Bac Ninh and its specialty

Regarded as the cradles of Vietnam civilization and bring itself a lot of culture and tradition of Vietnam, Bac Ninh is one of the special and wonderful place to travel and discover the specilaty of Vietnam. 

Bac Ninh is located in the lowlands and hills of North Vietnam. It is also a province with a lot of feature in culture and custom. Recalling Bac Ninh, everyone knows the traditional and unique folk-song Quan Ho. It is one of the attractions in Bac Ninh and which is one of the traditional songs of Vietnam. Coming here, tourists and especially foreign tourists who are very interested in enjoying the folk-song Quan Ho. There are sisters and brothers in traditional clothes of Quan Ho performing famous songs in sweet and gentle voice attracting the interest of all audiences. Getting to know more about the tradition of Vietnam will make you understand more about the culture and specialty of the country. 

Traditional Music Classes

Established in 2005 in a small house near the ancient communal house of Hao Nam, the Vietnam Music Development Centre  has organised many classes to teach traditional Vietnamese musical forms, involving the participation of a  large number of people.

In a cultural space of the serene ancient communal house, students of different ages are engulfed in lessons on playing traditional musical instruments  and singing Ca Tru (ceremonial singing), Xam (an art form which has existed for centuries and was very popular in the rural areas of the northern plains in the past) and Quan ho (love duet) taught by People’s Artist Pham Dinh Khang and artist Thao Giang who founded and run the centre.

With a desire to preserve and bequeath the traditional Vietnamese folk music genres to younger generations,  artists  Pham Dinh Khang and Thao Giang established the Vietnam Music Development Centre where students are taught to perform with drums, flutes and castanets and singing folk music with a different method – without any manuals but approaching music directly in a natural and easy to understand manner.

Artist Thao Giang shows his students how to use Senh (clappers) in Xam singing. Photo: Trinh Van Bo/VNP

“ Xam” – A Tale of Vietnamese Folk Music

 “Xam” is known in Vietnam as  folk music usually performed by blind street singers to earn their living. As it originated from the working class and poor people, “Xam” has become an intellectual part of the commoners’ cultural life. Its most distinctive trait lies in the simplicity and popularity of its lyrics and the earthliness but profoundness of daily life in the songs’ lyrics, which often narrate daily-life stories, satirizing and criticizing severely the social evils while highly praising education and humanitarian values. 

 

Therefore, “Xam”  doesn’t care so much about costumes and stages like other types of traditional arts. “Xam” singing can be performed anywhere, on any street or corner where large numbers of people pass. It is so simple that anyone can sing some verses to express their inner feelings on life.

After a long period of decline, “Xam” has been recently revitalised through a program titled “Tale of ‘Xam’ ” performed by master artists of Vietnamese traditional music, especially People’s Artist Thanh Hoai and People’s Artist Xuan Hoach, who have fully and vividly revitalised the life and soul of “ Hat Xam” (Xam singing) through their beautiful vocals and talented musical skills.

The “ Tale of Xam” program is organised in Manzi Art Space at 14 Phan Huy Ich Street, Hanoi.

The country - The Vietnamese monochord

"“My country…gently dropping monochord soundings..”Whenever I hear this song, my deepen sentiment is vibrated with very tormented, fretty feelings, the obsessive memory of the soul and childhood in my very first school that when my teacher taught me to write two words “ Viet Nam” and called “ Country” reminded my mind. I understood this in vague, it is like something great and very precious. And now when time has passed very fast and it also brings my childhood away and after reading through so many verses as well as witnessing changes of Vietnam, I have been penetrated that the word “ Country” - the vague memory in my childhood has such a holy meaning. And, it is when the melody of the song: “ The Country” by composer Pham Minh Tuan spreads that my sensation seems to overflow, which helps me figure the image of my country that is: simple and bright; gentle and compassionate; poor but formidable.

Thien Hau Pagoda- one of the favorite tour attractions in Ho Chi Minh City

Built by the Cantonese Congregation in the 19th century and dedicated to the Thien Hau god and always has a mix of worshippers mingling beneath large coils of incense suspended overhead. The Pagoda is also one of the favorite tour attractions in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

When tourists visit HCM City you will see there are a lot of churches, pagodas and mosques sprinkled throughout the city. Most are of the newer variety, there are some pagodas that have stood for hundreds of years. Although older pagodas are spreaded throughout HCM city, a high concentration of them can be found in Cholon, which is the city's Chinatown that is Thien Hau Pagoda.

