No matter how touristy Thailand has grown to be, Thailand remains a country of agriculture. Rice is still a staple food of Thailand and also the country’s most-exported commodity. The importance of rice cultivation for Thai people is reflected in a long-practiced ceremony that takes place at the beginning of every rainy season – the best time of the year for the first plough to be set into the rice paddy and for beginning a new rice growing season.

The ceremony is called “Rak Na Kwan”, literally meaning “first ploughing auspices”, or officially referred to as “Royal Ploughing Ceremony”. The Royal Ploughing Ceremony this year will be held on 13 May at the large ground of Sanam Luang in Bangkok.

The main objective of the ritual is to predict how the country’s agriculture and economy will turn out. The Royal Ploughing Ritual will be presided over by the Royal Family before a beautiful procession, led by two oxen with a plough, which will be used to perform the ploughing ceremony.

Rooted from the Brahmin belief, the Royal Ploughing Ceremony relives the old and traditional way of agriculture of Thailand using the backdrop of the Royal Palace in Bangkok. Led by a high-rank official of the Ministry of Agriculture, all the players in the procession are dressed in ancient regalia and jewel-sparkling costumes.  The two oxen are adorned with golden cloaks and attached to a plough. You cannot see this fanciful ceremony and such costumes any where else in Thailand.

The ceremony will officially start when one of three golden sarongs in different lengths is selected by the Minister for himself. The Brahmin priest then interprets the sarong whether the country will be in abundance of water resources. The shorter the sarong is, the more water there will be while the sarong in medium length is considered to be optimal in terms of fertility. The procession will then move into the pavilion to plough three circular furrows. Thai maidens will at the same time toss holy rice seeds into the furrows and the Brahmin priests will sprinkle blessed water.

After the third furrows are made, the crowds of spectators will throng the field to grasp the blessed rice, which Thai farmers believe to bring them good harvest. The finale of the Royal Ploughing Ceremony is the prediction of the nation’s well-being. The oxen are escorted into the pavilion and offered seven types of food: rice, corn, sesame, beans, grass, rice whisky and water. The choice of the oxen will be interpreted into the year’s prediction. If the oxen choose to eat rice, that means abundant harvest. The Brahmin priest is the person who will evaluate all the omens and the prophecy will be read to His Majesty the King and the public afterwards.