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| The ancient My Luong communal house has been restored and renovated. Source: Internet |
According to the Tien Giang Provincial Museum, in the late 18th century, the My Luong area was frequently divided and merged. In 1806, during the reign of King Gia Long, My Luong was called My Luong Village. By 1836, the name of My Luong communal house was recorded in the Nguyen Dynasty's land register.
Therefore, My Luong communal house was established earlier, around the late 18th or early 19th century. In 1836, the communal house was included in the village's land register and was bestowed the title "Guardian of Peace and Righteousness" by King Thieu Tri on November 27, 1845. This is the earliest surviving royal decree at the communal house.
According to the royal decrees of the Nguyen Dynasty, My Luong communal house worships Dong Chinh Vuong and Vuc Thanh Vuong, two sons of King Ly Cong Uan. In addition, the communal house also worships the local tutelary deity and commemorates those who contributed to the founding of My Luong village. Overall, the My Luong communal house is built along an east-west axis.
The temple's entrance faces east, overlooking the Cai Coi River. From the paved road, upon entering the temple through the iron-barred fence, there is a concrete gate, rebuilt in 2007, above which is the sign "My Luong Temple". Below the gate pillars are a pair of Vietnamese couplets: "Our ancestors built this temple / Our descendants today preserve the tradition".
The overall structure is in the shape of the Chinese character "Tam" (three), consisting of: the performance hall, the performance hall, and the main hall (main sanctuary) - where the deity is worshipped. The truss and column system has a structure similar to a traditional Vietnamese house, with four pillars in the main hall. In terms of construction materials, the monument is built using traditional materials such as brick, stone, wood, and tiles, with a binding agent of lime mortar and a system of mortise and tenon joints connecting the trusses, columns, braces, and purlins tightly together, creating a very sturdy framework for the temple... reflecting the distinct cultural identity of the Southern Vietnamese riverine region in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
In terms of decoration, the exterior of the communal house is decorated on the ridges, eaves, gable ends, and the space between the roof ridges and the tiled roof edges. On the ridges, the eaves are decorated with images of the four mythical creatures: Dragon,麒麟 (Kirin), Turtle, and Phoenix, such as "Two dragons fighting for a pearl," "Fish transforming into a dragon bowing to the Eight Trigrams." Below the eaves, the ridges are decorated with the four auspicious plants: plum blossom, orchid, chrysanthemum, bamboo, flowers, leaves, pine, deer, pheasant, etc. Meanwhile, the interior of the communal house is mainly decorated in the main hall, on the columns, beams, rafters, altars, and the roof ridges.
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| My Luong Ancient Temple. Source: Internet |
On the columns at the entrance to the main hall are meticulously carved wooden panels with chrysanthemum and bird motifs. Inside, in the central section, is a four-sided altar with carvings of the four mythical creatures, four auspicious plants, pomegranates, pears, and Buddha's hand citrons… and across the altar is a horizontal plaque inscribed with the words: "As Heaven universally blesses," dating back to the 19th century. Furthermore, most of the altars in the main hall are elaborately carved on three sides...
Ancient artisans expressed their hopes for the eternal preservation of their homeland and villages, for the flourishing of their descendants, and for a peaceful and happy life. This is also a distinctive cultural feature in the architecture of communal houses and temples in Southern Vietnam from the late 18th and early 19th centuries, which My Luong communal house still preserves today.
At the same time, during the resistance war against the US to save the country, the communal house also served as a solid revolutionary base for the locality. Currently, the communal house still preserves the altar of the deity, which was secretly used as a hiding place for local leaders when the enemy raided the area from 1965 to 1975.
After April 30, 1975, the local people and the elders of the communal temple's ceremonial committee brought the list of martyrs from the commune to be worshipped at the temple from 1977 to the present day. In particular, on the annual War Invalids and Martyrs Day (July 27), the people of My Luong commune organize a very solemn commemoration of the heroic martyrs, with many relatives and families of the martyrs from the commune attending.
In order to protect and promote the architectural relic of My Luong communal house, on March 10, 2000, the People's Committee of My Luong commune established the Communal House Management Board, whose nhiệm vụ is to preserve, protect, and organize the communal house's festivals and introduce them to visitors. The Board consists of 17 members, with a veteran local official serving as the chairman.
Since its establishment, the temple's management board has carried out many renovations, making the temple increasingly spacious and well-maintained. In addition, the temple has two annual rituals: the Ky Yen ceremony on the 15th and 16th of the 3rd lunar month and the Thuong Dien ceremony on the 15th and 16th of the 11th lunar month.
To establish a legal basis for long-term protection of the historical site, the People's Committee of Cai Be District, in coordination with the Provincial Relics Management Board, conducted an inventory and compiled a dossier to submit to the Provincial People's Committee for the issuance of a decision classifying it as a Provincial-level historical site on July 25, 2005.
In order to exploit and promote the values of the historical site in conjunction with tourism development, the People's Committee of Tien Giang province approved My Luong communal house to be located in Zone II of the province, along with tourist attractions such as Cai Be floating market, ancient houses, traditional craft villages, the Ho Chi Minh Memorial Temple, Hoa Loc mango orchards, and orange and tangerine orchards along the Tien River.
With its unique architectural style, the communal house is not only a sacred place of worship for generations of people in My Luong, but also a witness to countless historical changes, a symbol of the soul of the countryside preserved through every carving and every layer of dust from time.
Therefore, the My Luong communal house, an architectural and artistic relic, holds significant historical and cultural importance for the people of Cai Be district, Tien Giang province in particular, and the people of the Mekong Delta region in general. It needs to be preserved, protected, and its values promoted by local authorities and relevant agencies in the future.
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Source: https://baoapbac.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/202506/ve-tham-dinh-co-my-luong-1046100/
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