Our legend has that, a long time ago in this world there was a man named Dhammabal Palakumar. He was the cleverest of all men and he could solve any problems, even the most complicated ones. Since this, his name was well known not only to all the being in this world but also to Mahabrahma, the King of First Heaven. When Mahabrahma heard about Dhammabal, he came down to this world to meet him, and to ask him three crucial philosophical questions. He made a promise to Dhammabal that if he could answer all three questions relating to happiness correctly, he would cut off his own head as an offering to Dhammabal. But if Dhammabal could not answer the questions, the King of First Heaven would cut off Dhammabal’s head. He gave him seven days to come up with the answers. The three questions were: What is the definition of happiness in the morning, at noon, and in the evening? Dhammabal was so overwhelmed by the difficulty of the questions and so filled with shame at his inability to answer them that he fled to the forest, there to kill himself in secret. Luckily, one day when he fell asleep under a palm tree. In the tree were two eagles, one male and one female, who were discussing the problems of happiness; from them he learned the answers to the questions. On the seven day, Kabil Maha Brahma arrived, and Dhammabal answered the questions in this way: “In the morning people have happiness on their faces because they washed their faces when they arose. At noon the people have happiness for their bodies because they bathed their bodies to be cool in the heat. In the evening they have their happiness on their feet because they washed them before they went to bed”. When he heard the questions answered correctly, Maha Brahma cut off his own head and offered it to Dhammabal. He then called his eldest daughter, the heavenly maiden, to take his head and put it on a golden dish (if his head is put on the ground, the ground will get on fire, but if it was put in the ocean the water will dry) and with it to circle Sumeru mountain for sixty minutes, then return it to the Kandhamali temple (a pagoda in heaven). Mahabrahma had seven daughters along with seven days of the week. If the New Year eve come in on Sunday, the heavenly maiden (Tevda thmei) named Karadunsa Debi (ka-ras-tung-sa tevi) Monday named Kara Gauraga Debi (ka-ras-go-rear-ka-tevi). Tuesday named Kararakya Debi (ka-ras-rear-kya-te-vi). Wednesday named Karamanda Debi (ka-ras-mon-tea-tevi). Thursday named Karakirini Debi (ka-ra-kay-ri-nei-tevi). Friday named Karakiminda Debi (ka-ra-kay-min-tear-tevi) Saturday named Karamahaudhara Debi (ka-ras- ma-ho-the-ras-tevi). For that reason, the seven heavenly maidens take turns each year circling the mountain with Kabila Maha Brahma’s head. After the Angkor Wat generation, the Khmer people adhered to the Lunar Calendar, and observed Miggasira (mic-kaa-say) or January as the first month New Year and Kattika (read cart-duck) or December as the year’s end. Since then, they have used the Solar Calendar in which the New Year is observed on the thirteenth day of Khe Cettr (read jetr) or April, unless it is a year of double months, when the New Year is observed on April 14th. Sometimes this during full moon, other time it’s in the dark moon, but the observance is never before April 4th or pass May 4th. There were three days of Chaul Chnam Thmei . The first day called Thngay Maha San Krane (thngaai maa-haa- saan- kraan) or Chaul Chnam; second day called Thngay Van Na Both (thngaai want naa-but); the third day called Thngay Leung Sak ( thngaai leung saac). The New Year day usually come on April 13th except the year have double months come on April 14th (sometimes four years, sometimes six, seven or nine years). The Names Of The Years In Khmer Zodiac 1 – JUT (joot) kando (kaan-deau) the year of RAT 2 – CHLAUV (chlauv) GAU (kau) the year of COW 0r OX 3 – KHAL (kaal) kla (Klaa) the year of TIGER 4 – THOSS (thoss) thonsay (tone-saai) the year of RABBIT 5 – RAUNG (roon) NEAK (neak) the year of DRAGON 6 – MSAGN (ma-seign) Poss (poss) the year of SNAKE 7 – MOMI (mau-mi) SESS (sest) the year of HORSE 8 – MOME (mau-mee) POPE (pau-phe) the year of GOAT 9 – VOK (vok) sva (svaa) the year of MONKEY 10 – ROKA (ro-kaa) mone (mon) the year of ROOSTER 11 – CO (choo) chke (chkee) the year of DOG 12 – KAU (keau) jrouk (chrook) the year of PIG
