Buffalo stabbing festival of the Bana people

Buffalo stabbing festival of the Bana people The Buffalo Stabbing Festival is called x'trang by the Bana people, and is a festival to sacrifice to the gods, celebrate victory, celebrate good harvests, celebrate spring festivals or celebrate important events of the year. Depending on the circumstances in each locality, people organize buffalo stabbing ceremonies. The buffalo stabbing ceremony is usually held between December and March of the lunar calendar. That is when the harvest is finished, the rice is brought into the barn, and families can rest. The Bana people organize the buffalo stabbing ceremony to thank the gods, welcome the new year, pray for everyone's health and wish for a good harvest in the new year. The buffalo stabbing ceremony usually takes place over 3 days and nights. To prepare for the buffalo stabbing ceremony, the Bana people have to prepare for months. Strong men in the village were sent into the forest to choose the straightest, most beautiful Polang trees to make Gun poles, and shiny yellow rattan trees to weave into strong ropes to tie buffaloes during the holidays. Usually, the buffalo stabbing ceremony to worship Giang (God) is held early in the morning, when the sun has just risen. The villagers choose a healthy buffalo as a sacrifice. This buffalo is considered a messenger to convey the prayers and wishes of the people to the gods. On the day of the festival, the buffalo is taken to be cleaned, fed, and then tied with rattan rope to the Gun pole, which the Ba Na people call "gung sakapo". This is a wooden pillar over 5 meters high, decorated with beautiful patterns, wild flowers and flags. A wooden Phoenix  logo is often placed on the top of the column. When the buffalo is tied to Gung, the village sends representatives including: village elders, young men, women, and children to lead the buffalo around the pole while walking and saying good things. This is also the time when people in the village gather and the rituals of the ceremony begin.  The master of the ceremony is the village elder, the most prestigious person in the community, who reads prayers to heaven and earth, praying for good weather, healthy villagers, and good harvests... After praying, boys and girls dance in a circle to the rhythm of bustling gongs, echoing throughout the mountains and forests. An elder appointed to  invite relatives and guests to drink wine needs to show hospitality. The highlight of the festival is the boys in the village performing  traditional martial arts performances around the Gun pole tied to the buffalo, while the girls join in a circle to dance to the rhythm of gongs. After a night of dancing, singing, and trading, 5 representatives including 3 shamans and 2 village elders performed the sacrificial ceremony, recited mantras, offered buffaloes to the gods and prayed for good things while everyone sat and talked and drank can wine. All that night, the villagers stayed up with the buffalo, cried for the buffalo, and expressed their feelings for the buffalo with the song "Cry Buffalo". The song has the lyrics: For a long time, buffaloes have lived with people, helping them with heavy farm work, but because the village has important work, they need to come to the buffalo to thank Giang, hoping that the buffalo will happily carry out its duties. After the ceremony, the buffalo meat is divided equally among everyone, from old to young in the village and guests, everyone gets a share to take home, bringing luck to everyone. The elder of Bok Ny village of the Bana ethnic group in Kon Tum province said: "The festival is to pray for good weather and wind. After the festival is over, it is also a call for people to promote self-reliance and work together diligently so that the life of the village will increasingly develop." The Ba Na people live mainly in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, most concentrated in the provinces of Gia Lai and Kon Tum, with a small population living in neighboring provinces such as western Binh Dinh, Phu Yen, Khanh Hoa, and Dak Lak.