Painted faces, drum beats: Cambodian villagers dance for rain at annual ceremony

Hundreds of villagers in a Phnom Penh village gathered for a centuries-old rain-making ceremony, using traditional Khmer rituals, music, and offerings to pray for rain and prosperity. The fading practice highlights Cambodia’s deep agricultural traditions as communities prepare for the rainy season.

Reuters

21 May 2026 at 10:25:16

People with ghosts painted on their faces ride horses as they attend a ceremony to invoke rain amid the rice planting season in Pring Ka-ek village on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, May 21, 2026.

Soveit Yarn/Reuters

Faces painted, hundreds of villagers danced to traditional Khmer drum beats in an annual ceremony praying for rain, peace and prosperity in a Phnom Penh village on Thursday (May 21).

This ritual, marked as a two-day ceremony, has been celebrated for several hundred years by villagers during the beginning of rainy season - as farmers prepare to plant rice, one of the most water intensive crops.

Youths dressed as the spirit gods they were honouring, while others rode horses and bikes as they made their way to the shrine of Neak Ta Pring Kaek, a local deity.

At the shrine, villagers lit incense sticks and offered fruits, food, soft drinks and alcohol as part of their prayers for health and well-being.

Though marked in almost every village throughout the country in ancient times, the ceremony has become rarer.

Cambodia relies heavily on agriculture, fisheries and forestry for livelihoods, with more than 60% of its population living in rural areas.

Production: Chantha Lach/Reuters