Muong Ram people celebrate three main festivals every year,
namely the Lunar New Year Festival, the National Day Festival (September 2),
and the Com De Festival. The last one is organised as big as the Lunar New Year
Festival – the most important traditional festival of Vietnam.
To mark the Com De Festival, which is unique in
that it is celebrated only in Lac Thinh commune, all Muong Ram people –
regardless of where they live or work – always try to spare time to return to
their hometown.
Food trays offering to the ancestors always
include a boiled papaya, steamed luffa, boiled or steamed fresh bamboo shoots,
and grinded roasted sesame without salt or any other spices. Particularly, "com
de” (steamed glutinous rice fermented in wild leaves) is the most important
offering.
At present, thanks to better living conditions,
people also offer meat aside from vegetarian food to their ancestors.
Locals perform the festival’s rituals on the
afternoon of the 25th day of the 10th lunar month or the early morning of the
following day because they believe the early morning is the most sacred time.
The offering trays are placed in the middle and
in front of the house. The family head can invite a shaman or say prayers by
themselves to wish for good weather, bumper crops and health. After that, all
family members gather and enjoy the food. Their relatives and friends also come
to share the joy and wish for good luck and health.
The Com De Festival has become a cultural
identity of Muong Ram people. At present, when their lives have been improved,
locals attach even greater importance to this event and consider this a proud
cultural practice./.
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