Water Splashing Festival

At the time when Bo ma, a variety of wild flower that is used as an offering of the Thai ethnic people to Then (genies), and hundreds of varieties of wild flowers are in blossom and the area of Pu Nho Kho Mountain is full of festive atmosphere, Thai people in Khong Lao Commune, Phong Tho District, Lai Chau Province jubilantly prepare for several traditional festivals.

Probably the most observed festival is the Water Splashing Competition. Although nobody knows the exact origin of the festival, for the Thai ethnic people of Vietnam it is a gala that raises community harmony and spirit.

At the time when Bo ma, a variety of wild flower that is used as an offering of the Thai ethnic people to Then (genies), and hundreds of varieties of wild flowers are in blossom and the area of Pu Nho Kho Mountain is full of festive atmosphere, Thai people in Khong Lao Commune, Phong Tho District, Lai Chau Province jubilantly prepare for several traditional festivals. Probably the most observed festival is the Water Splashing Competition. Although nobody knows the exact origin of the festival, for the Thai ethnic people of Vietnam it is a gala that raises community harmony and spirit.

The teams participating in the competition consist of the strongest men and women
from the hamlet with the hope of winning the prize.

The sorcerer offers Bo ma flowers to invite Then to participate in the competition with the villagers.

The Glowing Lanterns of Ancient Hoi An

The tradition to decorate the ancient town in Hoi An with multi-colored lanterns, which started three centuries ago, is still continued today on the fourteenth night of each lunar month in this small town in central Vietnam.

The history of the lanterns

In the past, Vietnamese people often put oil lamps in decorative spherical and hexagonal lantern shades, which were hung in the eaves and both sides of the door in the Chinese style. During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Faifo (the name of Hoi An`s ancient town at that time) was bustling with foreign merchants from the Netherlands, India, and Japan around the clock. Japanese merchants often hung tube and canary-shaped lanterns along the poles in front of their houses, which lit up the whole commercial quarters at night with a glowing, mysterious light. Locals began hanging lanterns out as well, with hopes for bringing good luck and coziness to the town.

A Journey to Vi-Giam Folk Singing Region

On November 27, 2014, in Paris (France), Nghe Tinh Vi-Giam folk singing was officially recognised as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity by UNESCO. It is Vietnam’s ninth intangible cultural heritage honoured in the international arena.

«          Vi-Giam folk singing is two ways of singing without accompaniment which have been created and handed down by people in Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces during their production and daily activities. People sing Vi-Giam songs while they lull their child to sleep, work in the fields, row a boat, weave cloth or husk rice. So the singing is often named after Jobs or activities such as Vi Phuong Vai (fabric guild), Vi Phuong Non (conical hat guild), Vi Phuong Cui (wood guild), Vi Treo Non (climbing the mountain), Vi Do Dua (rowing the boat), Giam Ru (lulling), Giam Ke (reciting) and Giam Khuyen (advising). These two ways of singing are usually performed alternately, hence they have the name Vi-Giam.»

Vi-Giam folk singing has an extremely strong vitality. It not only existed in the past but has constantly developed in the hearts of people in Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces (Nghe Tinh). That’s why people in these provinces have a famous saying, “only when people here no longer have their voice will Vi-Giam folk singing be lost.”

Soon after Vi-Giam folk singing was officially honoured by UNESCO, we went to Nghe An Province, a “Vi-Giam singing region” to learn about the special features of this type of folk singing.

At 6am on a very cold winter day, we left Hanoi to begin our journey to the “Vi-Giam region”. Our first destination was Kim Lien Commune in Nam Dan District, Nghe An Province, the native land of our great President Ho Chi Minh. This place is considered one of the areas having the most developed Vi-Giam singing movement and is also the cradle of the Vi Phuong Vai singing, one of the famous tunes of the Nghe Tinh Vi-Giam.

We were received by Trinh Hung Minh, a cultural cadre in Nam Dan District. Being a cultural cadre, Minh composed lyrics of most Vi-Giam songs for Vi-Giam clubs in the region. He led us to a hundred-year-old house in Kim Lien Commune where the commune’s Vi Phuong Vai Club with nearly 30 members have regular activities.

