Can you imagine living in a place where the official date is not 2010, but 2553? No, I am not crazy, I did not allow my fantasies to go wild, and I do not reside on another planet. There really is such a place, it is known as Thailand, and here they use a different calendar which puts us in the year 2553.
The Christian (Gregorian) calendar begins with the birth of Jesus, 2010 years ago. The Buddhist calendar starts at the time of the birth of Buddha, 2553 years ago. Most dates in Thailand are written using the Buddhist year which tends to be very confusing for westerners. The secret is to subtract 543 years and you are right back to 2010.
The celebration of the Buddhist New Year happens in mid-April, the hottest and dryest season of the year. To combat the intense heat the celebrations consist mostly of throwing water, and plenty of it, on every body in sight for one or several days depending on where you are in Thailand. Where I live, in Chiang Mai, the water throwing goes on for a solid seven days.
Although the Buddhist New Year is celebrated in April, the official start date of the year is January 1 of the Christian calendar. When you see a date written in Thailand, it is generally a blend of two calendars: the day and the month are based on the Christian calendar and the year is taken from the Buddhist calendar.
The original Buddhist calendar is very complex and is not so much used for time keeping as for calculating dates of festivals, religious events and favorable or unfavorable days for weddings, business ventures or ceremonies. The calendar is more of a timing tool for determining the ideal dates for crucial events or decisions in life rather than a time keeping system. The Buddhist calendar is not just a time keeping system but a way to calculate the significance of each day for our activities. The younger generation is not so familiar with the Buddhist calendar anymore. It is usually the older people and scholarly monks who are still familiar with it.
Thailand actually has a third New Year which is based on the Chinese tradition and is celebrated by six million Thai-Chinese. They have their own calendar again and their own colorful and noisy New Year’s celebration in late January or early February. You can always tell a Chinese celebration by what I call “machine gun firecrackers”. These are small firecrackers strung up one after another, and they explode in rapid-fire fashion. Another unique Chinese tradition is the lion dance where two men slip into the same colorful costume and together perform sometimes incredibly acrobatic dances that truly look like a gigantic animal is moving about.
The Thais certainly understand that most international business is based on the Gregorian Christian calendar. They use both calendars, and the western New Year is a public holiday in Thailand also with fireworks and celebrations just like in the West. Thais love a good party and take every opportunity to celebrate something - flower festivals, food festivals, New Year’s festivals, temple festivals, the king’s birthday, Buddha days, and many others. Some festivals last several days and include huge parades, lavish festivities with spectacular floats, colorful parades, performances of singing, dancing, and of course feasting. Their dates vary since they are mostly based on the Buddhist calendar.
Now it is 2010 in Thailand and it is also 2553. So we celebrate New Year three times a year, and we are sometimes confused about what the date is, but we don't worry about it and just join the party! The Thais have a saying that expresses the Thai view of life: "maipenrai" - meaning "don't worry", "it doesn't matter", "no big deal", "it's okay", "forget about it", "let it go". When you visit Thailand, that's a great word to know, since it can deflect many problems and it expresses the Thai way of thinking perfectly.
I give you some examples how to use it: “January 1 New Year is not really part of our tradition, but maipenrai, it’s a great opportunity to have a fantastic party, so let’s celebrate it”. Or: “Christmas has nothing to do with Buddhism, but maipenrai, it’s another reason to have a party, so let’s celebrate it anyway”.
Thais would never think that non-Buddhist festivals like Christmas have no place in their country or might even conflict with Buddhist beliefs. In contrast, can you imagine any western country celebrating a Buddhist festival or making it a national holiday? Not likely! But the Thais are highly tolerant, fun loving and non judgmental when it comes to other religions. Thais are fun loving people, and there is always one festival or another happening wherever you are. This is one of the great pleasures of living here.
Author Resource:-
For more information about living and traveling in Thailand please visit http://www.shamakern.com The author is an expat who lives permanently in Thailand. He writes entertaining and informative stories about a fascinating country.
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