Festivals honour rice, heroes and pilgrims

Party time: The opening day of the Huong Pagoda Festival, one of the major festivals in Viet Nam. — VNA/VNS Photo Quoc Khanh Light it up: Thousands join a procession during the firecracker festival in Dong Ky Village in Bac Ninh Province on Sunday. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoang Hung

HA NOI — A three-day festival commemorating mythical Vietnamese hero Saint Giong began in Ha Noi yesterday.

The annual event at Soc Temple is one of several festivals in the north to honour of Saint Giong, a legendary hero who is said to have defeated an army of foreign invaders.

Participants at the Soc Temple festivities took part in offerings to the saint, the moc duc ceremony, symbolising a cleansing process for the temple, and the bamboo procession, which celebrates Saint Giong's martial arts skills with a bamboo weapon used to defeat the invaders.

According to legend, Saint Giong was only three years old when the country was invaded by northern troops. When the infant Giong heard an official from the royal court calling for skilled warriors to defend the motherland, he magically grew in stature.

Last year, the Saint Giong festival was recognised by UNESCO as an example of the world's intangible heritage that should be preserved. It's one of several major festivals across the country during the onset of spring.

Other major festivals include the Huong Pagoda festival, which also started yesterday and features the largest annual pilgrimage of Vietnamese Buddhists.

Pilgrims from across the country flock to the Huong Son Pagoda, in Ha Noi's My Duc District, around 60km west of the city's centre, on the 6th day of the first month of the new lunar year.

The pagoda, built at the end of 17th century, is situated in an area of several important temples dedicated to local saints and agricultural gods on a banks of the Day River.

It is estimated that about 50,000 visitors attended the opening day of this year's festival, which lasts till the end of the third month of the lunar year (end of April). Last year, the number of pilgrims reached 1.3 million.

My Duc District People's Committee chairman Le Van Sang said the local authority had planned a safer and more bustling festival this year. Shops, advertisement banners and food stalls would be strictly controlled to offer the best service to visitors.

Environmental protection would also be enhanced by the pagoda's management board, which planned to process rubbish according to guidelines issued by the Ha Noi Natural Resources and Environment Department.

In other festivals across the north, people in Ha Nam Province begin celebrating the Tich dien (ploughing the rice field) festival today. The three-day festival commemorates the day King Le Dai Hanh ploughed a field to promote farming during the 10th century.

Provincial leaders will join farmers at the plough to open the festival today. Since this year, the festival will be organised annually and upgraded into a national-level event with participation from State leaders every five years.

"The Tich dien festival was a time when leaders of the nation was closer to the people," said Tran Quoc Hung, director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

"The noble tradition should be maintained."

Tens of thousands of visitors also converged on Dong Ky Village, Tu Son Town in the northern province of Bac Ninh, on Sunday in the traditional firecracker festival.

Four respected elders from each of the four hamlets in the village were selected to perform rituals and pray for good weather, bumper crops and prosperity.

The festival, which is organised on the fourth day of the first lunar month and lasts for three days, honours General Thien Cuong, who recruited young villagers to fire on the enemy and was later considered the tutelary god of the village.

Wrestling fest revives

Hundreds of tourists and local residents witnessed an annual traditional wrestling competition held in the central Thua Thien-Hue Province yesterday.

Scores of wrestlers from Thua Thien-Hue and Quang Tri provinces took part in the event held in Thu Le Village in Quang Dien District.

The Thu Le Wrestling Festival, begun by local residents more than 100 years ago, was revived recently after disappearing during the war.

The event will be followed by other festivities like the Princess Huyen Tran Festival in Huong Thuy District on February 11, the Sinh Village Wrestling Competition in Quang Dien District ûon February 12, and the Fish Praying Festival in Phu Vang District on February 14. — VNS

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Photos a unique documentary of Giong festival

Traditional celebration: This photo of a flag dance on Gia Ngu Hill at a Giong Festival held in Phu Dong Village in 1970 was the first image of the festival taken by photographer Van Tho.

HA NOI — A unique exhibition displaying veteran photographer Van Tho's collection of 100 photos of the Giong Festival has opened at the Phu Dong Temple, in Gia Lam District on the outskirts of Ha Noi.

The photos document the dances and worshipping ceremonies as well as the domestic and foreign officials that attend the festival and even the festival preparations.

All of the photos are in colour except for the artist's first image taken in 1970.

"I cannot count the number of photographs I've taken of the annual festival," Tho said since 1970, "I have selected the 100 best as my gift to celebrate the recognition of the festival as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO."

