut shells, threaded together to make chain and that's the story of Loy Krathong Sai. Moreover, this year you can see Loy Krathong Sai made from banana trunk in Samut Songkram too. For sure, the festival in old cities is so famous and attracts a herd of visitors. Glory and ancientness of the kingdom is utterly alive in Phao Thian Len Fai in Sukhothai. In Bangsai District, Ayutthaya, you can feel the grandeur of Loy Krathong Tam Pratip and long boat race at Bangsai Arts and Crafts Centre of H.M. queen Sirikit of Thailand.

HISTORY OF LOY KRATONG

 If you are in the North of Thailand, you can join this spectacular occasion at Chiang Mai where it is specifically called Yee Peng -floating of lanterns into the sky. Or you can go to Tak where a line of thousand glittering lights are seen on the Ping River . When looking closer, you see that Krathongs here are made of coconut shells, threaded together to make chain and that's the story of Loy Krathong Sai. Moreover, this year you can see Loy Krathong Sai made from banana trunk in Samut Songkram too. For sure, the festival in old cities is so famous and attracts a herd of visitors. Glory and ancientness of the kingdom is utterly alive in Phao Thian Len Fai in Sukhothai. In Bangsai District, Ayutthaya, you can feel the grandeur of Loy Krathong Tam Pratip and long boat race at Bangsai Arts and Crafts Centre of H.M. queen Sirikit of Thailand.

A crowd with flickering light of candles and color of flowers decorating floating object is familiar scene in a celebration occurring in a twelfth month in lunar calendar. It is one of wonderful Asian cultures when rivers and canals are full of water. Since we have been a kid, I guess everyone must be impressed with this festive occasion in November - Loy Krathong. Most of us are convinced that floating objects or Krathongs are originated in Sukhothai by Tao Sri Chulalak or Nang Noppamas, who was one of Phra Ruang’s wives. However, some assert that the story was written in the reign of Rama III merely to advocate women on role model of a good wife, as no evidence is found to prove the festival’s existence. They believe that Loy Krathong has just been celebrated since the end of Ayutthaya. Despite the confusing history, this gracious culture is still alive. People still conducts this ritual not only to worship the footprint of the Buddha on a riverside in India, but also to pay respect to Chulamanee Chedi in heaven. Another well-known purpose is to show their gratitude to the Goddess of the Water on their plentiful use of water and ask for forgiveness in the ensuing pollution. Moreover, many people believe that floating the beautiful Krathong away also refers to flying away misfortune and bad things in the past and asking for good luck in the future.

In the past, people in Lanna Kingdom in the north of Thailand also show respect to rivers, but they use fire instead. They float a lantern like a hot-air balloon in the sky which is called Yee Peng. And now we still can find this celebration in Chiang Mai. Interestingly, people other than Thais have the similar tradition. Not far from us, Laos float Pratips (or our Krathong) and Lai Rue Fai (or flowing an ablaze boat) in worship of Water Goddess. This rite is also used to welcome the Buddha after His return from preaching to His mother in the second heaven. In Cambodia, this period is called Ok Ambok which means worshipping the moon. They float Pratips on a full moon night as well. Another neighboring country as Burma has the same culture. They float Krathong to worship the Buddha and Nut or household spirit. Looking upward farther, some of us may be surprised that Vietnam, Korea and Japan have the similar rituals too. They apologize the Water Goddess and float away ill fortune. It is assumed that the origin is Mahayana Buddhism which was expanded from China. On the other hand, Indians claim that they are the root of this ceremony derived from Brahmin. This festival is aimed to worship Naraya God who sleeps in the milk ocean and He then will throw our sin away. 

 In Thailand, people enjoy creating their own Krathong made from natural resources, such as leaves and trunks of banana adorned with flowers. Some might use bread instead of synthetic materials showing their concern for environment. Other than flowers, a candle and incense sticks, we often put some coins or betel pepper and nut in our Krathongs. And that’s why our Krathongs can’t drift any further as they are raided for little money. Nevertheless, Loy Krathong Festival remains the most romantic and favorite occasion for a number of people and still best represents our gratitude.

