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By
: Khim Veayo. |
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| While spending
their leisure time in Cambodia, most visitors will
not miss buying the "Kra-ma" (scarf) for
wearing over their shoulders, folding round their
necks or fastening their waists not just for fashion,
but also to show that they like the style and are
loving to get closer to the Khmer--as with the saying,
‘When in Rome, do as the Romans do’. Visitors
coming here to hunt the essence and the beauty of
the Khmer splendid architecture and natural attractions
in this country sometimes hint that they are impressed
by the perseverance of local craftsmen, including
the arts of producing Kra-ma by hand. Meanwhile,
many of the locals also accept that the Kra-ma is
considered as a nominative name card in the face
of the international community. |
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| The craft of Kra-ma
weavers have been practiced from ancient time until today
by the Khmer, especially female adults and girls at countryside.
Designs of Kra-ma woven from heads of crude cotton or
from selective silk must also evolve from a simple to
a complex one in order to meet the changing demand of
people of all ages upon the course of time. Along side
with other works of art, Kra-ma also gains ground in drawing
attention of foreign tourists from many corners of the
world. Kra-ma is thus becoming an element of the national
heritage. The picture is true to their daily life as Kra-ma
is always at the hand reach of the Cambodian people, especially
those living in rural and remote areas and then is very
probably becoming their good friend indeed. Because of
the specific requirements by geographical conditions,
a farmer or a highlander does not care about Kra-ma aesthesis
but prefers using a thickened scarf that can ensure conformance,
durability and serviceability. For them, they discover
many advantages from using a scarf. A mother surely concerns
over only the protection of her baby in a Kra-ma haversack
hung on her back from the sunheat. A father who wants
to shield his head from sunheat will fold Kra-ma round
his head. A young man might turn his Kra-ma into a stretched
fan to wind his body full of sweat after exerting his
physical force. A young lady might turn it into a provisional
bag to hold light stuff such as personal belongings, cakes,
fruits and vegetables or on another occasion as a piece
of cloth to hide her body when taking a bath, etc. On
a hazardous occasion, Kra-ma is helpful for a young lady
to cover her face while she is shy in front of male onlookers.
And perhaps on another occasion she can peep from behind
at her neighboring boy whom she pays |
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| special
attention at. Perhaps they consider Kra-ma wearing
a style, town people especially the girls prefer
silk scarves of bright colors rather than the cotton
one. While picnicking they have silk scarves with
knitted rims folding round their heads or fastening
their waists. By nature, the Khmer are always friendly
towards their guests. At countryside, a visitor
would be invited to enjoy eating local foods and
fruits available in the relevant season whereas
in Phnom Penh or town the visitor would be asked
to accept a souvenir- most probably a box made from
palm leaves containing a piece of silver craft with
a silk Kra-ma in the litter. For their part, certain
psychologists make a remark that any special items,
Kra-ma for instance, which are being serviced by
a person would symbolize and reflect the concerned
user's character and the sentiment. As yet there
are some, especially a handful of Phnom Penh dwellers,
who "chluok teuk massin" (a slang referring
to those being spoiled by ‘urban water’
-a luxurious life), would instead laugh |
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| at foreign visitors
for buying and wearing strange item on their body such
as the Kra-ma. In fact, such a group of people fail to
learn that those foreign visitors know well enough about
and they like Kra-ma much more than they do because those
foreign visitors really appreciate the Kra-ma 's essence
and value. Kra-ma has its profound significance in the
Cambodians' daily life and is thus becoming an important
topic for the study about the Khmer by domestic and foreign
researchers. |
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Suite
B8, Regency Square, InterContinental Hotel, 294 Mao Tse Toung
Boulevard,
Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia.
Tel: (855) 23 213 133 Fax: (855) 23 213 033
E-mail:
editor@leisurecambodia.com |
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