The artist was born in 1943 in Phu Dong Village himself. At the age of seven, he played a soldier in Saint Giong's 90-soldier team in the festival. He recalled falling into the pond in front of the temple and racing home to dry his clothes so that he could finish his role in the event.

"Taking part in the festival is a great honour," he said, "That's why the villagers have happily made contributions."

After the exhibition, Tho plans to build a house in which to store his works and memories of the festival.

"If the project is approved [by local authorities], I will select quintessential photos of the festival by many photographers for display," Tho said.

"The exhibits may also include small models of objects used at the festival so that visitors to the temple can learn how the festival is organised, what it symbolises and what activities take place. They can also practise the traditional dances if they want."

A ceremony was held at the temple on Saturday by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ha Noi Municipal People's Committee and the Viet Nam National Commission for UNESCO to bestow the UNESCO Certification recognising the Saint Giong Festival as a world intangible heritage.

The festival was the third element of Ha Noi's heritage recognised by UNESCO in last year, joining the 82 doctoral stone steles in the Temple of Literature and relics of the Thang Long Royal Citadel.

The festival is dedicated to Saint Giong, born in Phu Dong Village in the reign of King Hung VI. According to legend, he was a man of great strength who fought the northern invaders. After his victory, he flew back to heaven on his iron horse over Soc Mountain, which locates in today's Soc Son District.

There are many festivals held in the northern region to honour Saint Giong. The most popular are the ones in Phu Dong Village in Gia Lam District and Soc Village in Soc Son District.

The event in Phu Dong is annually held on the ninth day of the fourth lunar month and in Soc Son, on the sixth day of the first lunar month. — VNS

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Ha Noi celebrates heritage listing

The Saint Giong Festival was one of three examples of Ha Noi's cutural heritage to be recognised by UNESCO during the past year. — VNA/VNS Photo

HA NOI — A ceremony has been held by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ha Noi Municipal People's Committee and the Viet Nam National Commission for UNESCO to bestow UNESCO Certification recognising the Saint Giong Festival as a World Intangible Heritage.

The festival was the third element of Ha Noi's heritage recognised by UNESCO in 2010, joining the 82 doctoral steles in the Temple of Literature, and the Thang Long Royal Citadel.

"Ha Noi is proud to receive UNESCO certification. This recognises the efforts of past generations who handed down their heritage to the people of Ha Noi," said Ngo Thi Thanh Hang, deputy chairwoman of the Ha Noi municipal People's Committee on Saturday.

"The Giong Festival had all the necessary elements to be recognised as humanity's intangible cultural heritage, especially the element of community participation in preserving and promoting the value of the festival," said Katherine Muller‑Marin, head of the UNESCO office in Ha Noi.

She also emphasised that the festival had been deeply impressed by the inherited traditions of those residents living along the Red River.

During the ceremony, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Le Tien Tho, announced a national plan of action to preserve and promote the nation's cultural values during 2011-15.

The ceremony also included a traditional art performance by local people. — VNA/VNS

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Vietnam Festival obtains UNESCO certificate today

The ceremony of Saint Giong Festival is held in the first lunar month in 2010 at Soc Temple in Soc Son District in honor of the mythical hero Giong who ascended to heaven from there

Hanoi is holding a reception ceremony today for UNESCO certificate recognizing the Saint Giong Festival as humankind’s intangible cultural heritage, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

Giong Festival, which is located at Soc Temple in Soc Son District, is the Hanoi’s third such heritage honored by the UN agency in 2010, after the 82 stone steles at the Temple of Literature (commemorating doctorates handed out to doctor laureats during the feudal era) and the Thang Long-Hanoi Citadel.

The Saint Giong Festival is held annually in the first lunar month at Soc Temple in Soc Son District in honor of the mythical hero Giong who ascended to heaven from there.

At the age of three, Saint Giong could not talk or walk but miraculously grew into a giant after hearing the King’s appeal to gifted individuals to enter public service and save the country and people from foreign invaders from the north.

After defeating the invading army, the hero went to the top of Soc Mountain and from there to heaven. He has been revered as the most powerful god in local folk belief for thousands of years and is considered the tutelary god for harvest, peace, and prosperity.

The organizers will also officially launch a national action program on protecting and promoting the festival’s values from 2011 to 2015 at the ceremony.

