La très catastrophique visite du zoo

Joël Dicker

Description

In the dry heat of Northeast Thailand and Laos, when the skies remain stubbornly cloudless, entire villages gather to launch handmade rockets skyward—not for spectacle alone, but as sacred pleas for rain. Known as Bun Bang Fai, or the Rocket Festival, this centuries-old ritual blends agricultural rhythms, folk spirituality, and communal celebration into a vibrant invocation for divine blessing.

The Rocket Festival: Fire, Faith, and Rain is Book 8 in the acclaimed Sacred Thai: Ghosts, Beliefs, and Rituals in Thai Culture series. Author Montree Sandee, a cultural researcher from Isaan, invites readers into the world of rain-making rituals, where explosive rockets, ancient chants, and seasonal prayers converge in a dance of faith and survival. Drawing from ethnographic insight and firsthand stories, this book captures the deep emotional and spiritual layers of one of Southeast Asia's most remarkable agricultural festivals.

Inside, you'll discover:

The traditional methods of rocket construction using bamboo, paper, and gunpowder The spiritual significance of Phaya Thaen, the rain god of Lao-Thai folklore How community, music, food, and performance bring the ritual to life The festival's connection to the rice-growing calendar and seasonal cycles The resilience of rural cultures in the face of climate change and modernization Stories from farmers, elders, and artisans who pass the ritual across generations

More than a celebration, Bun Bang Fai is a communal act of devotion, fusing belief and practicality. It is a moment where agriculture meets spirituality, and where each rocket launched becomes a fiery prayer written across the sky. For many villagers, these launches are not only hopeful gestures—but affirmations of identity, belonging, and hope for a bountiful season.

Ideal for readers interested in:

Asian spiritual festivals and rural belief systems Thai and Lao folk rituals and cultural heritage Agricultural anthropology and seasonal rites Cross-cultural readers seeking Southeast Asian perspectives Travelers, researchers, or diaspora readers reconnecting with Isaan and Lao traditions

With its rich focus on customs, rituals, and Southeast Asian agricultural life, this book fits into several BISAC categories:

SOCIAL SCIENCE / Customs & Traditions RELIGION / Rituals & Practice HISTORY / Asia / Southeast Asia

Combining storytelling with cultural research, this volume is both a spiritual travelogue and a cultural document—offering insights for anthropologists, folklorists, history lovers, and general readers who find meaning in how people pray, plant, and persevere.

As rockets rise and thunder across the sky, the community listens not just for the sound—but for the promise of rain, renewal, and resilience.
The Rocket Festival is a vivid reminder that faith, fire, and the future can all be carried on a single trail of smoke.

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