LOY KRATHONG IS without doubt the most magical of Thailand's many wonderful festivals. Rooted far in the past, it has come down over the centuries almost unchanged. Similar festivals are found in the southern part of China, in Laos and in Cambodia, and it probably was based on the ancient Hindu concept of the Mother of Waters. Loy Krathong is not a religious festival in its origins as such but arose from animistic beliefs. It is a moon festival, coinciding with the full moon at the end of the 11th lunar month, and celebrates the end of the life-giving rains. Thanks are given for the abundant harvest of the year just passed and wishes made for bountiful produce in the year to come. It is also highly symbolic, with the floating away of the Krathong representing a cleansing of sins.

Wherever in Thailand Loy Krathong is celebrated, from humble hamlet to bustling city, it has a charm and mystique that are not equalled in any other festival, but for a truly magical experience, the north of Thailand is the place to go. With the rains finished the night sky is clear and cool with the first sharp crisp hint of winter in the air. As the full moon rises, its ice-blue light perfectly complements the air's chill feel, but it rises into a sky that is already filled with light, for in Lanna, unlike the rest of the Kingdom, Loy Krathong is celebrated in 3 dimensions. Great hot-air balloons sail majestically into the sky with the glowing fires that drive them shining like a galaxy of orange stars into the far distance. Fireworks whoosh and crack in a crescendo of light and sound which has been building up for weeks before, and beneath it all, the gentle ceremony and touching personal moments of floating (Loy) one's Krathong.

In Lanna tradition, the months of the calendar year start two moons earlier than in the rest of Thailand, and Loy Krathong therefore falls in the second (Yee in the Lanna dialect) month (Peng), so Loy Krathong is synonymous with Yee Peng. There is much more to Yee Peng than the simple floating of Krathong upon the waters, and light is everywhere. Archways of banana stems suddenly appear outside homes and businesses, and Kome lanterns are hung from these and from almost every projecting support. With their beautiful colors, and the delicate paper streamers hanging from them, these lanterns glow with a warm charm in the night. They are added to by the yellow flames of thousands of miniature terra-cotta night lights flickering on every wall and gate post.

The Krathong themselves are traditionally made from a cut section of bamboo stem, with neatly folded pieces of banana leaf pinned around the upper rim so that the whole has the appearance of a lotus leaf. Each Krathong has flowers, a candle and a stick of incense at the very least, while some are far more elaborate. There may also be some grains of sand and some good luck charms on the float. Nowadays the simplicity and buoyancy of styrofoam are an unfortunate substitute for banana stems and for weeks afterwards they clutter the banks of canals and rivers, and the shores of lakes and the sea. Another common practice is to place a coin or two on the Krathong, and small boys, as much at home in the water as on land, make extra pocket money by raiding these floating piggy-banks.

Tradition has it that the very first Krathong was made by a beautiful young lady at the royal court of the ancient Kingdom of Sukhothai some 700 years ago. Her name was Naang Noppamart and she was blessed with great artistic skills. Others imitated her and there was a competition on the night of the 11th full moon of the year. The king judged the competition and Naang Noppamart's talents were repaid as her Krathong was declared the clear winner. The king decreed that henceforth this one night of the year should become a festival of thanks and should be celebrated by the floating of boats in the shape and form of lotus leaves. The legend lives on and the beauty queen selected at each of the Loy Krathong celebrations around Thailand is to this day the winner of the Naang Noppamart parade.

This year (1999), the Loy Krathong festival will be held from November 21 to 23, with Chiangmai's grand procession of floats on the last night. All the major cities of the north will have a celebration with possibly the most grand of all being held in Sukhothai where the legend began.