The palanquin procession of the communes, wards and towns in the suburbs to the Hung Temple National Historical Site. Photo: Ta Toan/VNA

The Hung King worship - originating from the ancestor worship has become a unique form of cultural and religious belief in cultural life, a symbol of the spirit of great national unity, expressing the good morality of "When drinking water, remember the source, when eating fruit, remember the person who planted the tree" of the nation. The Hung King's death anniversary has become a national holiday, a common festival of the Vietnamese people, a day when millions of hearts beat as one, all eyes look in the same direction.

In 2012, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) also officially recognized the “Hung King Worship” as a Representative Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This is the first heritage of Vietnam to be honored in the category of beliefs and also the first time UNESCO recognized the Ancestor Worship as a Representative Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This further affirms the cultural value of the nation, contributing to the recognition of the importance of the ancestor worship rituals of the Vietnamese people in countries and territories around the world (where Vietnamese communities live).

For overseas Vietnamese, celebrating Hung Kings’ Commemoration Day is not only to express the respect and gratitude of descendants to their ancestors, but also to contribute to preserving and educating cultural traditions for future generations. For them, Hung Kings’ Commemoration Day is a way to affirm that overseas Vietnamese are an inseparable part of the Vietnamese ethnic community, contributing to further strengthening the great national unity bloc.

On April 14, 2024, in Ottawa (Canada), the Vietnamese Embassy in Canada held the Hung Kings' Commemoration Ceremony, with the participation of many Vietnamese people from many provinces and cities of Canada. In the photo: Vietnamese Ambassador to Canada Pham Vinh Quang respectfully offers incense at the Hung Kings' altar. Photo: Trung Dung/PVTTXVN in Canada

Mr. Dang Trung Phuoc, Chairman of the Canada - Vietnam Association, told VNA reporters in Ottawa that this is an opportunity for Vietnamese people living far from their homeland to gather at the "Vietnam House" in Ottawa and together look back to the country and remember the merits of the Hung Kings. It is during such occasions to gather together to participate in the Hung Kings' death anniversary ceremonies that overseas Vietnamese people are more deeply imbued with the sacred meaning of the two words "compatriots".

At the Hung Kings' Commemoration Ceremony held on April 13 in Kuala Lumpur, Ms. Tran Thi Chang, President of the Malaysia - Vietnam Friendship Association, emphasized that the organization of the Hung Kings' Commemoration Ceremony shows the sacred sentiments deeply imprinted in the hearts of every Vietnamese citizen, helping the community understand more about the value of the Hung Kings' worship, strengthening solidarity, and inspiring the younger generation to turn towards their homeland and country.

Talking to a VNA reporter, teacher Nguyen Thi Lien, head teacher of a Vietnamese language class in Malaysia, could not help but be moved, confiding that the Hung Kings' death anniversary is the "invisible cultural thread" connecting all Vietnamese people around the world towards their national roots, connecting compatriots at home and abroad.

In order to preserve and widely promote the "Hung King Worship Belief" abroad, the project "Global Vietnamese Ancestor Day" has been organized since 2015. According to Vice President of the Vietnamese Association in Russia Tran Phu Thuan, "Global Vietnamese Ancestor Day" is truly a project of great humanistic value, with the mission of uniting the nation, positioning Vietnamese values ​​globally, and together with international friends, preserving representative intangible cultural values ​​of humanity.

For the second and third generations, family traditions, hearing stories from parents in Vietnamese is the most practical way for children to approach their ancestors' culture. Dao Van Anh, 19 years old, a generation of Vietnamese born and raised in Russia, was told by her father about the legend of King Hung and although she has never lived in Vietnam, she truly feels the meaning of Hung King's Commemoration Day, to see herself as a member of the big family of nearly 100 million Vietnamese people.

For the Vietnamese community abroad, the "Global Vietnamese National Day" project is also an opportunity to contribute to enhancing understanding, sharing, and cultural exchange between Vietnamese communities in the integration process with the people of the host country.

Speaking to a VNA reporter in Prague, Mr. Nguyen Duy Nhien, Chairman of the Vietnamese Association in the Czech Republic, said that the Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic is increasingly developing and integrating deeply into the host country's society. Along with that, members of the community always turn to their homeland, promoting the precious traditions of the nation right in their "second homeland". The Chairman of the Vietnamese Association in the Czech Republic believes that the beautiful images of the Vietnamese community in this Eastern European country will certainly warm the hearts of our ancestors.

Through the organization of the Hung Kings' Commemoration Day, the overseas Vietnamese community, especially the second and third generations of overseas Vietnamese, understand more about the value of the Hung Kings' worship, strengthen solidarity, and turn towards the homeland and country, thereby fostering national spirit, overcoming challenges and rising up, affirming the position of the Vietnamese people.

During the Cultural Festival “Towards the Roots” organized by the Vietnamese Embassy in the US, two students Que Anh and Thanh Thao - international students living in the DMV region (including Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia) - could not hide their pride in "showing off" to the VNA reporter in Washington about participating in the cultural performance at the festival.

Overseas Vietnamese attending the event “Towards the Roots” all shared the same wish that the Vietnamese Embassy would organize more meaningful activities like this and expand the scale to promote the beauty of Vietnamese culture to a large number of overseas Vietnamese and American friends who love Vietnam.

It can be seen that the annual organization of the Hung Kings' Commemoration Day, especially abroad, is the bond that connects generations of Vietnamese people, conveying the unique spiritual and cultural activities of the Hung Kings' worship, creating a strong attraction, especially for the younger generation. From there, it arouses national pride, promotes the meaning of patriotism, and gratitude for the contributions to building the country.

Attending the ceremony to honor the Hung Kings' descendants held in Saint Petersburg on April 13, the leader of the Ho Chi Minh Institute of Saint Petersburg State University, Professor Vladimir Kolotov, reminded the reporter of the Vietnam News Agency in Russia of Uncle Ho's saying: "The Hung Kings had the merit of building the country, we, uncles and nephews, must work together to protect the country", affirming that this saying is the source of great national unity, becoming a strong internal force to help Vietnam gain independence, build the country, integrate internationally and contribute responsibly to the world community.

According to baotintuc.vn