Rituals of Hoi Giong ceremony include:

 

Ceremony usually begins with a young boy waving the head flag to signal the start at the front yard of the Hanoi-based Soc Temple

Following the appeal, the elderly and the dignitaries are escorted to join a parade under parasols to the temple to attend the ceremony

Paper-made statue of elephant is also carried to the temple

The crowd and dignitaries are taken to the Soc Temple where performance shows are going on to welcome their arrival

Dignitaries stand in front of the queue to hold the ceremony and offer gifts to Saint Giong

At the end of the ceremony, people burn a paper-made horse as offering to Saint Giong

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UNESCO recognition of Giong festival celebrated

HA NOI — Festivities celebrating UNESCO's recognition of Giong festival are expected to attract up to 8,000 revellers today in Soc Son District, on the northern outskirts of Ha Noi.

At the event, UNESCO Viet Nam representative Katherine Morin Muller will present the certificate recognising the Giong festival as Intangible Heritage of Humanity to the authorities of Gia Lam and Soc Son villages.

Up to 700 locals from Soc Son District and Phu Dong village will also recreate some of the most impressive elements of the celebrated festival in front of the Giong Temple in Ha Noi's Gia Lam District, where the historic Gia Ngu stone platform resides.

Young artists to compete at international festival

HA NOI — Eight paintings by Vietnamese children 6-10 years old were selected on Wednesday out of nearly 20,000 entries to compete in the Mitsubishi-Enikki Asian Children's Art Festival in Japan.

The judges also selected 10 runners-up and the 10 best group works.

HCM City Ao dai show raises funds for charity

HCM CITY — The Viet Nam Ao Dai Association, dedicated to the traditional Vietnamese ao dai, or long dress, held a charity fashion show in HCM City last night to raise funds for poor households in the nation's central region.

The event was attended by representatives from the consulate generals of the US, France, Russia, Germany, Cuba, Japan, South Korea, India, Indonesia and Laos as well as foreign organisations and businesses.

Proceeds will go to families in difficulty in Phong Dien District in the province of Thua Thien-Hue, and to buy boats to ferry students in Quang Trach District in the central province of Quang Binh, who must cross a river to attend school.

Paradise Park to serve up Tet entertainment

HA NOI — Ha Noi's Bao Son Paradise Park will host festivities during the Tet (Lunar New Year) holidays on February 4-7.

Activities includes folk games, puppetry, circus perfomers, and artists from Bao Son Theatre.

VTV begins series on Khmer culture, lifestyle

HCMCITY — Viet Nam Television has begun to show a series on the culture and lifestyle of the Khmer people living in Viet Nam's south-western region on its VTV1 channel.

The 30-episode series, titled Hay Cung Em Dieu Sarikakeo (Join me in the Sarikakeo Dance), is about the life and love of Sophia, a former Khmer Sarikakeo dancer who lived in a small village in Soc Trang Province in the early 1980s.

The film recounts Sophia's life as a dancer before she moved to An Giang Province and learned weaving.

"We wanted to spotlight the Khmer people and their culture, lifestyle, and dance," said Hue.

There are nearly 1.3 million Khmers in the Delta, living mostly in Soc Trang and Tra Vinh. — VNS

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President unveils enormous statue

President Nguyen Minh Triet and monks of the Viet Nam Buddhist Sangha dedicate the statue of Saint Giong. – VNA/VNS Photo Nguyen Khang   Certified: Beatriz Fernandez (right), the international licensing manager of Guinness World Records, presents a Guinness record certificate to Ha Noi yesterday. — VNA/VNS Photo Nhat Anh   Ceramics: Visitors look at ceramic items displayed at Bat Trang Pottery Village in Gia Lam District, where an exhibition runs through October 9. — VNS Photo Truong Vi

HA NOI — An unveiling of the 85-tonne bronze statue of Saint Giong on top of Soc Mountain in Soc Son District yesterday was described as one of the most important events in celebrations for the 1,000th anniversary of Ha Noi.

The 14.2m statue was described as a symbol of the Vietnamese people's tradition of fighting to save the country. It features the legendary hero on his metal horse flying off into the sky after fighting against northern invaders.

Addressing the unveiling ceremony, President Nguyen Minh Triet praised the great contribution of the legend of Saint Giong in the defence of the country from foreign invasion.

"Mentioning Saint Giong is referring to patriotism and the Vietnamese people's deep hatred of foreign invaders," Triet said. "Saint Giong's strength also symbolises the extraordinary strength and strong will of the Vietnamese people. That's the meaning of [President Ho Chi Minh's sentence] ‘nothing is more valuable than independence and freedom'."

