Unique sitting tug of war game at Tran Vu Temple Festival

Unique sitting tug of war game at a festival in Hanoi

Thursday, April 11, 2024 19:06 PM (GMT+7)

The Tran Vu Temple Festival is held annually on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month to show people's respect for the gods. The highlight of the festival is the "Sitting Tug of War" ritual - recognized as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity, attracting hundreds of people to cheer.

Video : Unique sitting tug of war game at Tran Vu Temple Festival.

The Sitting Tug of War ritual is associated with the Tran Vu Temple Festival (Thach Ban Ward, Long Bien District, Hanoi) taking place on April 11 (ie March 3 of the lunar calendar).

Sitting tug of war is a unique cultural value of the traditional festival of Tran Vu temple and is a long-standing social and religious custom in the festival of Cu Linh village - Thach Ban commune, Gia Lam district - now Ngoc Tri cluster, Thach Ban ward, Long Bien district. The sitting tug of war ritual has 3 teams participating: Cho side, Duong side and Dia side.

Participants are local youth and students aged 18-35. Men tug of war are shirtless, wearing red shorts, a red belt and a red head scarf (with letters printed for each side).

After the ceremony, the tug-of-war pole is raised three times by the team captains to raise the morale and spirit of the participants.

The drummer who controls the sitting tug of war match is called the drummer.

After threading the bamboo stick through the hole, the teams get into position to prepare for the competition.

After the signal is given by whistle or loudspeaker, the wedge is removed, the flag bearer runs up and down. The two teams try their best to pull towards their side to win. The 57 village boys are divided into 3 teams, each team will have 19 athletes and a flag bearer.

Each person had to use their hands to hold the pole tightly and their feet to create a deep hole in the ground to create force. Most of the participants were strong, muscular young men.

If the two teams are tied after 10 minutes, the referee will declare a draw.

The flag bearer ran up and down, waving the command flag in the faces and heads of his team's pullers to both signal and give them more strength.

With each cheer, the team members put all their strength into pulling the rope through the hole in the ironwood.

A large crowd of people came to join in and cheer, creating a bustling atmosphere.

The effort and determination of each pull is clearly shown in each participant.

“Sitting tug of war” not only shows the health of each player but also the spirit of solidarity between the tug of war player, the flag bearer, and the cheerleader.

Writing

Source: https://danviet.vn/doc-dao-tro-keo-co-ngoi-tai-le-hoi-den-tran-vu-20240411115209268.htm