Preserving the cultural and religious identity of the Ky Yen Thuong Dien festival in Binh Thuy communal house

This year's Ky Yen Thuong Dien festival at Binh Thuy communal house takes place from May 9-11 (April 12-14 of the lunar calendar). This is a traditional cultural and religious event that is a highlight of Can Tho in particular and the Mekong Delta in general.

Mr. Le Phuoc Loi, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Binh Thuy District (Can Tho City), said: The festival is held annually to preserve and promote historical and cultural relics; maintain and serve the religious needs of the people and tourists for the values of national cultural heritage at the relic site, creating a tourist highlight for the city as well as Binh Thuy District for domestic and international tourists; associated with tourism stimulus activities, economic recovery and development. This year's festival includes many rich activities, attracting the attention and participation of a large number of people.

The Thuong Dien Ceremony in the Ky Yen Festival of Binh Thuy communal house is a festival to worship the village's tutelary god (also known as the village's tutelary god). The ceremony begins with the ritual of taking the royal decree on a tour. Then comes the following rituals: worshiping the God of Agriculture, changing the royal decree's scarf, the main ceremony, building the court, worshiping the Ban Soan ceremony, the Tuc Yet ceremony, the main ceremony, the King's Majesty, the Mountain Lord, and the guests' farewell...

After the ceremony, the festival is held with many interesting and attractive folk games such as boat racing, tug of war, raspberry art contest, traditional opera singing...

In addition, within the framework of the event, there will be a space to display and introduce typical products of districts in the city; promote tourism of 9 districts; display and exhibit books and a question and answer contest about the history and culture of Can Tho...

This year in particular, an exhibition displaying the stamp collection of Binh Thuy Communal House was held. Previously, in 2024, the image of Binh Thuy Communal House was included by the Ministry of Information and Communications in the National Postage Stamp Program 2025 - creating conditions to widely promote this typical architectural relic to domestic and foreign tourists.

Ms. Duong Thu Hong, a native of Long Tuyen (Binh Thuy district), shared that every year she attends the Ky Yen Festival at Binh Thuy communal house with her relatives and friends. This year, she is over 70 years old, but she still looks forward to the day when she can participate in the festival. The rituals were fully and correctly recreated by the Organizing Committee, following the ancient rituals passed down from her ancestors. She also loves the traditional opera segments performed by the artists, feeling like she is returning to her youth...

With a long history and unique cultural features, Binh Thuy communal house (also known as Long Tuyen ancient temple) is one of the most typical national relics in Can Tho. This is the place that King Tu Duc granted the title of "Bon Canh Thanh Hoang" in 1852. After more than 200 years of construction, Binh Thuy communal house still retains its long-standing cultural and religious identities through its almost completely preserved architecture and the Ky Yen festivals held here.

The Ky Yen Festival at Binh Thuy Communal House is an important testament to the history of Vietnamese settlement in this land; the royal decree shows the recognition of the monarchy in terms of administration, the formation of villages and communal houses to worship Thanh Hoang. With great significance and many humanistic rituals, in January 2018, the Ky Yen Festival at Binh Thuy Communal House was included in the list of National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

The Ky Yen Dinh Binh Thuy Festival is not only an occasion for people to commemorate the merits of their ancestors who reclaimed the land and the tutelary gods who protected the country and its people, but also a unique community cultural activity space, contributing to strengthening people's belief in a peaceful and prosperous life.

This is one of the typical festivals that demonstrates the tradition of “When drinking water, remember its source,” a bridge between the past and the present, contributing to enriching spiritual life, preserving and transmitting precious traditional cultural values of our ancestors./.

(Vietnam News Agency/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/gin-giu-ban-sac-van-hoa-tin-nguong-le-hoi-ky-yen-thuong-dien-dinh-binh-thuy-post1037640.vnp