Hung Lo - the village from legend

I was born in a village in the Northern Delta. As a child, my childhood passed in the communal house yard shaded by banyan trees, beside the curved communal house and pagoda roofs, beside the bustling sound of festival drums every spring. The communal house yard back then was the playground for the children of my hometown. Then time passed, the years of rain and sun, changes swept away the old communal house roof of the place where I was born...

Hung Lo ancient village communal house is over 300 years old.

I was born in a village in the Northern Delta. As a child, my childhood passed in the communal house yard shaded by banyan trees, beside the curved communal house and pagoda roofs, beside the bustling sound of festival drums every spring. The communal house yard back then was the playground for the children of my hometown. Then time passed, the years of rain and sun, changes swept away the old communal house roof of the place where I was born...

Where memories echo

Then, the void in my memory returned when I visited the ancient village of Hung Lo (Van Phu ward, Phu Tho province). Passing through the village gate, I felt like I was going back in time. The ancient communal house roof, the mossy tiled houses, the sound of the wind blowing through the treetops, all awakened childhood memories that I thought had been sleeping.

The ancient features of the communal house have evoked ancient memories for many visitors when they come to visit.

We came to the village without an appointment, but luckily we met Mr. Nguyen Van Tong, who is 80 years old this year and is one of the two village temple custodians. In his story, we heard him passionately talk about the ancient village of Hung Lo - his hometown.

Mr. Nguyen Van Tong, the head of Dinh Hung Lo temple, told stories from the time of land reclamation and village establishment.

He said: Hung Lo communal house was built more than 300 years ago during the Later Le Dynasty. At first, it was just a small communal house. In 1938, King Bao Dai - the last king of the Nguyen Dynasty, rebuilt it to its current size. The communal house still retains 11 royal decrees and valuable historical treasures.

Currently, Hung Lo communal house still preserves 11 royal decrees from the post-Le and Nguyen dynasties.

After the war, the communal house is still as majestic and imposing as when it was first built. However, the Hung Lo people have lived here since the time of the Hung Kings. Today, the village still preserves many traditional cultural features and handicrafts. Currently, the village still has about 50 ancient wooden houses over 100 years old, some of which are up to 200 years old.

Old houses are located among newly built houses in Hung Lo village.

Hung Lo ancient houses are built facing south or southeast, facing the river, in harmony with nature. In each ancient house, on the rafters, beams, beams, and roof beams, there are exquisite carvings of pine, bamboo, chrysanthemum, apricot, unicorn, unicorn, turtle, and phoenix.

Hung Lo communal house still preserves many unique and original architectural features.

Not only preserving the architecture, the villagers also maintain the lifestyle of many generations living under the same roof, passing on the profession from generation to generation. Today, the ancient houses in Hung Lo have become a tourist destination. “After visiting the communal house and enjoying Xoan singing, an “intangible heritage of humanity” recognized by UNESCO, visitors are invited to enter the ancient house, chat with the owner, listen to village stories, admire the architecture, take photos next to the moss-covered tiled roof; experience wrapping Xom banh chung, taste the fragrant sticky flavor, feel the love of the countryside through each grain of rice and piece of meat,” Mr. Tong shared.

The village comes out of legend

Hung Lo ancient village is only about ten kilometers from Hung Temple. The communal house - temple - ancient house complex here includes Dai Dinh, Long Dinh, Chuong Tower, Trong Tower, Van Chi House... which has been recognized as a national relic by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism . Therefore, when I set foot on this land, I was able to fully experience the culture from the Hung King period that the village elders such as Mr. Tong and Mr. Ham still tell their children and visitors.

The complex of communal houses, temples and ancient houses in Hung Lo has been recognized as a national relic by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Legend has it that in ancient times, King Hung and his courtiers traveled to this area. Seeing the fertile land and lush vegetation, he advised the people to reclaim the land and establish villages. Later generations, the people built a temple to worship the King, and the festival has been passed down to this day. Every year, from the 9th to the 13th of the third lunar month, the village carries palanquins and offerings to Hung Temple. The procession has thousands of people, with drums and flags, singing Xoan songs, and lion and lion dances.

The carvings at Hung Lo communal house bear the mark of a unique culture of a prosperous period of development.

In addition to its ancient beauty, Hung Lo today is also a dynamic locality, promoting traditions to develop the economy . The craft village of rice noodles, banh chung, banh da... not only serves the people but also sells to many places, creating jobs for dozens of workers.

Hung Lo villagers still preserve and develop many traditional crafts, including making rice noodles.

Mr. Pham Van Chanh, whose house is right next to Hung Lo communal house, was a veteran who fought to protect the northern border at the Lao Cai front. After returning from the war, he traveled everywhere, doing all kinds of jobs to make a living. But in the end, he returned to his father's traditional rice noodle business. Up to now, he has been in the profession for 30 years.

From a small-scale manual production facility, Mr. Chanh’s family’s Phan Doan rice noodle production facility now sells 16 to 17 tons of rice noodles every month to many places. Like Mr. Chanh’s family, many families in Hung Lo have preserved and grown from their traditional occupation.

The rice noodle making profession has been maintained by Mr. Pham Van Chanh's family for over 30 years.

Despite many rice seasons and many generations of people, Hung Lo still maintains the harmony between the past and the present. The village is like a living museum, where each tile, carving, and Xoan song tells a story from hundreds of years ago.

Through the ups and downs, Hung Lo ancient village still retains its unique cultural features like a living museum.

In the afternoon, standing in front of the old communal house, watching the children playing in the yard, I felt like I was back when I was a child running barefoot under the shade of the banyan tree, innocently amidst the sound of festival drums. The only difference is that the communal house roof of my hometown is gone, but the Hung Lo communal house roof still stands there, steadfast with time, protecting the memories of many generations.

Hung Lo ancient village is like a link between legend and real life.

Leaving the village, I felt like I had just passed through a door connecting legend and reality. Hung Lo is not only a tourist destination, but also a testament to the fact that cultural values, if cherished and preserved, will last forever, just like the echoes of the Hung King era resounding somewhere, in a peaceful village by the Lo River.

Manh Hung

Source: https://baophutho.vn/hung-lo-ngoi-lang-buoc-ra-tu-huyen-su-237895.htm