A disappearing tradition

Held in September/October, the Mbeng Kate (the seventh month of the lunar calendar), or more commonly, but perhaps inaccurately, known as theKate Festival, is one of the most important events on the Cham calendar. While Mbeng Kate is often billed as a festival for tourist purposes, its religious roots lie deep in the history of the classical Champa civilization, or perhaps even before that.

The ceremony is comprised of two parts, each lasting two days: Mbeng Muk Kei and Kate. Mbeng Muk Kei, or ‘ancestor spirit worship’ in the Cham language, is likely derived from the Austronesian Southeast Asian culture, and has elements similar to Thai, Khmer and Vietnamese traditions of ancestor worship. By contrast, Kate, probably derived from Kartika, a Sanskrit name for the eighth month in the Hindu sakasolar calendar,is most likely a Southeast Asian localization of Indic-Hindu culture.

Although Kate is taken to be a “Cham ceremony” today, representatives from the Roglai peoples are considered crucial to Kate ceremonies as they are charged with the maintenance of aw po:sacred clothing that is used to dress the images of local Champa deities worshipped during Kate. The process of exchange whereby the Roglai bring ritualistic clothing and present it to AhierBrahmanist-influenced priests of the Cham people closely parallels another ceremony common throughout Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka: Kathina. Kathinais a Theravada Buddhist festival that occurs at the end of the rainy season, and the gift of clothing to Buddhist monks from lay people is supposed to have its origins in Gautama Buddha’s own gift of robes to the monks as a symbol of generosity. Given the uncanny similarities between the two rituals, it is possible that the Buddha’s gift to the monastics had pre-Buddhist precedents. Deeper knowledge of Kate therefore is likely to reveal a better understanding of some of the most important religious ceremonies throughout the world.

The first day of Katetakes place in small towns and villages that have ancestral Indic deities tied to them. The smaller ceremonies rely strongly upon the roles of the Cham Ahier priests, who are responsible for opening the doors to local temples, and the Ong Kadhar, who are charged with playing the kanyiand chanting damnuyhymns to recount the histories of the gods and goddesses and invite them to be present and bless the Cham and Roglai peoples, as well as any visitors who may be invited to attend. During these ceremonies, visitors may take special note of Muk Pajaoshamaness-like figures who invite ancestral spirits to take possession of their bodies and bless the living, as well as musical performances featuringdrums anddouble-reed clarinet-like instruments.

On the second day, Kate di bimong/kalan, communities of Cham and Roglai ancestry are obligated to visit their clan’s tower, regardless of their religion. Today the most active towers are Po Rome (Hau Sanh in Vietnamese), Po Dam (Tuy Tinh), Po Sah Inu (Phan Ri) and Po Klaong Garai (Phan Rang) in Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan provinces. However, cultural historians believe that at one time all Champa towers were used for this purpose. Nevertheless, the ceremonies demonstrate that these are not just ‘vestiges’ as they are so often described, but, rather, they are active religious sites. For this reason, it is clear that Kate di bimongis not just a ‘Hindu Ahier-Cham’ holiday, as it is so often portrayed.

The third day of Kate is the beginning of Mbeng Muk Keiin the sense that it is a return to the hometown for celebration and worship. It is typically referred to as Mbeng Kate di Paleiin the Cham language. During this day, each hometown or village that has their own temple, or danaok,will gather in that space in the morning. The most central figures during these ceremonies are the Po Adhia, Camaneiand Ong Kadharpriests as well as the Muk Pajaopriestess. Finally, the last day, Mbeng Muk Keiis celebrated in the home and focuses on the family.

As with any religious ceremony, Mbeng Katehas changed over time. The celebration that was once reputedly held over one full month during the era of the Champa civilization has been shortened to a few days. The ceremony will likely get even shorter still if there are no provisions put in place for employers to allow young Cham and Roglai to return to their households. This is increasingly becoming a problem for urbanized Cham and Roglai youth, especially those who move away from Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan provinces to Ho Chi Minh City and other urban areas where there is less knowledge of Cham culture and traditions. Second, many aspects of the ceremonies are changing to sellMbeng Kateto tourists as a festival. All too frequently, decisions are made at the provincial level, without consulting enough members of the Cham community. This has led to a consolidation of ‘festival celebrations’ into the town of Palei Hamu Tanran, known as Huu Duc in Vietnamese, and the city of Phan Rang. Economic stress has prevented members of the Roglai communities from joining in certain areas. The push ‘to be understood’ by the majority of Vietnamese has forced many young Cham people to sell the occasion as a form of Tet leading to the misconception that Mbeng Kateis a Cham New Year, which is not the case. It is, however, one of the largest ceremonies of the Cham calendar year and should be respected and enjoyed as such by the lucky visitors who are invited to join.

Bio: William B. Noseworthy is a PhD candidate in History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His minor is in Diaspora History and Literature. Noseworthy additionally holds a Masters of Arts in History and a Bachelors of Arts in History and Religion with minors in East Asian Studies and Jewish Studies.

Images by James Pham