Literature in the homeland of Trạng Trình

The poem, written in the Tang Dynasty style, has two very insightful concluding lines that speak of the organic relationship between the people and the nation, and the nation and the people: "From ancient times, the nation has taken the people as its foundation / To gain a nation, one must know that it is thanks to gaining the people."

For a long time, I've loved Nguyen Binh Khiem's poem "Leisure Scene": "A hoe, a spade, a fishing rod / Wandering aimlessly, regardless of others' pleasures / I, being foolish, seek solitude / The wise man, they go to bustling places / In autumn, I eat bamboo shoots; in winter, bean sprouts / In spring, I bathe in a lotus pond; in summer, I bathe in a lake / I drink wine under the shade of a tree / Looking at wealth and prosperity, it's like a dream." The author shows a deep understanding of life, people, and affairs through the word "leisure." For the elderly, the first thing is to find pleasure in solitude, tranquility, and freedom from competition: "I, being foolish, seek solitude / The wise man, they go to bustling places" ; Even matters of food and bathing locations were carefully chosen according to the season and weather of the day: "In autumn, eat bamboo shoots; in winter, eat bean sprouts / In spring, bathe in a lotus pond; in summer, bathe in a regular pond," "We should drink wine under the shade of a tree," and finally, the somewhat enlightened conduct of a wise person: "Seeing wealth and prestige as a dream."

Perhaps the two most memorable and beautiful lines in the poem belong to "I, the foolish, seek solitude / The wise man, he goes to bustling places." These two lines by Nguyen Binh Khiem encapsulate a profound paradox of Vietnamese wisdom: "Foolishness" here refers to the "wisdom of wisdom," refusing to compete and strive to maintain one's purity; "wisdom" refers to the "wisdom of foolishness," worldly wisdom, chasing after fame and fortune and wasting one's heart. "I seek solitude" means choosing tranquility to clearly see oneself and life. "He who seeks bustling places" means chasing after noise, competing for gain and loss, victory and defeat. Thus, these two lines not only distinguish two ways of life but also suggest a measure of wisdom and foolishness: He who knows how to take a step back to uphold his moral principles is the truly "wise" one.

This meticulously crafted book focuses on introducing selected authors and works by Khái Hưng (writer, one of the two founders of the "Self-Reliance Literary Group"), Trần Tiêu (writer, member of the "Self-Reliance Literary Group"), Trần Bảng (director, playwright, researcher of traditional Vietnamese opera, founding member of the Vietnam Writers Association), along with 17 writers who are currently members of the Vietnam Writers Association. Notably, Trần Bảng ( Ho Chi Minh Prize for Literature and Arts), Thi Hoàng, Trung Trung Đỉnh, and Nguyễn Thụy Kha were all awarded the State Prize for Literature and Arts.

Besides the writer Trung Trung Đỉnh, who achieved success in prose with his novels "Lost in the Forest" (Award A in the 1998-2000 Vietnam Writers Association Novel Competition) and "Battle Soldier" (Vietnam Writers Association Award 2000, ASEAN Literature Award 2000), I was particularly impressed with the poet Thi Hoàng. Thi Hoàng has published dozens of poetry collections and epic poems, achieving fame during the anti-American war. Before winning the State Award for Literature and Arts, he had won many other awards, including the Vietnam Writers Association Award in 1996. He is famous for two poems: "Children Playing Before the Temple Gate" and "Between the Trees and the Sky" . In "Children Playing Before the Temple Gate", he discovers: "Suddenly I realize that children are the best / Making the afternoon very similar to the morning" . In "Between Trees and the Sky," he has two lines of poetry that, during his lifetime, Pham Tien Duat considered the best: "The sky is so blue it seems to be ripped out of its core / The trees are so verdant they seem to twist and turn." He also had a very unconventional view of poetry: "Literature in general and poetry in particular should captivate the reader, not chase them. I support the innovation of poetry, but innovation does not simply mean breaking down verses, destroying structure, grammar, or using flamboyant language... Doing so would only make poetry a pile of worthless words, failing to create verses that move the reader to tears, and unable to create verses that evoke joy or sorrow, allowing readers to ponder or share their feelings when needed."

Surprisingly, the Vinh Bao area (formerly part of Vinh Bao district, now comprising Vinh Bao, Nguyen Binh Khiem, Vinh Am, Vinh Hai, Vinh Hoa, Vinh Thinh, and Vinh Thuan communes in Hai Phong city), with a population of only approximately 190,000, has produced so many writers and poets! As the old saying goes, "literature reflects the character of the land," and it's certainly true!

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/van-chuong-tren-que-huong-trang-trinh-726784.html