Unique Deng worship ritual of Ta Oi people

(Fatherland) - The Ta Oi people hold Deng offerings on family and village occasions. Especially before going to trade Deng in faraway places to thank Giàng (God) for giving them the traditional profession of weaving Deng.

Deng weaving is a long-standing traditional craft of the Ta Oi ethnic group in A Luoi district, Thua Thien Hue province. The traditional weaving fibers of Deng are cotton fibers harvested from nature to create yarn and colors of yellow, black, and blue for the weaving process as well as creating patterns.

Deng patterns have about 76 types, expressed through 3 types of shapes: triangles, diamonds and straight lines with complex patterns of plants, animals, objects, people and the surrounding world, which have significance for spiritual culture, the desire for harmony between heaven, earth and people.

Deng weaving is a long-standing traditional craft of the Ta Oi ethnic group.

The unique feature of the Deng weaving technique is that the craftsman inserts beads directly into the product to create patterns, not just using colored threads like brocade weaving in other places. The appearance of both thread patterns and bead patterns makes Deng products extremely unique.

In the life of the Ta Oi people, Deng is not simply a garment to wear. Deng is also a precious asset that shows the nobility, wealth, status and position of the owner. Deng is a wealth used to exchange goods, communicate, trade, making the family warm and prosperous, the village rich, prosperous and happy. Deng is also used as a dowry from the bride's family to the groom's family; for the in-laws; for the precious son-in-law. Deng is used to decorate, beautify the home, the Rong house, and the sacred place of the family and clan.

From the age of full moon, Ta Oi girls have been taught the craft of weaving Deng by their grandmothers and mothers. Ta Oi people often organize the ritual of offering Deng on family and village occasions. Especially, before going to trade Deng in far away places, they are to thank Giang for giving them the traditional craft of weaving Deng.

The Ta Oi people solemnly organize the Deng offering ceremony with three main steps. The first step - the preparation stage, the head of the family and his children gather all the Deng in the house. Then divide a part to decorate the sacred place and offer. The remaining part is neatly arranged and placed around the offering tray. In addition, the offerings prepared for the Deng offering must include 1 chicken, 1 jar of rice wine, a tray of A Quat cakes, and a Ci cul incense bowl.

After finishing the preparations, the homeowner begins the ceremony of offering to Deng. In front of the family's children and grandchildren, the homeowner reads a prayer expressing gratitude to Giang: "Oh Giang! Today is a good day and a good month, the family and children are holding a ceremony to offer to Deng. The food is ready, the boiled chicken, the delicious A Quat cake, sincerely invite Giang to come down and eat. The wine is delicious and quintessential, full of love, please drink it.

Thank you, Giang, for creating for the Ta Oi people the traditional profession of weaving Deng. So that the Ta Oi people have beautiful and durable loincloths and dresses to wear. Have money to make dowry for their beloved daughters. Have money to decorate the family's worship room and the village's Rong house solemnly and beautifully. So that the gods who come to attend the festival will be pleased. Thank you, Giang, for creating gold and silver wealth, enriching the family and the village...".

Re-enacting the Deng worship ritual of the Ta Oi people. Photo: Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of A Luoi district

In this ceremony, the homeowner also prays for Giàng to continue to bless the mother, sister, and younger sibling with good health, so that they can weave more beautiful and valuable Dèng cloths. Bless the father and older sibling on their journey to sell Dèng smoothly, with good luck, good business, and profitable sales. They should sell all the Dèng they bring, with no excess or unsaleable goods.

Finally, when the ceremony was completed, Giang returned to his place of residence to continue his work of guarding and protecting the village and the Ta Oi people. The homeowner and his descendants enjoyed the offerings. Everyone raised their glasses of rice wine and enjoyed the traditional Ri Ram and An Zut dances of the Ta Oi people to celebrate the success of the Deng ceremony. At the same time, everyone wished each other good things and luck in life.

Ms. Le Thi Them, Head of the Department of Culture and Information of A Luoi district, said that over hundreds of years, the Deng weaving craft has been passed down, preserved and developed by generations of Ta Oi people until today. In 2016, the Deng weaving craft (brocade) of the Ta Oi people in A Luoi district, Thua Thien Hue province was recognized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as a national intangible cultural heritage under Decision No. 4036/QD-BVHTTDL. This is the pride and honor of the Ta Oi ethnic group in particular and of Thua Thien Hue province in general.

Currently, in A Luoi district, there are 6 Deng weaving cooperatives operating regularly, creating products that not only bring unique cultural values ​​of the Ta Oi people but also contribute to improving the economic life of families and villages. The Deng worshiping ritual is also preserved, maintained and promoted by the Ta Oi people. In recent times, the Deng worshiping ritual has been re-enacted many times to serve the people and tourists in local cultural and tourism activities.

Source: https://toquoc.vn/doc-dao-nghi-thuc-cung-dang-deng-cua-dong-bao-ta-oi-20241109141100222.htm