Tazaungdaing Light Festival 2024 in Myanmar

The Tazaungdaing Lights Festival occurs in mid-November, celebrating the end of the rainy season in Myanmar. It is believed to have originated from the Kattika festival, which honors the guardian planets in Hindu astrology. During the festival, homes and public buildings are adorned with colorful lights, marking the start of the Kathina season, when monks receive new robes and alms.

Events & Activities

Robe-weaving competitions for special yellow monk robes called matho thingan take place across the country, especially at Yangon's Shwedagon Pagoda, where contestants create these garments over two nights. The festival also emphasizes alms-giving and charity, including satuditha feasts, as a means of merit-making. It's a time for giving offerings, paying respects to the elderly, and visiting pagodas.

In addition to these activities, the festival features games, parades, fireworks, lanterns, and hot-air balloons. Most balloons, made from bamboo and mulberry paper with lit candles, are launched during both day and night. Daytime balloons take the form of pagodas and animals, while nighttime displays include large, colorful lanterns. These balloons are seen as offerings to the heavens and are believed to drive away evil spirits. Among the Tazaungdaing festivals, Taunggyi's hot-air balloon and firework competition stands out as the most prominent celebration.

Locations

The best place to experience the Tazaungdaing Lights Festival is at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. On the final day of the celebrations, you can often see locals marching through the streets with traditional lit lotus flower effigies, as well as playing instruments and dancing in lively parades.