Carving out a religious experience

Visitors flying to Thailand this July for a taste of traditional culture should head to Ubon Ratchathani for the annual candle festival.

The celebrations, which will take place on July 10th and 11th, mark the beginning of the annual Buddhist meditation retreat, also known as vassa or the rains retreat, which sees the monks retreat to their temples for the duration of the rainy season.

The festivities begin with local temples and community groups taking to the streets for a procession of highly ornate, decorative candles, which is led by the royal candle donated by the king of Thailand.

The procession is also joined by many different groups of local dancers and musicians and visitors can take part in numerous cultural and religious activities, the most auspicious of which is to make a donation of candles to a local temple for the retreating monks.

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