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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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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