09 MAY 2013 - BANGKOK, THAILAND: Rehearsal for the Royal Ploughing Ceremony on Sanam Luang. The annual Ploughing Ceremony is held during the sixth lunar month (May) at Sanam Luang (the Phramane Ground) in front of the Grand Palace. The event, which marks the beginning of the official rice-planting season, is presided over by His Majesty the King or his representative. The Ploughing Ceremony is thought to date back more than 2500 years. The event has Brahmin origins and even today Brahmin astrologers set the exact date and time for the ceremony. During the Sukhothai period (13th and 14th centuries), the event involved a long processions led by the ruling monarch. Many of the original rites and ceremonies have been maintained. PHOTO BY JACK KURTZ
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