Located on the right bank of the Chu River, Xuan Pha village (now Xuan Truong commune, Tho Xuan district) is the "homeland" of the famous Xuan Pha performance. Coming to this ancient land in the first days of February (lunar calendar), visitors can immerse themselves in the unique and meaningful space of the Xuan Pha festival.
People eagerly watch the performances in the traditional festival.
According to historical records, among the 12 ancient Lang villages of the old Loi Duong district (present-day Tho Xuan), in the early days of village construction, Xuan Pha was known as Lang Trang. Around the 15th century, Lang Trang changed its name to Xuan Pho (some documents say Xuan Pho) Loi Duong district, later Xuan Pho was renamed Xuan Pha.
People have settled in Xuan Pha village for thousands of years. Along with the process of fighting and building a life, Xuan Pha people have constantly cultivated and created strong cultural values. There is the First Temple worshiping Dai Hai Long Vuong; the Second Temple worshiping Cao Minh Linh Quang; Tau Pagoda...
In particular, as a Xuan Pha person, who does not “know by heart” and be proud of the saying: “Eating cake with ham is not as good as watching Lang village play”. There, Lang village play is Xuan Pha play - one of the unique intangible cultural heritages of Xuan Pha people in particular, and Thanh land in general.
According to historical researcher Nguyen Ngoc Khieu in the book Festivals of Thanh land (volume 1): “When Xuan Pha play began, the answer is still open. Because there is no written source that fully records its origin. For a long time, cultural and artistic researchers have had two theories about the origin of Xuan Pha play: One is that Xuan Pha play dates back to the Dinh Dynasty (10th century), the second theory is that Xuan Pha play was born after Le Loi defeated the Ming invaders, the Le Dynasty was established (15th century) and therefore, it is believed that the Xuan Pha play system originated from the two dances “Chu vassals come to the dynasty” and “Binh Ngo pha tran”. For the people of Xuan Pha village, they are very proud of their play system, they consider it the village's artistic capital formed during the reign of King Dinh, then passed down from generation to generation by their ancestors in the form of oral tradition”.
Along with the belief that Xuan Pha game has existed since the Dinh Dynasty, until now generations of Xuan Pha people have told each other the legend. That during the Dinh Dynasty, when the country was invaded by enemies, the king sent messengers everywhere to look for talented people to give advice and help the king fight the enemy. When the messenger arrived at the Chu River in today's Xuan Pha village, a storm suddenly arose, and it was just getting dark, so he had to take shelter in a small temple by the river. And that night, the messenger dreamed of a god who called himself the village's guardian spirit giving advice on how to fight the enemy. The next day when he woke up, thinking it was a god's manifestation, the messenger hurried back to the capital to report to the king. Thinking that the plan was good, the king followed it and indeed defeated the enemy. The country returned to peace. On the day of the festival, neighboring countries, vassals, and tribes came to congratulate Dai Co Viet. They brought with them their own unique dances and songs, such as "Chiem Thanh tribute", "Ai Lao tribute"...
“In gratitude for the great contributions of the village guardian spirit of Xuan Pha to the country, the king issued a royal decree to confer on the village guardian spirit the title “Dai Hai Long Vuong Hoang Lang Tuong Quan” and ordered the villagers of Xuan Pha to build a temple to worship him. At the same time, he rewarded the villagers with the best and most beautiful dances and songs, which were five ancient plays of Champa, Ai Lao, Ngo Quoc, Hoa Lang and Luc Hon Nhung (also known as Tu Huan)” (book Tho Xuan Monuments and Famous Places).
And according to legend, along with giving Xuan Pha village the best dances and songs, King Dinh also ordered the village to hold a festival every year on February 10 (lunar calendar) - believed to be the day the village's tutelary god appeared in a dream. From then on, the Xuan Pha festival was born and continued by generations of villagers.
Xuan Pha village festival with its unique performances creates lasting vitality in people's lives.
Xuan Pha Festival takes place on the 9th and 10th of February (lunar calendar) with the ceremony and festival. The ceremony is solemn and sacred with the procession of literature, royal decree, feast, and performers to the communal house and the worship of the village's tutelary god. The festival is lively and bustling with performances.
According to the elders in the village, in the past, in the Xuan Pha village festival, the performances would be "divided equally" among the hamlets, such as the Thuong, Trung, and Truong hamlets performed the Hoa Lang performance; the Giua hamlet performed the Luc Hon Nhung performance; the Doai hamlet performed the Chiem Thanh performance; the Dong hamlet performed the Ai Lao performance; the Yen hamlet performed the Ngo Quoc performance... And now, the performances still follow the old custom, undertaken by the people of the villages (hamlets). In which, the Thuong hamlet performed the Hoa Lang performance; the Trung hamlet performed the Tu Huan performance; the Doai hamlet and Lien Thanh hamlet performed the Chiem Thanh performance; the Dong hamlet performed the Ngo Quoc performance; and the Yen hamlet performed the Ai Lao performance.
Although the performances have "rooted" in the cultural life of Xuan Pha people, becoming a regular cultural activity. However, every year, when coming to Xuan Pha in early spring, visiting the villages, visitors will be surprised by the bustling practice atmosphere of the local people before the village festival. Mr. Do Van Khuong, a resident of Yen village (85 years old), proudly shared: "Xuan Pha festival contains sacred elements, a beautiful cultural belief that permeates the spiritual life of the local people. For the festival to take place, each village, each person is aware that they have a part of the responsibility. And in Xuan Pha festival, the performance is like a competition between teams, the team that performs better and more attractively will receive praise and appreciation from the villagers. Therefore, the closer to the festival day, the more efforts the villages make to practice".
Although they all have the meaning of "congratulations", each performance in Xuan Pha village festival is performed in a cheerful, vibrant "scene" with different colors, creating the appeal of the performance and Xuan Pha village festival.
"Explanation" of the performances in Xuan Pha village festival, according to the book Tho Xuan Relics and scenic spots: Hoa Lang play simulates the Hoa Lang people (a tribe in Korea) coming to pay tribute to the Dai Viet king; Ai Lao play simulates the Ai Lao (Laos) people coming to pay tribute; Champa play (also known as Siam) simulates the Champa people coming to pay tribute, the Champa characters are the lord, the lady, the phoenix, the soldier, wearing red costumes; Tu Huan play simulates the Tu Huan people in the northern mountains coming to pay tribute, compared to other plays, Tu Huan play is more widely circulated... The dances in Xuan Pha play are both joyful and strong, but no less graceful and rhythmic, creating tight "layers" that attract viewers.
Over a long period of time with many changes, the Xuan Pha performances and festivals were interrupted and lost. And in the early 2000s, with the attention of all levels, sectors and the dedicated efforts of local people, the Xuan Pha performances and festivals have been successfully restored over the years. Mr. Bui Van Hung, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Xuan Truong Commune, who is also an artisan with many contributions to the restoration of the Xuan Pha performances and festivals, said: "The Xuan Pha village festival and the unique performances in the festival are like a silent source flowing in the spiritual and cultural life of local people, although there are quiet and interrupted periods, they are not lost. That cultural heritage has contributed to the brilliant colors of the "picture" of Thanh culture, Vietnamese culture... We invite visitors to Xuan Pha, to the traditional village festival to better understand the beauty of the cultural heritage of our ancestors".
Khanh Loc
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