A remnant of the ancient craft of the old capital remains: Three generations have preserved the sound of the wooden bell in the Buddhist monastery.

In a small garden on a hilltop in Thuy Xuan (Hue City), the rhythmic sound of wood being chiseled for making wooden gongs echoes. The three Pham brothers diligently preserve this rare craft associated with the Buddhist monastic life of Hue.

MAINTAIN A PURE AND CLEAR TONE

"Tap, tap, tap…", the sound echoed steadily, with each tap of the mallet from Pham Ngoc Duc (38 years old). After the wooden gong was carved on the outside and the "tongue" hollowed out, it was entering the process of hollowing out the inside to "get the sound." This is the most difficult stage of gong making. Each tap of the mallet by Mr. Duc is both a technical maneuver and a way of assessing the sound, to know if the inside of the gong is hollow enough and if the sound has reached its full potential.

A massive, beautifully carved and decorated ceremonial gong. PHOTO: HOANG SON

"The wooden clapper is an indispensable ritual instrument in Buddhism, used when chanting scriptures and performing rituals at temples or at home. The clapper helps maintain rhythm, stabilize the mind, and create solemnity and tranquility. In this profession, one must also have a pure mind to produce beautiful strokes and a pleasant sound from the clapper," Mr. Duc said.

For over 20 years, the three brothers Pham Ngoc Hai (41 years old), Pham Ngoc Duc, and their twin brother Pham Ngoc Phuc have been intimately connected with jackfruit wood, treating it like a lifelong companion. From this garden, the wooden gongs accompany monks to temples and private homes, silently contributing to religious life.

Anh Duc recounted that the craft came to him and his brothers not through formal schooling, but through watching their grandfather and father wield chisels, saws, and hammers... In the early days, their hands were clumsy, and they often ruined pieces of wood while carving. "We grew up hearing the sound of chisels. All three brothers started learning at the age of 15, but it took many years to make a proper wooden gong," Anh Duc said.

According to Mr. Duc, to make a good wooden gong, one must choose the heartwood of a 100-year-old, golden-yellow jackfruit tree. Young or older wood is unsuitable as it will produce an inaccurate sound. The wood is also selected based on the region and soil conditions. In some areas, the jackfruit wood has large but porous heartwood. This is a rather labor-intensive process because large jackfruit trees are not easy to find these days. Once the wood is deemed suitable, the craftsman must shape it for rough cutting. Next comes the carving and shaping process. After completing the carving or smoothing the surface, the hollowing out of the wood to create the sound for the gong is then carried out.

In terms of form, traditional Hue -style prayer bells come in two types: plain bells (without patterns) and carved bells. The decorative motifs on the bells are usually the same: the image of "two dragons guarding a pearl" with dragon scales covering the entire body of the bell. The two dragon heads are located on the handle, which is stylized with a round longevity symbol in the center. The bells are elaborately and exquisitely carved, so each one is a refined and eye-catching work of wood carving in itself…

HEADPHONES, CHISELING HANDS

According to the eldest brother, Pham Ngoc Hai, for those who have been involved in the craft for many years, the difficulty in making a wooden gong lies not in its external appearance but in the inner workings, which determine the entire sound. "No matter how beautiful the decoration, if the sound isn't right, it's useless. A wooden gong, after all, is just a lifeless block of wood, so the key is to awaken its potential," Hai said.

The inside of the wooden bell has been hollowed out using a unique carving technique. PHOTO: HOANG SON

"Sometimes you have to chisel and listen, listen and chisel again, adjusting little by little. This process completely depends on experience accumulated over many years," Mr. Hai said, further analyzing: "The wooden clappers differ not only in size but also in the 'taste' of each region. The sound is different in the North than in the South. Hue is even different. Some clappers sound normal when played at home, but sound better when played in a temple. The space also determines the sound."

Therefore, when "tuning" the wooden gong, the craftsman must choose a suitable space, simultaneously striking and hollowing out the gong with special chisels, gradually adjusting it little by little to achieve the desired sound. This work does not allow for haste, because even a slight mistake can ruin the gong, rendering many days of hard work wasted.

When asked about their income, the three brothers who make wooden bells just smiled kindly, saying that the profession provides work year-round, but it's difficult to get rich. Because once a bell is placed in a temple or private home, it's practically gone for years. Only when a new temple is built or a new person becomes a monk does the profession generate more work, so there are rarely peak seasons.

According to Mr. Pham Ngoc Phuc, the price of a wooden gong depends on its size. The smallest gongs have a diameter of about 10 cm, then the price increases in increments of 5 cm, ranging from a few hundred thousand dong to several tens of millions dong. "The largest one my brothers and I have ever made is currently located at a temple in Hai Phong , with a diameter of 1 meter, worth about 120 million dong," Mr. Phuc said. In addition to ready-made gongs for customers, they also accept custom orders, including many orders shipped to the United States, Australia, and several European countries.

All three brothers said that in Hue, their family is now almost the only one still practicing the craft of making wooden clappers. Previously, some people came to learn the trade, but once they started, they found it difficult to make a living. They learned the craft, but the real challenge was selling the products and making a living from it.

"The craft of making wooden clappers doesn't allow for sloppiness. Just one poorly made clapper can ruin both the effort and the reputation. Therefore, a craftsman isn't just selling a product; they're also upholding the family's craft honor," Hai shared. (to be continued)

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nghe-xua-co-do-con-mot-chut-nay-ba-doi-giu-tieng-mo-chon-thien-mon-185260209232549536.htm