The Parayan Festival: Rice as a Symbol of Life
Above are the planting costumes
The Parayan Festival of Pototan, Iloilo is a grand celebration of the Earth and one of its primary products - rice. Pototan as the Rice Granary of Western Visayas, considers the Paray Festival as its supreme gesture of thanksgiving for what Mother Earth has bestowed upon its fertile soils. Highlighting the importance of how rice feeds about half of the world's population, this harvest festival also honors the hardworking rice farmers as one of our economy's unsung heroes.
Rice has always been an integral part of the food ways, economies, and cultures of many Asian societies. For Pototanons, rice is viewed not only as a source of food but more importantly, as a symbol of life. Thus, the Parayan Festival centers on the concept that rice is the grain of life. With this precept, the celebration aims to represent the colorful Pototan way of life and the town's dedication to a prosperous harvest.
The Parayan Festival features events such as the Thanksgiving Mass, the Marathon Race, the Grand Parade and Street Dancing, Agro-Tourism Fair and Technology Transfer Workshop and the Search for Parayan King and Queen pageant. All these activities are meant to bring the townspeople and its visitors in a state of merriment and community spirit.
Whether it is a thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest or a commemoration to the importance of rice, the Parayan Festival is simply Pototan's way of celebrating life and all it has to offer. Ultimately, it is a symbolic time for the town to reflect on the blessings it has received for the past year and to openly welcome both the challenges and the fruits of the coming one.
