That Luang Festival

Text by: Jason Rolan

Photos by: Phoonsab Thevongsa

No visit to Vientiane is complete without paying respects at That Luang; the Great Stupa whose gilded spire, ringed by 30 smaller peaks, has become shorthand for the nation itself, appearing on everything from banknotes to T-shirts. Legend traces its origins to 307 BCE, when Buddhist emissaries are said to have enshrined fragments of the Buddha’s bone beneath a modest stone mound on this ground. Centuries of war and restoration have reshaped it into today’s resplendent monument. Each year, in the run-up to the full moon of the twelfth lunar month (this year falling on November 24th), the temple grounds host one of Laos’ grandest festivals, drawing pilgrims from every corner of the country.

The festival is a feast for the senses: a sprawling market fair lines the esplanade with handwoven silk sinh, musical instruments, coffee, and imported goods, while the air turns heady with grilled chicken, khao lam (sticky rice steamed in bamboo), and fried noodles. Stages host mo lam singers and school performances, and a fairground midway draws teenagers to the Ferris wheel and bumper cars. On November 23rd, a procession winds from Wat Si Meuang to That Luang, with locals in traditional dress carrying wax “castle” offerings adorned with wax flowers and candles as tributes to the relic within the stupa.

Dawn on November 24th brings crowds in their finest silks to watch monks collect alms along the esplanade, followed by a spirited match of tikhy, a bamboo-stick, rattan-ball game played once a year between symbolic teams of government and people, its outcome read as an omen for the year ahead: fair governance if the government wins, abundance and good luck if the people do. As dusk falls, worshippers return to the stupa with flowers, incense, and candles, circling it three times in a final act of devotion, bringing a quiet close to one of Laos’ most cherished celebrations.

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That Luang Festival runs from 21-24 November.