Like a gentle and sparkling silk strip, the Cau River flows through Bac Ninh province, famous for its beautiful name “The River of Quan Ho People/The Water Flows Gently All Its Life”. Named the Quan Ho River, it surrounds the peaceful, soft “green Quan Ho villages” that have been there for thousands of years...
Like a gentle and sparkling silk strip, Cau River is famous for its beautiful name "The River of Quan Ho People/The water flows gently all its life". Named as Quan Ho River, surrounding itself with peaceful and soft "Quan Ho villages" from thousands of years ago, the immense waves of Nhu Nguyet also tell of the glorious and heroic feats of our army and people in the resistance wars to defend the country, as well as the endless secret confidences in the bustling trade journey of thousands of years of the land north of the capital...
Majestic and poetic
Spending a whole weekend wandering along the Cau River dike, feeling nostalgic watching the water slowly flow by, as if meeting an old acquaintance.
Although we have never dived into the river or played in its cool waters, we have met Nhu Nguyet in our school books, and for many years have nurtured a desire to explore the majestic and poetic flow.
Cau River, also known as Nhu Nguyet River or Nguyet Duc River, originates from Cho Don District, Bac Kan Province, flows through Thai Nguyen Province, Soc Son District (Hanoi City) and Bac Ninh, Bac Giang, joins Thuong River, Luc Nam River, Duong River... and then flows into the sea at Thai Binh Estuary. This is also an important waterway in the history of the nation, a source of economy and culture for thousands of years, connecting the plains with the mountains.
Starting from Nga Ba Xa - where the sound of a rooster can be heard in three provinces, we visited Xa Temple (Doai village, Tam Giang commune, Yen Phong). Legend has it that this is where the divine poem "Nam Quoc Son Ha" - "The first Declaration of Independence" of our country resounded to support the soldiers of the famous general Ly Thuong Kiet in defeating 300,000 invading Song troops in 1077.
Lien anh and lien chi from Quan ho villages along Cau River (the river flowing through Bac Ninh province) attend the spring festival. Photo: Tran Phan
In the middle of the sacred temple's main hall, reflecting on the Nguyet Duc River, Mr. Tran Cong Diet, former Head of the Xa Temple Relics Festival Committee, slowly recounted: Along the two banks of the Cau River, there are about 300 villages worshiping Saint Tam Giang. According to the "Truong ton than tich" that our ancestors passed down, Xa 4 Temple worships the great saint Truong Hong. Every year, the people maintain the 4 festivals, but the most popular is the festival to commemorate the Saint's birthday.
The festival usually takes place over 3 days from the 8th to the 10th of the 4th lunar month with many traditional rituals such as: water procession, sacrifice, incense offering, flower offering... The ancients maintained many exciting activities "rowing on the river, praying for money on the beach, puppetry at lotus doors, marching troops in the fields, wrestling among the people..." but now many have disappeared.
Through many historical changes, the glorious victory of the past is still remembered through each place name, relic, temple, preserved with names: Ma Tau field, Bo Xac field, Gao bridge, Trung Quan post, Dinh field, Gom wharf, Ngo gate, Xa temple...
Nearly 40 relics of the Nhu Nguyet defense line stretching from Tam Giang and Tam Da communes, Yen Phong district to Thi Cau ward, Bac Ninh city have all been classified as historical and cultural relics.
Time passes, the sea turns into mulberry fields, the traces may fade, but in the souls of the people of Bac Ninh, they never forget the hometown river that anchors the heroic past of the nation.
Like Bach Dang, Chi Lang, Xuong Giang, Ngoc Hoi, Dong Da, Nhu Nguyet River will forever go down in national history as a brilliant feat that beautifies the tradition of fighting against foreign invaders to protect the Fatherland.
A researcher commented: “The Cau River lies horizontally, blocking all the highways from the northern border to Vietnam, like a shield protecting the Thang Long citadel from the danger of foreign invasion. Perhaps, the Cau River itself was chosen by history to become the “patriotic” river. And certainly, this river has left many haunting memories for foreign countries when they had to leave behind many wild ambitions on the riverbank.”
The Sweet ferry on the Quan Ho River - the Cau River flowing through Bac Ninh province - is like a historical witness.
A historical witness that cannot be missed on the journey to explore the Nhu Nguyet River is the Ngọt ferry. Stopping at the water stall at the river wharf, the old woman selling goods has passed the age of seventy, having spent nearly half of her life "cleaning and selling goods" here.