Tran Cong Son and Pham Thi Nha, members of Nam Thanh’s Vi-Giam Club in Nghe An Province sing a Vi-Giam song at an old house in Nam Thanh Commune  where the club’s members have regular activities. Photo: Trong Chinh/VNP

Ancient Thay Pagoda proves an inspiration for writers, painters

Summer may be the best season to visit Thay Pagoda in Hanoi. It's the time to admire the flamboyantly red flowers on the large gao trees in front of the 900-year-old building brighten up the blue sky.

Holy complex: Thay Pagoda is situated at the foot of Sai Son Mountain in
Phuong Cach Commune, Ha Tay Province, around 30km southwest of Ha Noi.
— VNA/VNS Photos Phung Trieu

The poetic beauty of the pagoda has inspired many of Vietnam's painters and writers. The best-known images of the pagoda are closely related to those flowers.

Readers may be interested to know that the gao is often planted outside village gates because of the propitious colour of its flowers.

The soft white down in the heart of the huge flowers is often used by villagers to make superb pillows. And juice from the thorn-covered bark can be used as a type of antibiotic on open cuts and small wounds.

Returning to the beautiful Buddhist monument on a recent hot day, my eyes were refreshed by those resplendent flowers, which are closely attached to my childhood in the countryside.

While the pagoda is well-known locally, it's not so popular with foreign tourists and expats. But it truly is a sight worth seeing, especially this time of the year!

Popular: Water puppetry performances are held during the third month of the lunar calendar each year.

The pagoda is situated at the foot of Sai Son Mountain in Phuong Cach Commune, Quoc Oai District in old Ha Tay Province, now part of Hanoi, about 30km southwest of the heart of the capital city.

The pagoda was built in the 11th century during the reign of King Ly Nhan Tong. The abbot was Tu Dao Hanh who was well-known for his humility and generosity towards the poor.

Legend has it that Hanh invented water puppetry to mark the lives of the rural population. Since then, the art from the area has become popular nationwide.

During the pagoda's festival (the third lunar month), performances are held in the middle of the Long Tri pond located in front of the pagoda.

Thay Pagoda consists of three buildings parallel to each other: Ha Pagoda, Trung Pagoda, and Thuong Pagoda. The outer one, Ha Pagoda, is the place for offerings and ceremonies; the middle one, Trung Pagoda, is for worship of the Buddha; and the inner and highest is set aside to worship Tu Dao Hanh.

In Trung Pagoda, there is a sandalwood statue of Tu Dao Hanh sitting on a red lacquered shrine trimmed with gold and covered with a curtain. To explore this section, it's necessary to climb up nearly 100 stone steps.

Worth the effort: Cac Co cave is only accessible via steep rocks that attract sure-footed and enthusiastic visitors. — VNS Photo Bach Lien

The tranquility of the pagoda is a delight for all visitors all year round, but local guide Tran Phuong Nga says during the present lunar March, it can welcome up to 80,000.

"Many Vietnamese believe the pagoda is a sacred site. This makes it one of the most visited in the north," said Nga.

Ceremonies connected with the Thay Pagoda Festival consist of bathing Tu Dao Hanh's statue, burning incense and escorting sacred objects around the temple in procession.

There are also the cheo (popular theatre) plays, chess games - and, of course, the water puppet shows.

Nga said Hanh died sitting in meditation without food and drink for months. His dried body became an object for veneration until the Ming invaders who ruled Vietnam from 1407 to 1427 took it further up the mount and burned it.

The locals collected his ashes, mixed them with earth and made a statue for worship. From then on, the mount was called the Burning Mount.

In the past, during the festival, local young men and girls used to meet and declare love to each other in Cac Co cave inside the pagoda.

Locals still believe that if a single girl or boy enters the cave, he or she can quickly find a soulmate.

There is even a well known Vietnamese folk song that goes: "Single girls long for Cac Co cave; single boys miss Thay pagoda's festival".

However, it is very difficult to enter the cave. It can only be attempted on a dry day, because access is via steep rocks that become treacherous after rain.

The cave holds an astonishing secret. It holds 3,600 skeletons of Vietnamese soldiers who were walled in when fighting against Chinese invaders. It is deep and dark. We hired a flashlight and stepped carefully. After climbing several staircases, we saw a huge stone enclosure full of skeletons. An altar was being installed in front of it.

