The complex of relics including Mang Son Temple, Son Trung communal house, and Son Dong communal house is a place of worship for Tan Vien Son Thanh - the leading deity among the "Four Immortals" of Vietnamese folk beliefs, holding a particularly important position in the spiritual life of ancient Vietnamese people.
The Mang Son Temple Festival begins early in the morning. Besides the villagers' rituals, there's a very solemn and impressive procession of palanquins. Young men are responsible for carrying the palanquins. Three palanquins, each carrying the ancestral tablets of the Three Holy Deities of Tan, are carried up to the Mang Son Temple.
Each palanquin is carried by eight people; outside, one person holds an umbrella, another carries a flag and dances to lead the way, and another beats a drum to chant slogans to disperse the crowd. The palanquin of Saint Tan Vien also has two large fans to shield it on either side.
Symbolizing the Three Holy Deities of Tan, the statue is seated on a palanquin, wearing a golden crown, a white silk robe, a red silk cloak, a canary yellow imperial robe, a dragon-embroidered belt, and tiger-footed boots.
After the ceremonial rituals and the procession of the palanquin, the festival continues with many fun activities such as wrestling, archery, swinging on trees, and folk singing.
In his opening remarks at the festival, Nguyen The Hung, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Committee of Doai Phuong commune, said that this was an opportunity for the Party Committee, the government, and the people to express their profound respect and gratitude to Tan Vien Son Thanh - a legendary hero of the nation. It also contributed to preserving and promoting the fine traditional cultural values of the Doai region.
"He is a symbol of strength and courageous fighting spirit in the struggle against foreign invaders to protect national sovereignty and the people; at the same time, he embodies the aspiration to conquer nature and maintain peace for all people," the Chairman of the People's Committee of Doai Phuong commune emphasized.
According to historical accounts, during his travels, Saint Tan Vien visited the Son Dong region. Impressed by the fertile and beautiful scenery and the kind-hearted people, he decided to stay and built a palace on Mang Son hill.
Saint Tan taught the people how to hunt, raise silkworms and weave silk, cultivate the land to ward off disasters and calamities, helping them settle down and establish their livelihoods. He also led troops to suppress invaders, protect the borders of the country, and prevent floods from the Da and Hong rivers, bringing about peace and prosperity, preserving national security and the people's well-being.
After Saint Tan Vien left Son Dong, the villagers, remembering his contributions, erected a temple to worship him and his two cousins, Cao Son and Quy Minh. Every year, they hold the Mang Son Temple festival to commemorate them.
The temple was built in the early 17th century on a high hill in the middle of Son Dong village. The architecture of Mang Son Temple includes a ceremonial gate, a main hall, a sanctuary, and side chambers; the dragon throne, ancestral tablets, and palanquins are all intricately carved; the horizontal plaques, couplets, incense burners, and the pair of four-spirit shrines were all created in the 17th century; the four-sided stone stele was carved with Chinese characters in 1746…
With its historical and cultural value, in 1997, the complex of Mang Son Temple, Son Trung communal house, and Son Dong communal house was recognized as a historical and cultural relic by the People's Committee of Ha Tay province (formerly). And on April 15, 2022, it was granted national-level relic status by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. This is an honor and a source of pride for the people of Son Dong in the past and Doai Phuong today.
In recent years, the Party, the government, and all sectors of the local population, along with the generous contributions of visitors from all over, have united their efforts to rebuild and restore the Mang Son Temple, Son Trung Communal House, and Son Dong Communal House complex, making it "majestic and sacred," worthy of its status as an ancient temple among the temples dedicated to Saint Tan Vien in the Xu Doai region.
Since 1993, in accordance with the wishes of the people, every year on the 7th day of the first lunar month, the local community holds a procession to carry the statues of the three Holy Deities on a sightseeing tour, expressing the people's respect for the deities who have contributed to the nation.
Mr. Nguyen The Hung emphasized that the traditional festival of the Mang Son temple complex, Son Trung communal house, and Son Dong communal house is an opportunity for the people of the commune and visitors from all over to attend the festival, pray for favorable weather, "national peace and prosperity," and pray for happiness and peace for everyone and every family.
Entering the new year of the Horse, with renewed faith, spirit, and determination, all cadres, Party members, and people of Doai Phuong commune are determined to unite, compete in labor, study, and work, striving to successfully complete the goals and tasks of 2026, contributing to building an increasingly prosperous, beautiful, and civilized homeland.
Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/tung-bung-khai-hoi-den-mang-son-206311.html
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