We could hear the distant rhythmic chanting of the monks as we walked up the long staircase toward the pagoda.  As we approached carrying cooked rice, fruit, cans of soft drink and incense sticks the chanting became more pronounced and distinct. Our friends from the Fisheries Department with their partners and families were here to begin the festival of P’Chum Ben, one of the most important Buddhist events in Cambodia.

P’Chum Ben is a time when families remember their ancestors, family loved ones who have recently departed, grandparents who were respected and loved by their extended families and the more distant founders of their families. The folk lore is that the departed may have gone either to heaven or hell. P’Chum Ben is the time that the gates of hell are opened to allow momentary respite. This is the opportunity to take food and nourishment to the Wat to provide spiritual sustenance to your loved ones should they languish in hell.

There are of course many other historical and practical aspects to P’ Chum Ben, as with all religious festivals the world over.  This is the peak of the rainy season, when the land is flooded and the monks cannot circulate around the community to beg for alms. So the people bring the food to the Wat. It is a time when the farmers are exhausted, last year’s food supplies are gone, the rice must soon be transplanted and the new crop has not yet matured. So food and nourishment is available at the Pagoda. The food delivered to the monks in the Pagoda are today distributed to the poor and needy in the communities.

Since the Pagodas in the towns and cities receive large quantities of food our colleagues and families decided to visit a more remote Wat where the food would benefit the rural poor.  So they combined their P’Chum Ben observances with a family outing to Kirrirom National Park and invited us along.

Kirrirom is a popular mountain retreat. The road winds steadily upwards leaving the rice fields and palm trees on the plain to take visitors to fragrant pine trees, clear air and cool breezes. As well as spectacular waterfalls the park offers thatched roofed shelters by mountain pools and streams where families can picnic.  It was wonderful to relax with our Fisheries colleagues and chat about families and friends and leave the pressures of work for a day.  We felt honoured to be so well accepted by our colleagues that we were invited to join them on such a personal and religious occasion.

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