The arduous path to spreading heritage

A graduation performance by a college student in Ho Chi Minh City, combining vocal music with drumming and traditional Vietnamese dance, has attracted much attention. This is a positive sign in recent years, as young people are increasingly interested in and rediscovering cultural heritage values. However, preserving centuries-old values ​​is not easy, because heritage needs to be placed in its proper context and maintained in its original form.

Distortion of heritage values

A graduation performance by a female student at a college in Ho Chi Minh City, combining the song "Phong Nu" (composed by Ho Hoai Anh) with the Chầu Văn folk song "Co Doi Thuong Ngan," along with drumming and a spirit medium dance, received praise from many teachers, friends, and the public who appreciate the heritage. However, some opinions from the community suggest that this combination is not entirely suitable for protecting the heritage of "The practice of worshipping the Mother Goddess of the Three Realms by the Vietnamese people."

Also related to this issue, in early 2025, the Vietnam Film Department requested the distributor of the film "404 Run Away" (Thailand) to remove the image of the character wearing the Mother Goddess costume, played by actress Uyen An, which was advertised after the film ended. According to the Film Department, this removal was to avoid causing misunderstandings and distortions of the meaning and value of the intangible cultural heritage "Practices of the Tam Phu Mother Goddess Worship of the Vietnamese People".

Practicing the spirit medium ritual at the Phu Day Temple of the Holy Mother, which also houses the shrine of the Trung Sisters (Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City). Photo: HOANG LINH

Previously, at the end of 2024, the Department of Cultural Heritage issued a document requesting the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Bac Ninh province to immediately rectify the improper activities of spirit medium rituals in the locality. The reason was that on October 24, 2024, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the province, in coordination with the People's Committee of Yen Phong district, organized the 2nd Bac Ninh Provincial Festival of Traditional Singing and Ritual Singing. However, upon inspection, the activities were found to be performances of the Tam Phu Mother Goddess worship (spirit medium rituals) on stage by several artisans and outstanding artisans from within and outside the province. This is a spirit medium performance that does not conform to the true nature and practice space of the heritage "Practices of Tam Phu Mother Goddess worship of the Vietnamese people".

Restore the sacred space.

In 2016, UNESCO inscribed "The Practice of the Mother Goddess Worship of the Three Realms of the Vietnamese People" as a Representative Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. At the same time, UNESCO also assessed it as one of the important heritages of the Vietnamese people, contributing to creating a spiritual bond connecting communities practicing the heritage, promoting tolerance among ethnic groups and religions, being compatible with international human rights regulations, and having no limitations on its practice.

In 2018, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism sent a document to the Departments of Culture and Sports/Departments of Culture, Sports and Tourism of provinces/cities under the central government to promptly inspect and correct offensive and distorted phenomena that deviate from the nature of the intangible cultural heritage "Practices of the Tam Phu Mother Goddess Worship of the Vietnamese People". Accordingly, spirit medium rituals should only be organized in places with Mother Goddess shrines or relics dedicated to the Mother Goddess; spirit medium rituals should not be organized in public areas as a type of tourism service or street music; and the dissemination of information and awareness among practitioners about the value of the heritage should be promoted, thereby advising against the excessive use of votive paper and offerings of money to be distributed during spirit medium rituals.

Regarding the trend of theatricalizing the Hầu Đồng ritual, leading to its "secularization," Professor Từ Thị Loan (former Acting Director of the Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts) analyzed: "To date, there are still two differing opinions on bringing the Hầu Đồng ritual to the stage. One supports it, arguing that it is an effective way to promote the image of the heritage to people both domestically and internationally. The other opposes it, arguing that it secularizes the ritual, diminishes its sacredness, is incompatible with the essence of the heritage, and distorts it. Meanwhile, if considered from the perspective of preserving cultural heritage according to the dossier submitted to UNESCO and the commitments of the Vietnamese Government, Hầu Đồng must be performed as a religious practice."

The story of preserving, conserving, and promoting the "Practices of the Tam Phu Mother Goddess Worship of the Vietnamese People" also reflects the difficulties and contradictions in preserving and promoting the value of this heritage. Preserving and promoting the value of this heritage first requires a thorough and accurate understanding of its original value, especially since the rituals and practices of this cultural and religious heritage must take place in sacred spaces. Therefore, the challenge of disseminating the value of this cultural heritage is not easy to solve in the contemporary context.

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Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/gian-nan-duong-lan-toa-di-san-post800043.html