Opening Ceremony of the Tien Cong Festival

(NLĐO) - This is the largest and most unique festival in the Ha Nam island region, organized to commemorate the pioneers who contributed to the exploration and development of the area...

To commemorate the 591st anniversary of the pioneers who cleared and cultivated the land of Ha Nam Island (1434 - 2025), on February 2nd (the 5th day of the first lunar month of the Year of the Snake), the 2025 Tien Cong Festival was held at the Tien Cong Temple, a national historical and cultural relic in Cam La commune, Quang Yen town ( Quang Ninh province).

The descendants bring the elderly to the Tien Cong temple to perform the ceremony.

This is the largest and most unique spring festival in the Ha Nam island region, held to commemorate the founding ancestors who explored, reclaimed, and established this island. The Ancestor Festival is also an occasion for descendants to celebrate the longevity of the elderly, with a procession carrying the elderly to the Ancestor Temple.

The Tien Cong Festival in Ha Nam Island has been preserved and promoted by the people for over 300 years. In 2017, the Tien Cong Festival was honored as a national intangible cultural heritage.

Every year, the Tien Cong Festival has become a unique tourism product of Quang Yen town, attracting 30,000-40,000 visitors.

Maintaining the festival is not only an opportunity for villagers to remember the contributions of the founding ancestors, those who first built the dike and established the village, but also an opportunity for children to show filial piety to their parents, thereby educating younger generations about the principle of "drinking water and remembering the source"; and together preserving and protecting the beautiful traditional cultural values ​​left by our forefathers.

The processions escort the elderly man to the Tien Cong temple.

The Tien Cong Temple is a place of worship for 17 Tien Cong, who were primarily farmers and fishermen living along the lakes and rivers of Kim Nguu in Thang Long citadel and Nam Dinh province. In the 15th century, they and their families traveled down the Red River to the mouth of the Bach Dang River, gradually discovering and developing the land, building dikes, and reclaiming land from the sea to create the developed Ha Nam island region as it is today.

The Tien Cong Festival 2025 program will take place over three days, from February 2nd to February 4th (the 5th to the 7th day of the first lunar month), featuring a variety of cultural, sporting, and traditional folk games. The highlight will be the procession of the Venerable Elder in a palanquin to the Tien Cong Temple, a ceremony deeply rooted in Thang Long culture at the seaport, which will take place on the main festival day, the 7th day of the first lunar month.

Opening Ceremony of the Tien Cong Festival 2025

Mr. Duong Van Mui, 95 years old, from Cam La commune, celebrated his birthday with a thanksgiving ceremony at Tien Cong Temple.

This year's Tien Cong Festival is organized on a larger scale with 3 collective processions involving 35 elderly people. Accordingly, those who are 80, 90, or 100 years old will sit on hammocks and be carried by their descendants to the temple to offer sacrifices to Tien Cong. In addition, there are more than 100 groups of elderly people leading the procession to the Tien Cong temple.

During the three days of the Tien Cong festival, there will also be many interwoven cultural and sporting activities such as: human chess, card games, swing games, folk singing, tug-of-war…

Source: https://nld.com.vn/khai-mac-le-hoi-tien-cong-di-san-van-hoa-phi-vat-the-quoc-gia-196250202163359602.htm