Binh Thuan strives to preserve Kate Festival of Cham people
WVR - Kate is a major festival with important spiritual, belief, religious and emotional significance of the Cham Brahmin community.
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| Kate Festival is an important part of the intangible cultural heritage treasure of the Cham people. (Photo: VNA) |
Kate, the most important folk festival of Brahmanism followers, pays tribute to the gods and prays for good weather, bumper crops, and the development of people and all living things. It features both traditional rituals and folk games.
As a crucial part of the intangible cultural heritage treasure of the Cham people, Kate Festival reflects many aspects of culture, customs, and art related to the activities and economic, cultural and social life of the Cham people.
The festival is also a place to strengthen the spirit of solidarity, mutual love, and raise awareness of national roots, moral values, living personality, and spirit of harmony to connect members of the community. Not only meeting the spiritual and emotional needs of the Cham people, the festival also contributes to promoting the culture and image of Binh Thuan to domestic and international tourists.
Kate Festival takes place annually from the end of June to mid-July of the Cham calendar. During the festival, Cham people not only in Binh Thuan but also in other areas return home to reunite with their families and friends.
Although influenced by the process of cultural exchange and acculturation, the Kate Festival is basically still preserved and maintained according to traditional practices.
With these unique and typical historical and cultural values and meanings, Kate Festival is one of five unique festivals of Binh Thuan province in the list of typical local festivals that need to be preserved and promoted for tourism development. Especially on April 4, 2022, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued Decision 776/QD-VHTTDL to name the festival of the Cham people in Binh Thuan province on the list of intangible national cultural heritage.
In last October, the Binh Thuan provincial People's Committee approved a project to preserve and promote the Kate Festival of the Cham people in Binh Thuan province to serve tourism development.
According to the Binh Thuan provincial People's Committee, the development of the Project is an urgent issue for departments, branches and localities to coordinate for the preservation and promotion of the festival’s values to serve the religious and belief activities of the people, contributing to promoting local economic and social development.
