Correctly identifying the value of Mother Goddess worship, as well as practicing the belief correctly, is the way to help preserve the heritage in its true sense, without deviation or distortion of the heritage value.
Eight years after being recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, the Vietnamese practice of Mother Goddess Worship has increasingly spread and demonstrated its influence in contemporary society. However, besides efforts to promote and honor the beauty of Mother Goddess worship, there are still deviations and distortions in ritual practices, negatively affecting the community and society.
Vietnamese heritage
In the spiritual life of the Vietnamese people, the practice of the Three Realms Mother Goddess Worship is a heritage of invaluable cultural and spiritual value. Since the 16th century, this heritage has become a cultural and religious activity with a profound influence on the social life and consciousness of the Vietnamese people.
According to cultural researchers, the practice of the Mother Goddess Worship is a whole system of knowledge and traditional culture of the Vietnamese people converging in the Mother Goddess Worship, including festivals, spirit possession, singing, praying, going to ceremonies... with folk cultural elements such as costumes, music, dance, combined artistically, like a "living museum" preserving the history, heritage and cultural identity of the Vietnamese people. In particular, the cultural identities and beliefs, passed down and inherited between generations... are especially important.
Hau Dong is the most important ritual in the practice of Mother Goddess Worship in Vietnam. This is a comprehensive ritual, integrating the cultural and artistic values that have been accumulated by the people for many generations. In Hau Dong is a treasure trove of heritages in literature, music, dance, fine arts, architecture, folk festivals and performing arts...
In terms of literature, there is a whole treasure trove of folk literature preserved in Hau Dong. In terms of music, Hau Dong has given birth to a very special art form, which is Chau Van singing. In terms of dance, Hau Dong has dozens of dances such as: sword dance, long dao dance, going to the market, fan dance, rowing boat, embroidery, brocade weaving. Therefore, Hau Dong is considered by international cultural experts to be a "living treasure trove of Vietnamese cultural heritage".
In December 2016, UNESCO recognized “The practice of the Vietnamese Mother Goddess Worship” as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Over the past eight years, in addition to efforts to honor the heritage of the heritage-practicing community, there are still some people who, in the process of practicing the belief, have committed wrongful and distorted acts, damaging the spiritual beauty of the Mother Goddess worship. Many people who practice the belief take advantage of people's beliefs to "sell gods and saints", threaten followers to extort money, make profits... negatively affecting the community and society.
Recently, the 2nd Bac Ninh Province Hat Van and Chau Van Festival - 2024 held at Ly Thuong Kiet Temple performed the practice of the Vietnamese Mother Goddess worship on stage and was requested to rectify by the Department of Cultural Heritage (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism). According to the Department of Cultural Heritage, this is a performance of Hau Dong that is not true to the nature and practice space of the heritage; violates customs, taboos and distorts the value of intangible cultural heritage, not in accordance with the spirit of the 2003 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage and the Law on Cultural Heritage of Vietnam...
Understand correctly to practice, preserve and conserve heritage
According to researchers, it is extremely necessary to rectify rituals in the practice of Mother Goddess worship and prevent distortions in the process of heritage practice, in which the role of those who directly practice the heritage is important. Meritorious Artisan Nguyen Thi Thin, Chairwoman of the UNESCO Patronage Council and Deputy Director of the Vietnam Institute for Research on Folk Culture and Beliefs, said that many people in her family have practiced Mother Goddess worship for decades. She herself is a participant in the activities of the Vietnam Institute for Research on Folk Culture and Beliefs, so she understands the value of protecting and introducing heritage to tourists. At the same time, she feels that she needs to be more responsible for preserving and teaching the younger generation to understand the value of Mother Goddess worship heritage.
Meritorious Artisan Nguyen Thi Thin shared that she was also very sad to see many people taking advantage of ignorance, as well as distorted concepts in the practice of Mother Goddess Worship. Because these distorted manifestations cause many people to have prejudices and misunderstand the value of heritage, misjudge those who practice it properly, distort the value of heritage, causing many people to worry...
As the head of Thuy Trung Tien Temple - an ancient temple over 1,000 years old located in the relic complex of Quan Thanh Temple, Tran Quoc Pagoda (Hanoi), and also a practitioner of Mother Goddess Worship for over 60 years, Meritorious Artisan Nguyen Thi Thin hopes that Thuy Trung Tien Temple will become a standard spiritual and cultural activity site, so that visitors and young people can better understand the value of the heritage.
“Only when we understand correctly can we practice correctly, contributing to spreading and developing the heritage of practicing the worship of the Mother Goddesses of the Three Realms in contemporary life. At the same time, preserving and promoting the heritage recognized by UNESCO,” emphasized Meritorious Artisan Nguyen Thi Thin.
Artisan Nguyen Van Duong, a fellow teacher in Thai Binh, said: "We also went through hardships to practice before becoming teachers. During the practice, in addition to learning from our teachers, we also studied Chinese books from the Nguyen Dynasty to understand more about the rules and regulations in the performance rituals, all with the desire to inherit, promote and spread the heritage of Mother Goddess religion in contemporary life."
Young medium Nguyen Thi Thu Hien (Long Bien, Hanoi) said that Hien is the third generation in her family to follow the Mother Goddess religion and has been practicing the religion for 8 years. Thu Hien believes that when practicing the Mother Goddess religion, it is necessary to approach and learn from mediums who have knowledge of history, culture, and performance practices, and understand the customs and rules of “her house” to practice properly...
Over the years, the State has issued many policies to manage festivals and cultural heritages, and at the same time has taken many measures to protect and promote the value of heritages in contemporary life, including organizing scientific research; practicing and performing heritages; teaching programs; honoring and recognizing titles for typical artisans, incense-holders, and temple bronze-holders.
Meritorious Artisan Nguyen Thi Thin shared that preserving and promoting heritage values according to their original and standard values reflects the commitment of the State and the community to protect heritage, ensure feasibility in heritage practice, avoid creating distortions and errors, especially pushing back the commercialization of rituals related to the traditional and identity values of heritage.
Along with conservation, it is necessary to promote heritage values in the community, thereby, heritage practices will promote increased dialogue and respect for cultural diversity. This is also an important factor contributing to the conservation and promotion of intangible cultural heritage recognized by UNESCO in contemporary life.
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