Pchum Ben

Uncommon card · No. 144857

Pchum Ben (Khmer: ភ្ជុំបិណ្ឌ, Phchŭm Bĕnd [pʰcum bən], lit. 'balled rice gathering'), or Sen Don Ta (Khmer: សែនដូនតា, Sên Don Ta [saen ɗoːn taː], lit. 'offerings for ancestors') in the Khmer Surin and Khmer Krom communities, is a Cambodian 15-day religious festival, culminating in celebrations on the 15th day of the tenth month in the Khmer calendar, at the end of the Buddhist Lent, Vassa. The day is a time when many Cambodians pay their respects to deceased relatives of up to seven generations. Buddhist monks chant the suttas in Pali language overnight (continuously, without sleeping - potentially but citation is needed for modern Cambodia in this instance) in prelude to the gates of hell opening, an event that is presumed to occur once a year, and is linked to the cosmology of King Yama. During this period, the gates of hell are opened and spirits of the ancestors are presumed to be especially active. In order to liberate them, food-offerings are made to benefit them, some of them having...

Read on Wikipedia · Image Saphabodi, CC0