The power of Vietnamese Villages

Villages and Guilds are the most specific feature of Vietnam culture. Vietnamese culture has involved on the basis of the rice culture. Thus, the lifestyle of the Vietnamese is closely related to the village and native land.

In Vietnamese society, people have gathered together to form villages in rural areas and guilds in urban areas since the dawn of the nation. These organizations have gradually developed so that the population is more stable and closer together.

The gate of village

Each villages has its own regulations which are called conventions (hương ước). These conventions are very different from different villages and guilds, however, they are always in accordance with state laws and they ensure the promotion of good customs within its population. Convention of a village plays an important role in villagers' life, stabilizes the good habits and customs in the village.
The power of the convention is based on its regulations of punishment. The worst punishment is to be forced to leave the village. Ethnic groups in Tay Nguyen consider the village as the most important things in their life, they are ready to die in their own village more than leave the village where they were born.

A page of convention

A lot of conventions are kept in the Vietnam History Museum in Hanoi (No.1, Pham Ngu Lao Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi)

Vietnamese Communal House is also a typical architecture in the countryside of Vietnam. This is the place where people gather together on special occasions discussing important issues in the village. The communal house is also for villagers worshiping the Genie who saves and protects the villagers' life.

Communal House

The word "village" is translated into Vietnamese in many ways depending on each region. In the north, it's called "bản", "mường" for some ethic groups Tay, Nung, Thai, Muong..., "Làng" for Kinh (Viet). In the south, it is called "thôn", "buôn", "sóc"...

Khúc hát sông quê

Ca trù (Hát ả đào)- traditional stage performance

This type of song took shape in the 15th century and was performed at communal houses. From the beginning, it was appreciated by many Confucian scholars and madarins. I then became court music which acquired its noble character.


Hat a dao is like singing a poems, that is why it is called saying-singing music . The singing technique is rather refined and meticulous. Without a good understanding the literacy value of the songs and of the harmony between the singer and the accompanying instruments, it may be difficult to fully appreciate this art.

There are three main performers on the stage: a female singer playing her "phach" (small wooden sticks beaten on a small bamboo platform to serve as percussion), a man playing "dan day" (a long-necked, 3-string lute) and a spectator who plays "trong chau" (praise drum).

Famous ca tru singing songs: Hồng hồng tuyết tuyết, Khen ai khéo vẽ, Đêm chia lửa, Tỳ bà hành, Hương Sơn phong cảnh, Tự tình, Gặp xuân...

Listen to a ca tru song: Thành phố rồng bay (The city of flying dragon) by Kim Ngoc- Linh Huong- Thuy Long



Where can you listen to ca tru song in Vietnam? Go to visit Thang Long Ca Tru Singing
Address: number 40- 32, Khuong Trung, Thanh Xuan, Hanoi, VN
Email: info@catruthanglong.com
Site: http://www.catruthanglong.com


Contact: suongcam@hotmail.com and hongngoc.nguyen241@gmail.com

Vietnamese Water Puppet (Mua Roi Nuoc)

History:

Vietnamese Water Puppet originated from the Red River Delta of Vietnam in the tenth century. Some of the earliest troupes are in Nguyên Xá commune, Đông Hưng district, Thai Binh province. Water puppetry is deeply imbued with the cultural characteristics of the people of this area. This unique art first appeared around the 15^th century, when post-harvest, artists who were also farmers would gather to perform and relax. The custom remains today in many localities in the Red River Delta such as Dao Thuc, Phu Da, Dong Ca, Nguyen Xa, Dong Ngu, Nhan Hoa and Nam Chan.

In ancient Vietnam, the rural Vietnamese believed that spirits controlled all aspects of their life, from the kitchen to the rice paddies. That is the reason why the farmers in this region devised a form of entertainment and worship to satisfy these spirits. Water puppetry is the lively creation of farmers who spent their days in flooded rice fields. At some point, they discovered that the water was an excellent medium for puppetry: it not only concealed the puppeteers' rod and string mechanisms, but it also provided exciting effects like waves and splashes.

When water puppetry became more popular, villages competed against each other with their puppet shows. This led puppet societies to be secretive and exclusive, including an initiation ceremony that involved drinking rooster blood.

So far this art form has been unique to North Vietnam. Tourists can enjoy this kind of art all days in a week at Thang Long Puppet Theatre, which is the most well known one in Ha Noi.

Performance

For over a thousand years, performers in Vietnamese Water Puppet Theater’s feet have always suffered in cold and wet condition. Water puppetry is performed in a chest-deep pool of water, with the water's surface as a stage. The puppeteers stand behind a screen and control the puppets using long bamboo rods and string mechanism hidden beneath the water surface.

The puppet is carved out of wood and often weighs up to 15 kg. A large rod supports the puppet under the water and is used by the puppeteers to control them. The appearance is of the puppets moving over the water. The puppets enter from either side of the stage, or emerge from the murky depths of the water. In the past when the rice fields were flooded the villagers would entertain each other using this puppet form.

A traditional Vietnamese orchestra provides background music accompaniment. Singers of Cheo (a form of opera) with origin in North Vietnam sing the songs which tell the story being acted out by the puppets. Performances of up to 18 short scenes are usually introduced by a pig-tailed bumpkin known as Teu, and accompanied by a small folk orchestra. The musicians and the puppets interact during performance; the musicians may yell a word of warning to a puppet in danger or a word of encouragement to a puppet in need.

Along with singing the atmosphere, while the decorations set the stage for each particula, traditional musical instruments like drums, wooden bells, cymbals, horns, two-string Chinese violins and flutes create r style of water puppetry. Researcher Nguyen Huy Hong believes that water puppetry combines sculpture, architecture, painting, music, stage and literature.

