Nine Heavenly Goddess in folk beliefs in Hoi An

The presence of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu has contributed to creating a unique value in the system of worshiping gods in general and goddesses in particular. This also shows the mark of the historical Chinese-Vietnamese cultural exchange in Hoi An, creating a diversity of types of local intangible cultural heritage.

Copy of the royal decree of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu in the 7th year of Minh Mang (1826) in Quang Nam province's miscellaneous edition. Photo: V.T — Copy of the royal decree of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu in the 7th year of Minh Mang (1826) in Quang Nam province's miscellaneous works. Photo: VT

Origin and introduction

In Hoi An, the goddesses play an important role in the cultural and religious life of the residents and are the main or co-worshiping subjects in many communal houses and shrines with the respectful title of "Ba" such as Ba Bo Bo, Ba Phiem Ai, Ba Dai Can (Dai Can Tu Vi Thanh Nuong), Ba Ngu Hanh (Ngu Hanh Tien Nuong) or Bach Tho Kim Tinh... in Hoi An communal house, Cam Pho communal house, De Vong communal house, Ngu Hanh temple, Hiep Hoa temple, Ba Xa Tan Hiep temple, Ba Phuong Cam An temple...

Besides the above goddesses, there is also a goddess of Chinese origin worshiped by the Vietnamese community in Hoi An, that is Cuu Thien Huyen Nu. This goddess is considered one of the three Holy Ancestors of Chinese Taoism, so the worship of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu has a unique mark, showing the exchange and assimilation of Chinese culture.

The earliest known document recording the Nine Heavenly Goddess is the "Dung Thanh Tap Tien Truyen" compiled by the Chinese Taoist Du Quang Dinh (850 - 933).

The story records the story of this goddess, with the passage: “Cuu Thien Huyen Nu is the teacher of Hoang De, and the student of Thanh Mau Nguyen Quan (ie Tay Vuong Mau). Xi Vu created a disaster, with 81 brothers, beast-bodied and human-like… forming the Five Tigers to harm the common people, not following the Emperor’s orders. The Emperor wanted to fight it, Huyen Nu immediately passed on the Six-Armed Six-Ren Soldier-Tin charm to the Emperor…”.

Because of her merit in transmitting the Luc Giap Luc Nham talisman to help the Yellow Emperor defeat Xi Vu, Cuu Thien Huyen Nu is worshiped by the people as a symbol, meaning the deity representing military power.

Commenting on the Nine Heavenly Goddess, French Vietnam scholar Gustave Dumoutier (1850 - 1904) said: “The Nine Heavenly Goddess or the dark goddess in the heavens. She is the most noble existence in the nine heavens of Taoism, a deity who holds all military techniques, military books and always encourages the practices of sorcerers with military purposes. The Nine Heavenly Goddess decrees: on the 30th day of the Lunar New Year, draw a bow and arrow in the family yard to ward off evil spirits.” The Nine Heavenly Goddess also has the ability to suppress and ward off evil spirits.

Regarding the introduction of the worship of the Nine Heavenly Goddess in our country, there are still no specific documents. According to researcher Onishi Kazuhiko, the worship of the Nine Heavenly Goddess dates back to the Ly Dynasty. Onishi Kazuhiko cited two important sources of documents recording the worship of the Nine Heavenly Goddess.

The book “Dai Viet Su Luoc” volume 3, part 5 of Dai Dinh year 21 (1160) recorded that: “In the spring, January, Nhi Nu and Xi Vu temples were built in Bo Cai ward”. Regarding this record, the book “Tay Ho Chi” wrote about Huyen Nu temple as follows: “The temple is located in Loa district, Dam ward, Bo Cai area, now Trich Sai hamlet. The temple was built in the spring of Canh Thin year, Dai Dinh year 21, Ly Thai Tong era. At that time, Xi Vu caused chaos so the temple was built here to guard”. It can be seen that the worship of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu in Vietnam has absorbed the worship of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu from China.

Currently, the worship of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu is quite popular in some localities and regions such as Hue , the North, the South and this goddess is often worshiped in the top position along with other goddesses such as Thien YA Na Dien Ngoc Phi, Dai Can Tu Vi Thanh Nuong, Thanh Mau Lieu Hanh...

The worship of Nine Heavenly Goddesses in Hoi An

In Hoi An, Cuu Thien Huyen Nu is worshiped by the people at Cam Pho and Son Phong communal houses, these are two of the villages with a long history and play an important role in the development of Hoi An.

According to the document “Quang Nam Xa Chi” made by the Far East Archaeological Institute in 1943 - 1944, the worship of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu and the gods of the two villages have unknown origins and legends, most of the elders in the villages do not understand clearly. The ancient residents of these villages went through the process of cultural exchange and assimilation from many cultures such as Cham - Viet, Hoa - Viet, so the adoption of the worship of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu in Hoi An is understandable.

According to scholar Huynh Ngoc Trang: “Cuu Thien Huyen Nu also saves women, and is the founder of crafts… Cuu Thien Huyen Nu is worshiped in temples outside the communal house or right in the main hall of the communal house”.

Recording about Son Phong village, the document “Quang Nam Xa Chi” also stated: “The local products of this village are not significant. There are rice, potatoes, corn; in terms of agriculture, but not enough for the consumption of the villagers. Therefore, the occupations of this village are all specialized, such as trading, tailoring, carpentry, labor, coffin making…”. Perhaps this is one of the factors leading to the birth of the worship of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu in Son Phong village or Cam Pho in particular, in Hoi An in general.

Thus, compared to the worship of the Nine Heavenly Goddess in China, the worship of the Nine Heavenly Goddess in Hoi An and some localities in our country has a distinct feature, which is the goddess of crafts.

During the spring and autumn worshiping occasions at communal houses and shrines in Hoi An, Cuu Thien Huyen Nu is mentioned in the funeral orations. On this occasion, people together hold worshiping ceremonies, offer incense and gifts to thank the gods for their protection and help to the villagers have a peaceful life and a prosperous business.

The Nguyen Dynasty issued a royal decree to confer the title of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu and gave her the title of Duc Bao Trung Hung Huyen Nu. The total number of royal decrees to confer this deity is 9, of which Son Phong village has 7 royal decrees and Cam Pho village has 2 royal decrees. The earliest royal decree was in the 7th year of Minh Mang (1826), the latest was in the 9th year of Khai Dinh (1924). The list of royal decrees to confer the title of Cuu Thien Huyen Nu in Hoi An in the Quang Nam Xa Chi document was made by the Far East Archaeological Institute in 1943 - 1944.

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