Realizing that we were not passengers waiting for a ferry to cross the river, she happily said: You want to learn about the cultural history of this region, but only have one day, it's not enough. You have to stay here for a whole month to be able to record everything!
The sun was high in the sky, the cool breeze blowing from the river dispelled the stuffy, hot air of the weather preparing for a thunderstorm. Seeing us silently looking towards the slowly flowing water, the old woman selling water said calmly: "In the decades I have lived here, from when the sun rises until the darkness falls on the treetops, I have never seen the Cau River rise as high as it did during the flood last September... Although the water level is still a meter above the dike, living near the river, who wouldn't be nervous and anxious?"
Indeed, if you have never heard of the Yagi storm, how can you believe that the peaceful and gentle river below was once surrounded by raging tides, making many villages along the river nervous, staying up all night to build earth and guard the dike...
That's what Song Cau is - majestic and poetic, fierce and gentle, immense and romantic!
“The River of Quan Ho People”
In the Quan Ho research community, there are some opinions that the Quan Ho river is the Tieu Tuong river or Ngu Huyen Khe river, but according to many scholars, artisans and Quan Ho artists, the Quan Ho river is the beautiful name of the Cau river.
On the banks of the Cau River there is a stele marking the glorious victory of the Dai Viet army and people in the resistance war against the Song invaders in 1077.
The Cau River section flowing through the border of the two provinces of Bac Ninh (South bank) and Bac Giang (North bank) is about 69 km long, the riverbed is wide, the slope is low, so the water flows gently.
Along the Cau River is where most of the ancient Quan Ho villages are concentrated, including Diem village, the birthplace of Quan Ho, with a temple dedicated to the Lady King, who is said to be the one who gave birth to the sweet and passionate Quan Ho melodies.
Residents on both sides of the Cau River are not only knowledgeable about the "Quan Ho profession", but also have a close and lasting relationship that has been passed down through generations. In the past, many Quan Ho villages on the North bank had the custom of forming friendships with Quan Ho villages on the South side of the Cau River, such as: Noi Ninh village (Viet Yen town, Bac Giang) forming friendships with Diem village (ie Viem Xa area, Hoa Long ward, Bac Ninh city); Huu Nghi village (Viet Yen town) forming friendships with Huu Chap village (Hoa Long, Bac Ninh city)...
During holidays, festivals, and celebrations, the Lien Anh and Lien Chi on both the North and South banks of the Cau River often row boats across the river to meet, socialize, and sing...
Some Quan Ho festivals also organize water processions on the Cau River, typically: Huu Chap communal house festival, Thi Cau communal house festival (Bac Ninh city)...
With cultural sediments, customs, and typical lifestyles of residents on both banks, Cau River is one of the spaces that nurtures and creates the premise for Quan Ho singing competitions that have lasted for generations between villages along the river.
Ly Thuong Kiet Temple on the historic Cau River is located in Tam Giang Commune, Yen Phong District (Bac Ninh Province).
Associated with sediments and the exchange and rotation throughout the waterway, the Cau River has made Quan Ho constantly receive and transform unique elements from many other regions to enrich itself.
Because of that, Quan Ho is positioned as a half-scholarly, half-popular art form with diversity in style and tone, becoming a unique, attractive and typical "intoxicating" in traditional Vietnamese folk music, and is now an important part of the world's cultural heritage.
When mentioning the Quan Ho river with its gentle flowing water, people still dreamily feel a desire to step onto the dragon boat with the Lien Anh Lien Chi singing passionately and lingeringly.
As for the natives of Bac Ninh, surely everyone hopes to see the Cau River become a tourist river one day, worthy of its historical depth and the uniqueness and sparkle of Quan Ho culture... The vision and planning have been opened, determination is also not lacking, just waiting for the opportunity to come, the tourism potential of the Cau River will be awakened.
With its own mission, Cau River - deep in history, sparkling with folk songs, still tirelessly circulating its gentle waters, is a strong bridge between the past and the future of a cultural region rich in sediments that still flows forever into the future, flowing endlessly in the souls of many generations...
Temporarily ending the wandering journey along the Nguyet Duc River, we arrived at Thi Cau when it was just getting dark. We heard the song "Calling the ferry" by the young man Thi Cau, passionate, haunting, and heavy with deep feelings...
Source: https://danviet.vn/con-song-cua-nguoi-quan-ho-suot-doi-nuoc-chay-lo-tho-la-y-noi-dong-song-nao-chay-qua-bac-ninh-20250204151517316.htm
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