Triet said the very strength which had encouraged Vietnamese people to overcome all challenges, had pushed the "Viet Nam ship" to a glorious shore.

He stressed that the statue would be a reminder to future generations to preserve the achievements of previous generations. At the same time it would be an encouragement for people to make greater efforts in studying, working and safeguarding the nation, he said.

The statute, from the design of sculptor Nguyen Kim Xuan, had been under construction since late 2007 at the total cost of VND50 billion (US$2.6 million), which had been provided by private local sponsors.

The legend has it that Saint Giong was a three-year-old child living in the northern province of Bac Ninh under King Hung VI (around 500BC), when he responded to a call from the king to fight against the northern invaders, and suddenly grew up into a strong man to join the battle.

After seeing off the invaders, he took off his metal armour and flew into the sky on his metal horse from the top of the mountain.

Since then the local community has organised a festival every year between the 6th and 12th day of the fourth lunar month to commemorate the event. The festival has been nominated to UNESCO for recognition as an intangible cultural heritage. UNESCO's decision is expected this year.

Guinness certificate

A section of the Ceramic Road along the Hong (Red) River dyke in Ha Noi received a Guinness certificate yesterday for the longest ceramic mural in the world.

The mural is on the section of the road running along 810m of the dyke from An Duong to Tan Ap on Yen Phu Road and covers a total of 1,570sq.m.

It's part of a longer ceramic mural which runs 3,950m from An Duong to the Van Kiep gates of the dyke, measuring 7,000sq m, in 21 parts covering various topics.

Beatriz Fernandez, the international licensing manager at Guinness World Records, represented the organisation at the recognition ceremony.

People's Committee deputy chairwoman Ngo Thi Thanh Hang said the city acknowledged the goodwill of artists involved in the project, including 20 Vietnamese artists and 15 foreign artists from 10 countries, 500 Vietnamese and overseas children, 50 fine arts students and more than 100 ceramic handicraft artisans and workers from all over the nation.

The work has been in progress since March 2007, using the best ceramic materials from villages throughout the country, such as Bat Trang, Phu Lang, Chu Dau, Binh Duong, Vinh Long and Bau Truc.

Music, martial arts, kites

A music gala attracted thousands of people to Hang Day Stadium yesterday.

The show was staged as a story, telling about Ha Noi from the past to the present day through songs.

A martial arts festival also began yesterday and will end tomorrow at the Quan Ngua Sports Palace.

The festival has attracted about 2,500 martial artists from 21 domestic clubs performing 50 different styles, plus guest teams from such countries as Israel, Russia, German and France.

The festival is the first of its kind in Ha Noi in the 22-year history of the development of martial arts in the country.

A new cultural venue for hosting artists' activities was opened in Cau Giay District.

Called the Intellectual Palace, it comprises two buildings on 6,700sq m land, which will host the offices of the city's Literature and Arts Association and the Union of Science and Technology Associations.

The Ha Noi Kite Festival kicks off today to celebrate the capital's millennium anniversary.

The festival at My Dinh Stadium square on Le Duc Tho Street would run into the night with 124 Vietnamese artists, said Ngo Hong Tien from the Ha Noi Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism. — VNS

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Statue of mythical Saint Giong unveiled

HA NOI — A statue of mythical savour of the nation Saint Giong will be unveiled tomorrow on top of Da Chong Mountain in the Ha Noi district of Soc Son.

Leaders of Ha Noi's People's Committee and monks from the Viet Nam Buddhists Sangha will be officiating at the ceremony, which will involve inviting the saint to recognise his statue, in accordance with Vietnamese custom.

The 9.9m copper statue of the saint holding a grove of bamboo in his hand while flying off into the sky on his horse, is one of the major projects commissioned to celebrate Ha Noi's millennium in October.

The 85-tonne statue was designed by sculptor Nguyen Kim Xuan. Following casting, the statue was carved by artists from Nam Dai Phong Company led by Vu Duy Thuan.

The project cost VND60 billion (US$3.1 million), half of which went on casting the statue, which began last October, while the remainder was spent on beautifying the site in which the saint will stand. To mark the millennium, 1,000 pine trees were planted around the statue.

Legend has it that Giong was born after his mother stepped into the footprints of a giant.

At the age of three, when Giong suddenly grew into a giant himself, invaders were attacking the country. Legend has it that while wielding an enormous iron rod and an entire grove of bamboo, Giong chased the invaders out of the country on the back of an iron horse presented to him by the king. Following the enemies' flight, Giong and his horse took off into the sky from Soc Mountain, never to be seen again. — VNS

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