On the morning of February 20 (January 11), the Sai Temple Festival was solemnly held by the villagers of Thuy Loi (Thuy Lam Commune, Dong Anh District, Hanoi ). With the rituals of carrying "living kings and lords", the festival attracted a large number of people and tourists.
Procession at Sai Temple this morning
A series of "fake" fortune tellers inside the historical relic of Sai Temple
According to Thanh Nien , during the festival, in the area behind Sai Temple, dozens of fortune tellers spread out mats, displayed books, playing cards, and even wore employee badges from the organizing committee to attract people and tourists.
A series of "fake" fortune tellers spread mats in Sai temple
When they saw people passing by with fortune-telling sticks, these people quickly offered to "read fortunes", tell fortunes, predict the future through tarot cards, physiognomy, palm reading... at a price of their choice and attracted hundreds of people to stop and have their fortunes told.
Posing as a tourist in need of fortune telling, the reporter asked a woman to interpret the fortune-telling he had done in Sai Temple. This woman said that the fortune-telling was very good, indicating that this year would be healthy, with God-given health; business would be satisfying in the heart, everything would be successful, no matter what; graves would be peaceful; love would be as desired... The fortune-telling only showed a little bad omen of illness, which is something that is hard for anyone to avoid in a year.
Some people wear service staff badges of the Sai Temple festival organizing committee.
When the reporter asked: "Will you get married this year?", the fortune teller replied: "If the fortune-telling is correct, you can get married. This depends on your mind. If the two people are compatible, have the same age, and are compatible, they can become husband and wife," the fortune teller said. However, in reality, the reporter got married last year (2023).
The reporter continued to ask: "Now I only have 100 million, this year I want to buy a house worth 2 billion in Hanoi, is that possible?", the fortune teller replied: "According to the fortune telling, it is possible, now I only have 100 million but this year I can meet a friend or relative who will help me borrow money, then I will work to pay off the debt, that's it", the fortune teller commented.
With the same questions, the reporter continued to see the fortune tellers nearby. Through the palm lines, the fortune teller commented: "This year you will have good health, smooth business, lost things will be found, your grave will be peaceful, your ancestral tomb will shine upon you; at home you will have little fortune, but you will have a lot of traveling. If you are not married this year, you should get married, late around September - October, early around April - May. After getting married, you will have 2 children, one boy and one girl...".
People come to have their fortunes told
"If you only have 200 million and want to buy a house worth 2 billion, this year will be difficult, you can only buy a car," the fortune teller continued. The reporter continued to ask: "So when can I buy a house?" and received the answer: "When will I get married?" In fact, the reporter already had a wife but still could not buy a house.
Continuing to ask about his future through tarot cards, the reporter received more general answers such as "if you pray for wealth, you will get wealth, if you pray for fortune, you will get fortune, if you pray for peace, you will get peace, whatever you pray for will be granted". However, when asked about a specific issue such as "when will you get married, have children, buy a house...", the fortune teller always gave general answers such as "after the age of 30" or "before the age of 50, you will have health problems" or "you will be rich later".
According to research, the fortune tellers all confirmed that they had learned from Confucian scholars in the village or from books and most importantly, they were "permitted by the organizing committee to practice in Sai temple".
People "lost money unjustly" but still like to hear it
As one of the fortune tellers here, Mr. Phan Chi Hieu (30 years old, living in Thanh Xuan District, Hanoi) said he just spent 60,000 VND on 3 fortune telling sessions including divination, palm reading, and tarot card reading.
"After watching, I realized I had lost money for nothing. They spoke very well, praised a lot and painted a bright future, but it was all general and even inaccurate," said Mr. Hieu.
Palm reading in Sai Temple
Spending 20,000 VND to have a tarot card reading, Mr. NTT (from Ha Tinh ) shared that through word of mouth, he found fortune telling at Sai Temple very sacred so he tried it on his first visit to this temple.
"When I drew cards, I drew many 'hearts' cards. The fortune teller immediately said I was lucky in love and needed to choose carefully. At that time, I was very amused because I already had a wife and children," said Mr. T.
Unlike Mr. Hieu and Mr. T., Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu (21 years old, living in Hanoi) knew that the information the fortune tellers gave was incorrect, but she still spent money to have her palms and physiognomy read.
"They all complimented me so I didn't really believe it. However, in the first days of the year, I wanted to hear this to be positive and try harder," Thu said.
Speaking with Thanh Nien , Mr. Nguyen Van Thu, Chairman of the People's Committee of Thuy Lam commune, Head of the organizing committee of Sai temple festival, affirmed that fortune-telling activities in Sai temple are not allowed, the government will send people to check and handle.
Regarding the fortune tellers wearing the organizing committee's cards to practice, Mr. Thu affirmed that the organizing committee does not issue this type of card, and those wearing the organizing committee's cards are all fake.
Sai Temple, also known as Huyen Thien Dai Quan or Chan Linh Quan, was ranked as a National Historical and Architectural Relic according to Decision No. 15/VH/QD/1986 dated January 27, 1986 of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
Sai Temple relic is an architectural work built around the Le Dynasty to worship the god Huyen Thien Tran Vu, who helped King Thuc An Duong Vuong eliminate evil spirits to build Co Loa citadel.
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