To get to the famous pagoda,take the bus from Giap Bat station. Or, by road, follow the Thang Long Highway heading out to Hoa Lac (from the centre of Hanoi). The turn off to the pagoda is on the right-hand side close to Quoc Oai District about 20km out of town.

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Serene Huyen Khong Son Thuong Pagoda

Located halfway up the Cham mountain in the suburbs of Hue, Huyen Khong Son Thuong Pagoda is well known throughout the region for its romantic and heavenly scenery. The tranquil setting of this spiritual getaway is a magnet for those seeking a peaceful alternative to the city and is especially attractive to literature and art enthusiasts.

Located in Nham Bieu hamlet, Huong Ho commune, Huong Tra district, Thua Thien-Hue province, Huyen Khong Son Tra belongs to the Nam Tong Buddhism school. The pagoda, surrounded by bamboo trees, was built in 1973 by bonzes Vien Minh, Tinh Phap, Tri Tham and Tan Can, and originally stood in Phu Loc District’s Loc Hai Commune. It was moved in 1978 to its current place in Huong Tra District’s Huong Ho Commune by a monk, the Most Venerable Gioi Duc, who headed the pagoda until 1983 and who was succeeded by the Most Venerable Phap Tong.

Tay An pagoda, a mixture of Vietnamese and Asian architectural styles

Tay An is an ancient pagoda with a mixture of Vietnamese and Asian architectural styles. Lying on one side of the Sam Mountain, under the lights, the pagoda itself looks like a monk dressed in yellow, heading to Chau Doc Town, An Giang Province.

If tourists in Vietnam travel want to explore and find about  ancient pagoda culture of Vietnam, you could visit Tay An pagoda, which was designed in a similar style to Indian ones, the front of the pagoda has an oval dome and its roof is in the shape of a sailboat. Nevertheless, designs inside the pagoda basically follow the style of traditional Vietnamese Buddhist pagodas. The Dai Hong Bell is of particular interest as it was made of gold and copper under the Tu Duc’s Reign and is now over 111 years old. Somehow it has even managed to keep the sound of its voice ringing clear after all these years.

Tran Bien Literature Temple - a peaceful and silent space

Tran Bien Temple of Literature, built in 1715 under King Nguyen Phuc Chu, was the first temple of its kind in the South. It is a place to honor Confucius and also serves as an educational center. Tourists in Vietnam travel will learn a great deal about the history of Vietnam through the stories of the national heroes and icons.

Architecturally inspired by the Quoc Tu Giam (Temple of Literature in Hanoi capital), the Tran Bien Temple of Literature was rebuilt twice in the Nguyen Dynasty and then destroyed by the French in 1861. Then It was restored in 1998 and the first phase was inaugurated during the Tet holidays in 2002. The last phase is under construction.

Ba Chua Xu Festival - An Giang

As usual in April of the lunar calendar, locals in Chau Doc District, An Giang Province in southern Vietnam and others in provinces nationwide go on a pilgrimage to Sam Mountain to worship Ba Chua Xu (Lady of the Region). 

According to legend, nearly 200 years ago Sam Mountain was desolate, bushy and thinly populated. It was the home of many wild beasts. At that time, the invaders often pestered the life of locals here. One day, a squad of invaders climbed up Sam Mountain and found a beautiful stone lady statue. They wanted to take the statue but could not move it. In anger, they disfigured the statue, breaking off the left hand.

Ton Thanh Pagoda

The ancient pagoda of Ton Thanh is located in My Loc Commune, Can Giuoc District, Long An Province. The 200 year-old pagoda is the place where Nguyen Dinh Chieu, a great poet and patriotic scholar lived and the most celebrated works in Vietnamese literature.

According to history books, Ton Thanh Pagoda with its initial name of Lan Nha was built by Buddhist monk Vien Ngo in the year of the 7th Gia Long (1808). In the year of the 5th Thieu Tri, Buddhist monk Vien Ngo, who followed the Buddhist religion for 40 years but did not reach the peak of the way in his religion, decided to sit in meditation without drinking water for 49 days and then passed away. To commemorate the monk who devoted his whole life to the Buddhist religion, the locals call the pagoda Tang Ngo or Ong Ngo and Lao Ngo.