Content

The theme of the skits is rural and has a strong reference to Vietnamese folklore. It tells of day-to-day living in rural Vietnam and Vietnamese folk tales that are told older generation to younger generation. Of which stories of the harvest, of fishing and of festivals are highlighted.

The water also provides the best setting for the puppeteers' theme: day-to-day village life. Water puppets bring wry humor to scenes of farming, fishing, festival events such as buffalo fights, and children's games of marbles and coin-toss. Fishing turns into a game of wits between the fisherman and his prey, with the fisherman getting the short end (often capturing his surprised neighbor by mistake). Besides village life, scenes include legends and national history. Lion dogs romp like puppies while dragons exhale smoke and shoot sprays of water at the audience. Teu, a pig-tailed bumpkin, is the character who usually plays the role of introducing the performances. The introduction is always accompanied by a small folk orchestra. Spotlights and colorful flags adorn the stage and create a festive atmosphere.

Legends and national history are also told through short skits. Many of the skits, especially those involving the tales of day-to-day living, often have a humorous twist.

Water puppetry has always gone hand in hand with festivals. Each Lunar March 13, Bo Duong villagers hold village festival to commemorate their tutelary god. Aside from worship, the festival is also an opportunity for villagers to relax by watching water puppetry, taking in fireworks displays, flying kites and entering cock-fighting contests. The festival always attracts thousands of attendants. Village festivals are great wind down for farmers and artists alike.

Vietnamese Beliefs and Religions

Viet Nam is a country of many religions and beliefs. The Vietnamese people have a time-honored tradition of practicing their beliefs. Different ethnic groups in Viet Nam have different beliefs linked to their own material and spiritual lives.

1. Traditional beliefs:

- Prosperous Beliefs (Tín ngưỡng phồn thực): In the past, in order to maintain and develop the life, Vietnamese people had to rely on the agriculture (rice planting), the people were born and grown up. Prosperous beliefs are manifested by two ways: the cult of male and female sex organs and the cult of copulating act. It is different from India, which only worships the male sex organ.

You can many statues in My Son Sanctuary which show the cult of male and female sex organs or there is a festival which is on 6th January in Dong Ky (Bac Ninh), people procession male and female sex organs then burn them and give cinders to people in the village for the luck.


The cult of copulating act is shown in kettledrum which was found in Dao Thinh Village- Yen Bai Province.
The cult of copulating act:



- Worship of Nature (Tín ngưỡng sùng bái tự nhiên): Vietnamese worshiped a large number of gods, especially those related to agriculture such as the sun, the moon, land, mountain, river and forest, etc... for good luck. Vietnamese often worshiped 4 deities: Cloud- Rain- Thunder- Lightning. Besides, Vietnamese also worshiped many kinds of animals such as toad, buffalo, snake, crocodile… but the most common is Fairy Dragon (Rồng Tiên).


- Worship of People (Tín ngưỡng sùng bái con người)
Vietnamese practices the cult of ancestors which some persons would ascribe to Chinese cultural influences. In fact, the cult of ancestors has existed for a long time among the inhabitants of Vietnam. Chinese cultural influence has only given more emphasis to it. The cult of ancestors has been called “Đạo ông bà”, as a religion in Vietnam.


A communal house (Thành Hoàng) exists in every village of Northern and Central Vietnam. The community house is the place where the villagers gather to discuss their own problems and where the village genie is worshiped.


Hồn (Spirit) and Vía: Vietnamese has believed that a person has 2 parts: body and spirit. Vía is considered as a intermediary part between body and spirit. Vietnamese man has 3 hồn and 7 vía while a woman has 3 hồn and 9 vía. 7 vía are 2 ears, 2 eyes, 2 nostrils and the mouth but a woman has more two vía- 2 nipples.

Four Immortal Deities (Tứ Bất Tử): Tan Vien represents for the resistance of calamity and flood, Thanh Giong- the resistance of foreign invaders, Chu Dong Tu- the prosperity of things and Lieu Hanh- the prosperity of morality.

2. Vietnamese Religions: Viet Nam has a diverse mix of major religions with a large number of followers, religious figures, and monks such as Buddhism, Christianity and Muslim and some indigenous religions such as Caodaism and Hoa Hao…

- Buddhism: There are two sects of Buddhism: Mahayana and Theravada (Hinayana). Mahayana Buddhism was introduced in Viet Nam in the 2nd century B.C, and Theravada was introduced in Viet Nam in the 2nd century A.D. After the 10th century, Buddhism developed very quickly in Viet Nam and became the national religion under the Ly-Tran dynasty.


- Catholicism: Catholicism was introduced in Viet Nam in the 15th century by European missionaries. Catholicism was first popular in coastal provinces such as Thai Binh, Nam Dinh, Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa and Nghe An, etc., then spread throughout the Red River delta and cities.


- Protestantism: Protestantism was introduced in Viet Nam in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, it was not until 1920 that Protestantism became popular all over the country. At present, there are one million Protestants and 500 Protestant churches in Viet Nam.

- Muslim: Muslim religion was introduced in Viet Nam by the Cham people in the 10th and 11th centuries.

- Caodaism (Đạo Cao Đài): Caodaism is an indigenous religion created in Tay Ninh province in 1926. Caodaism worships three Supreme Beings namely Buddha, Jesus Christ and Cao Dai God. The centre of Caodaism is Tay Ninh province.


- Hoa Hao (Đạo Hòa Hảo): Hoa Hao, also called Hoa Hao Buddhism, is another indigenous religion created in 1939 in Hoa Hao Village, Tan Chau District, An Giang Province.





References:
1. Book: Such is Vietnam, National Political Publishing House
2. Sites: www.wikipedia.com, www. vietnamembassy-cambodia.com