Everything to Know About the Kate Festival

Kate is celebrated every year at the start of the seventh month of the Cham calendar — roughly late September to early October — to honor ancestors and give thanks to the deities who brought irrigation to the fields and ensured favorable weather and abundant harvests. The festival unfolds over the first three days of that month: the Procession of Sacred Garments, the Main Ceremony at the temple towers, and the Village Ceremony, followed by a lively communal celebration that draws large crowds of locals and visitors alike.

Kate belongs to the Cham Balamon (Brahmanist) community, while Ramuwan is the major observance of the Cham Bani. Before 1945 the festival was held mainly at the Lady Thap Ba temple in Nha Trang; in 1954 the Cham Balamon community built the Po Inu Nagar temple in Huu Duc village, Ninh Thuan, and from then on the largest Kate ceremonies have centered on Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan provinces.

On the first day, village elders and dignitaries lead the Cham and Raglai communities in a procession carrying the sacred garments of the deities down from the Phuoc Ha highlands to the village. Following matrilineal custom, the garments are entrusted to the Raglai people for safekeeping between festivals, reflecting the enduring bond expressed in the saying "Cham are the elder siblings, Raglai the younger."

On the second day, the garments are carried up to the Po Klong Garai and Po Rome towers to the sound of ginang drums and saranai horns. Dignitaries and high priests perform the rites of opening the tower doors, bathing the deity statues, and changing their garments; water poured over the carved image of Shiva is caught by worshippers and touched to their heads and bodies as a blessing of health and good fortune.

After the solemn rites at the temple towers, the festive spirit spreads to every Cham village with folk games, music, sports, and a family meal offered to ancestors — bringing a vivid and colorful Kate season to a close.