Ton Thanh Pagoda is the oldest one in Long An Province.

The Ancient Pagoda of Van Nien

Van Nien Pagoda is located on Lac Long Quan Road to the west of the West Lake in Hanoi. The thousand-year-old pagoda is considered one of the most famous ones in the old capital of Thang Long.

According to historical records, Van Nien Pagoda was constructed in the 2nd Thuan Thien under the Ly Dynasty, one year after King Ly Thai To moved the capital from Hoa Lu to Thang Long. Previously, the pagoda was called Van Tue and situated in Quan La, present-day Ve Ho Village, Xuan La Ward, Tay Ho District.

The book entitled “Thang Long Co Tich Khao” says: “In the 5th year of Ly Thuan Thien (1014), Most Venerable Monk Huu Nhai, Patriarch of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha asked the king to establish a makeshift platform in the pagoda to organize rites for those who wanted to follow the Buddhist religion. The king issued an edict to agree with the monk’s suggestion”. This fact shows that the pagoda was probably built before the Ly Dynasty because at that time it became the favourite place for many venerable monks to stay and lead a religious life.

The ancient scroll of letters at the sanctum inVan Nien Pagoda.

The ancient three-door gate of Van Nien Pagoda.

Ly Quoc Su Pagoda

Ly Quoc Su Pagoda worships a Buddhist Monk of the Ly Dynasty (the 10th - 12th centuries). This Monk, whose full name was Nguyen Chi Thanh, was born on 1066 in Dien Xa Village, Gia Vien District in Ninh Binh Province in the reign of King Ly Thanh Tong.

Giac Lam Pagoda

Giac Lam Pagoda was built in 1744, under the reign of Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat. Unlike many other local religious structures, it has not been renovated since 1900; the architecture, layout, and ornamentation remain almost unaltered.

Location: Giac Lam Pagoda (also known as the Cam Son or Cam Dien Pagoda) is located at 118 Lac Long Quan Street, Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City.

Characteristic: Giac Lam Pagoda was built in 1744, under the reign of Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat. Unlike many other local religious structures, it has not been renovated since 1900; the architecture, layout, and ornamentation remain almost unaltered.

Tran Hung Dao Temple

It was first erected in 1932 as a Buddhist pagoda bearing the name of Van An. In 1958, it was entirely rebuilt, featuring the architecture seen today, forming a T-shape with two-piled up roofs and eight curved corners adorned with dragon and phoenix figures.

Culture values and customs family

The family is the most important of all social units in Vietnam. In contrast to the focus on individualism in the West, the close-knit family is the basic unit in Vietnamese society.

"Hieu", or filial piety, is one of the basic virtues. This refers to the idea of love, care, and respect that children give their parents. This obligation is unconditional, even in the case of a parent who abandons the children or does not fulfill his or her parental duties. Children are taught this virtue from a very young age. The socialization process normally begins at home with the teachings from grandparents and parents. This educational process continues throughout a child`s early years and is reinforced throughout all the social institutions.

Ngoc Lang temple – an old trace on the ancient land

Ngoc Lang temple (Ngoc Lang village, Binh Ngoc commune, Tuy Hoa city) has been a cultural-historical site for a long time, a cultural-belief activities’ venue of the local community associated with Ngoc Lang land’s formation and development.

Comtemporary NgocLang Temple

Ngoc Lang temple is situated in an area of about 3,000m2, surrounded by lush fields and gardens, lots of houses. The temple faces the South,  opposite Da Rang river, and Da Bia mountain far like a front-shielding.

Ngoc Lang temple is built in accordance to the traditional architecture, including three chambers, tile-roof, roof top decorated with “luong long trieu nguyet” (two dragons at two sides of the moon), the front side was simply decorated with three National language’s words “Dinh Ngoc Lang”, while the inside, above the main doorwith three Chinese words “Ngoc Lang Dinh”. Either side of the two walls is the remains of the old architecture from the late 19th century, 0.4 m thick, built of compounds.

On the walls of the corridor’s two ends still remain two “phu dieu” panes of the door-guarding deity with the majestic look. The altar inside the temple worships the “bai vi” of those leading to the development of  the new land and establishment of villages, including Le Van Xuyen, Le Thi Loi and Le Luu. Ngoc Lang temple also worships the White Horse deity, a Vietnamese people’s important belief.