The unique boat launching ceremony of the M'nong people

08:49, 04/06/2023

Coming to the scenic Lak Lake, most tourists like to sit on a dugout canoe to explore the natural beauty here. The image of a poetic dugout canoe reflected on the lake surface amidst the majestic clouds and sky has left a mark as a typical beauty of the Central Highlands in the hearts of tourists.

The dugout canoe is a unique handicraft of the M'nong people in Lak district. Due to the need to travel on water, the people have crafted dugout canoes from hundreds of years old Sao tree trunks. Each boat is a unique work of art bearing the creative imprint of the M'nong carpenter's hand. To make a dugout canoe, the M'nong people in Lak district not only have a unique way of choosing wood, the manufacturing process, the way of using it... but they also perform related rituals such as worshiping Yang, asking permission from the forest god before cutting down trees to make the boat and especially the boat launching ceremony, with the wish for luck and safety for the owner and the boat.

Re-enactment of the ceremony of launching a dugout canoe in Lak district.

According to Mr. Y Thanh Uong (M'nong ethnic group), a resident living on Lak Lake, "The ceremony to launch a dugout canoe in the M'nong language is "Truot plung mang dak". Truot can be understood as offering, praying for the boat, house, family to be safe and lucky. Plung mang dak means pushing the boat into the water, which means launching. Before putting the boat into use (pushing the dugout canoe into the lake to catch seafood), the M'nong people will slaughter pigs, kill chickens... perform the Truot plung mang dak ceremony to pray that even if there are big waves and strong winds, the boat will still glide on the waves like a snake swimming against the strong current, to return safely and the boat will be full of shrimp and fish...". Also according to Mr. Y Thanh, the dugout canoes in the past were made from star trees that were hundreds of years old in the forest. These are trees with large diameters, straight trunks, the older they are, the stronger they are, less susceptible to termites, warping, and can withstand being soaked in water longer than other types of trees. When a tree is found, people clear the surrounding area, place a raft near the tree, and bring offerings into the forest to invite a shaman to worship the forest god and the tree god, then proceed to cut down the tree and chisel and carve. The time to complete a quick dugout can take a month, sometimes several months.

Perform the ritual of launching a dugout canoe at Lak Lake.

Once the boat is finished, the homeowner will prepare the best jars of old rice wine, sticky rice, sweet soup, dried fish, salt, rice... and slaughter pork, and invite the best shaman to launch the boat. The ceremony begins with the Gong song, which is a gong song to call Yang back to witness and at the same time invite villagers to attend the ceremony, witness and celebrate with the homeowner. After the gong song ends, the shaman reads a prayer to call Yang back with the content: "Invite Yang river, Yang mountain, Yang forest, Yang boat to bless and protect the boat owner to be lucky and catch a lot of shrimp and fish. Thank the forest god for giving birth to and nurturing the big, strong tree to make the boat like this one". At the end of the prayer, the Gong song is played again to pray for favorable weather, good wind, health and prosperity for the homeowner and the village. After the gong performance ends, the shaman will sweep the pig's blood and sprinkle rice wine onto the boat with the meaning: The gods will witness, accept the offerings from the homeowner and from now on bless the boat owner with health and luck in catching lots of shrimp and fish. Finally, the Knah gong performance is played, the shaman will invite the boat owner to drink rice wine and wear a copper bracelet with the meaning of receiving a part of the offerings from Yang.

According to Director of the Lak District Cultural and Sports Communication Center Bui Xuan Tiep, for the M'nong people living along Lak Lake, dugout canoes are not only a means of transportation, an important labor tool that helps people catch seafood on rivers and lakes, transport food and provisions for daily meals, trade, and carry tourists to create income for their families, but also a valuable and unique asset that bears the identity of the people. The ritual of launching the dugout canoe was restored by the Lak District Cultural Department to preserve a unique cultural beauty of the M'nong people here.

King Zhang Yi

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