LOY KRATONG FLOAT

LOY KRATONG LANTERN

KODO FESTIVALS

In olden days, going to Sado Island generally meant one of two things: exile or gold. Sado Island, the 6th largest island of Japan, was for a long time not the pleasure excursion that is today. During the Heian Period (794-1192), Sado was often the dumping ground of political exiles from the Kyoto capital. The trend continued for nearly a thousand years up until 1700 with a scattering of dissent poets, irate Buddhists monks, and even an unfortunate emperor.In 1601 gold was discovered and a new breed of exiles was flung upon the island: convicts and homeless. The gold came under the ownership of the Tokugawa Shogunate Government. No gold-digging prospectors or women of low virtues were allowed to clutter up the island. It was strictly controlled for the sake of the Shogunate’s coffers. Hard work and deadly misery not sudden fortune was the fate of these hard-pressed workers.In more recent times, Sado became infamous for North Korean abductions of Japanese citizens. Lying off the coast of Niigata in Northwestern Japan, it was in convenient reach of North Korea.

Fire Twirler on the beach at nightGiven the island’s rather grim history, it would seem a strange place to hold a music festival celebrating taiko drumming and the earth itself. Yet this is exactly what happens every summer in the normally sleepy town of Ogi in the South-Eastern section of Sado.

A pair of impromptu drummers strike up a beat

Drums, drums, drums! For three days little Ogi resounds with the incessant pounding of countless booming drums. The mastermind behind this audio assault is the Kodo Taiko group. Kodo was formed 25 years ago and since then they have performed nearly 3000 times all over the world.

Female Taiko Drummer of the Miyake Taiko Group

Kodo’s main instrument is the Japanese Taiko drum. Taiko drums are very taunt drums that give off a deep booming resounance. Traditionally they were beaten to drive away evil spirits. In war, Taiko drums were beaten to give orders and quicken the blood of warriors.

Members of Kodo

Kodo makes all of its own drums and other instruments at Kodo Village, a 25-acre wooded area near Ogi. Kodo Village is where aspiring apprenctices learn their trade. The apprenticeship lasts for two years. During this time, the apprentices maintain a strict regime of diet, exercise, practice and work designed to improve themselves physically, musically, and spiritually. They also grow their own rice and other foods at the village using traditional farming methods that even the locals no longer use.

A Demon Drummer

A Demon Drummer

Kasuga-Onigumi Onedeko – the Demon Drummers of Ryotsu are one of the main symbols of Sado Island. There are over a hundred Onedeko groups on Sado as a matter of fact. Despite their fearsome appearance the Demon drummers actually are beneficial to humans. The tradition of demon drumming has been done for centuries to ensure bountiful harvests and good health.

Kodo was formed in 1981 and made their debut at the Berliner Philharmonie in the same year.Kodo is sometimes considered to be simply renamed from the taiko groupOndekoza organized in 1971.Indeed, Kodo was formed out of the existing members of Ondekoza, but their leader, Den Tagayasu left the group before the transition and lead performer Eitetsu Hayashi left quickly thereafter. Tagayasu continued to use the name Ondekoza for his new group,  and required the group to choose a new name. Hayashi, who departed from the group soon after its founding to begin a solo career, suggested the name "Kodo".Hayashi created the name based on the dual meaning of the word; the first, "drum children," was based on feedback from mothers that their music lulled their children to sleep. The second meaning, "heartbeat" originated from comparing the sound of taiko drums to the sound of a mother's heartbeat on her child in the womb.

HISTORY OF KODO FESTIVAL

The group spent the next 7 years touring Europe, Japan, North and South Americas and the Far East. Following this, they founded Kodo village on Sado Island, and also started an annual Earth Celebration, an international arts festival on Sado Island that is managed by the city of Sado and the Kodo Cultural Foundation.Kodo had three sold out performances at the 1984 Olympic Arts Festival in Los Angeles, a 10-week event which preceded the 1984 Summer Olympics.In 1989, the group held its first drum workshop, referred to as Kodo Juku which includes introducing their training regiment and their approach to taiko performance. These workshops are held up to four times a year and do not require any background in drumming.The non-profit Kodo Cultural Foundation was established in 1997, and three years later, they founded the Kodo Arts Sphere America organization in North America. This organization started to present workshop tours in 2003.Reputation

Kodo is arguably the most well-known and respected taiko group worldwide and has been considered an ambassador group for taiko performance outside Japan.One component of their reputation stems from their training regimen, which at one time, included long distance running twice daily. A report on Kodo's training in 1989 stated that their approach had been toned down, but was still "disciplined" according to the program director, where performers would only run ten kilometers each morning.In performance, players are often seen wearing a sole loin-cloth called fundoshi as a component of attire. Internal publications from the group state that they are used to help focus a player's strength while performing.Others have noted that the use of fundoshi clearly represents a masculine component to the Kodo's performance. After their performance at the 1984 Olympics, Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Herald wrote, "Glistening back muscles of a sweaty loin-clothed drummer are strikingly lit as he strikes the great o-daiko (large taiko) with massive sticks in a performance as much athletic as it is musical."