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in
Myanmar
S
ongkran
Festival
Background
Thingyan from
Sanskrit
which means “transit of the Sun
from Pisces to Aries” is the Burmese New Year Festival and usually
falls around mid-April. It is a Buddhist festival celebrated over a
period of four to five days, culminating in the New Year. The dates
of the Thingyan Festival are calculated according to the
Burmese
calendar.
The dates of the festival are observed as public holidays
throughout
Myanmar
, and are part of the summer holidays at the
end of the school year. Water-throwing or dousing one another
from any shape or form of vessel or device that delivers water is
the distinguishing feature of this festival and may be done on the
first four days of the festival.
Thingyan is comparable to other festivities in the region such
as the Songkran in Laos, the Thailand, the Cambodian New Year
Modern-day celebrations
During the Water Festival, the Myanmar government relaxes
the restrictions on gatherings. In the former capital, Yangon, the
government permits crowds to gather on the Kandawgyi Pet Lann
and Kabaraye Roads. Temporary water-spraying stations, known
as pedals are set up, and double as dance floors. Many of these
pavilions are sponsored by rich and powerful families and businesses