Kathin Chibar Dan starts amid festivity in Rangamati
Main function today
Chakma Raja Devashish Roy inaugurates Kathin Chibar Daan, a traditional festival of the Buddhist community, at Rajban Bihar in Rangamati town, right, devotees engaged in making the chibar (robes) at 'bain ghar' yesterday.Photo: STAR
Kathin Chibar Dan, the biggest religious festival of the Buddhist people in Chitagong Hill Tracts (CHT), started yesterday at Rajban Bihar of the Chakma king with great enthusiasm and festivity. Earlier, the festival committee, known as Upasak Upasika Parishad (UUP), of Rajban Bihar completed all preparations to hold the 38th Kathin Chibar Dan festival this year. The committee took a two-day-long programme including Pancha Shila prayers by weavers, making threads by spinning wheels, boiling, colouring and drying of threads, sewing of chibar (robes), hoisting Buddhist flag, donation of chibars to the monks and candle lighting etc. Bishakha, a nurse of Goutam Buddha, introduced the religious festival about 2500 years ago. Since then the Buddhist community celebrate the Kathin Chibar Dan or the yellow robes offering ceremony every year. The chibars (robes) are made of cotton and sewed by devotees under several preconditions for which it is termed as kathin (difficult). The entire Rangamati town wore a festive look yesterday. Thousands of people, mostly Buddhist devotees from three hill districts---Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari gathered in and around the Rajban Bihar. Chakma Raja (king) and chief of Chakma Circle Barrister Devasish Roy inaugurated the festival through opening the bain ghar (sewing room) and spinning wheel at 3:00pm at Rajban Bihar. The main function, however, will take place today, the organisers said. In his speech, Raja Devasish Roy said, every year we hold this great religious festival to uphold our religious spirit amongst the Buddhist people and to preserve our tradition and customs that we have been following since time immemorial. He greeted all the people of different religions including the Buddhists and called for maintaining religious harmony.
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