Welcome, Thingyan!
Thingyan known as water
festival is coming nearer. Just a month or so. Everyone is exciting to
celebrate this enjoyable time of the year. Every Myanmar loves this special
occasion because it has its own distinct features.
According to tradition,
it is the time of welcoming a new year in terms of Myanmar way. Its seasonal
flower is Padauk which is loved and
adored by every woman, young and old alike. Many want to offer these flowers to
Lord Buddha. But, to adorn the flower on their heads is a must for Myanmar
woman folk. Its smell is not too strong or not too sweet. Just to refresh the worrisome
mind of inhalers of Padauk flowers.
This time almost every
ward is blessed with these flowers when Thingyan welcoming rain falls gently
onto the Padauk trees. Then, on the next day, the trees will bloom exuberantly.
Every ward is flagrant with its sweet smell and looks splendid with the attracting
yellow color of it.
Young children are
really preparing to celebrate Thingyan in their fanciful ways. They like to
stay out all day long in the streets or in the sun, even skipping their
favourite meals. Parents have to take care of them when their offsprings are
enjoying the merriest time of the year because the kids want to be mischievous
and naughty.
They like to throw
water to anyone who happens to pass in their ways. But, there is a taboo not to
throw water onto any pregnant woman, any person who observes eight or ten
precepts or any postman.
Some use yay pywits (water sprayer guns) or some
use plastic water bowl. Most of them use used and battered condensed milk can.
During the time, they sing their favourite song, "Throwing water with
dilapidated can makes us unflinching, unflinching." In this way, they try
to ridicule the merry making water throwers, and participants.
The more they sing the
cheerful verse, the harder they become. It is the way how children are
celebrating Thingyan. But, youths, adolescents, and adults use ribaldry
especially on reveller cars. Some of them express a kind of courtship.
For teenagers, they bend on showing off. They like
to wear fancy and trendy clothes for this occasion. Some youths want to dye
their hair in different colors whatever they like to do it. Dying hair has
became popular among young people these days. Two or three decades ago, young
people of those times do not know much about dying hair.
In terms of music, two
or three decades ago, they used Heavy Metal music or Rock-n-Roll which could be
heard in every fun-making pandal which used powerful loud speakers to the
enjoyment of the revellers.
Nowadays, they prefer
playing hip-hop music rather than rock or something like that. Tastes are
ephemeral. Youths try to shape their own age in this way.
Another prevalent trend
which can be seen in this age is people like to set up high pandals which have
to be looked up. They try to put colorful vinyl sheets in front of the pandals
to attract revellers. In this way, some of Myanmar traditions have been lost in
the name of modernity.
But, for some people,
they do not forget to perform meritorious deeds in this occasion. In some other
wards, they build temporary pandals to prepare for traditional foods like Mote Lone Yay Paw which can be
translated literally as Float Ball which is embedded with juggery.
It is mouth watering to
taste this famous food. Everyone wants to taste it whenever they have a chance
to do it.
Figure:
water spray gun
Actually, they prepare
it for donating. They do not discriminate, anyone rich or poor can enjoy it
when he/ she happens to pass before the pandal. This is another kind of custom
seen in Thingyan.
Next thing one can see
in Thingyan is decorated cars which are occupied by a group of dancers, and a
crowd of jesters who sing "Than Gyut" which is a kind of drills in
which a leader leads uttering sardonic verses followed by his peers, and it can
criticise properly the current political, social, and economical situations to
the enjoyment of audience.
In this way, Thingyan
still survive in the hearts of Myanmar people. Therefore, they want to
celebrate it again and again when the time for it is coming in. It can be truly
said that Thingyan and Myanmar people are inseparable.■
San
Lin Tun
