Tu Cai Ceremony of the Dao people in Tam Duong: A milestone of maturity and cultural identity

Tu Cai Festival of the Dao ethnic group in Dau Bang, Lai Chau province. (Photo: VU LINH)

Tu Cai Festival of the Dao community in Dau Bang, Lai Chau province. (Photo: VU LINH)

The Tu Cai Festival is usually held in winter or early spring. This is the time of the year when farming is at its slowest, when the harvest season has ended. The ceremony is carefully prepared and has deep spiritual and cultural significance.

When a family has a child of age to perform the ritual, the father will proactively invite a shaman in the village and prepare full offerings such as pigs, chickens, wine, and rice to perform the ritual.

The ritual is performed by shamans. They are people who play a special role in the Dao community, are very knowledgeable about traditional rituals and pass on cultural knowledge to each generation.

During the ceremony, the shaman performs rituals to invite ancestors and gods to witness the sincerity and prayers of the homeowner and the son officially becomes an adult in the community.

The Dao people believe that only after performing the Tu Cai ceremony will a man be truly qualified to take on important tasks in the clan and community such as getting married, building a house, holding funerals and participating in clan meetings.

Through rituals, the Dao peopleeducate their children about filial piety, gratitude to ancestors, attachment to their roots and human morality. The Tu Cai ceremony is also an opportunity for the Dao community to strengthen relationships within the clan and village.

The festival space becomes an environment to nurture community sentiment, connect generations and strengthen social relationships. In particular, performing arts, ritual music , worship paintings, costumes and culinary elements all reflect the rich identity of the Dao people.

Due to the impact of modern life, many traditional rituals in mountainous provinces and highlands are facing the risk of being lost. However, the Tu Cai ceremony is still preserved by the Dao Dau Bang people in Tam Duong as part of the cultural flow of the nation.