After more than 10 years of being held, the Ariêu Piing festival of the Pa Ko ethnic minority in A Bung commune, Dakrong district, attracted a large number of local people to participate. Many tourists from near and far also came to experience the unique culture of the Pa Ko people in the middle of the majestic Truong Son mountains.
Ariêu Piing Festival attracts many local people to participate and many tourists from near and far to experience - Photo: LT
Arriving early with her friends to experience the Ariêu Piing festival, Ms. Nguyen Kim Oanh, in Krong Klang town, Dakrong district, could not hide her excitement: "It has been a long time since the people here organized the Ariêu Piing festival.
Therefore, we really want to participate in the exciting atmosphere of the festival. Through this festival, the Pa Ko ethnic people express their respect for the deceased. I think this is a meaningful activity, as well as preserving the unique culture of ethnic minorities."
The Ariêu Piing festival usually takes place over three days. “On the first day, the villagers gather together to build a house in the center of the festival for distinguished guests to stay and the An Trap house is where the ashes of the deceased are kept. Although the two houses are mainly built with locally available materials, the men in the village take care of every step so that the festival takes place solemnly, imbued with the cultural identity of the Pa Ko people,” said village elder Ho Van Do, La Hot village, A Bung commune.
Pa Ko people pay respect to the deceased during the Ariêu Piing festival - Photo: LT
The highlight of the Ariêu Piing festival is the second day. From early morning, people from all over the villages put aside their farming work, choose their newest and most beautiful clothes, and then gather together at the place where the sacrifice ceremony, also known as the buffalo stabbing ceremony, is held. On the large land, the poles are erected by the clans with deceased members in a circle.
The surrounding poles have goats tied to them, the central pole has buffaloes tied to them to perform the sacrificial ceremony. The ceremony begins with a performance of musical instruments and folk songs, and spiritual prayers by the local people. The elderly go first, the young follow, all creating a space filled with sounds and traditional cultural colors of the Pa Ko people...
“Goats and buffaloes are both familiar animals, closely associated with people’s lives. Sacrificial animals for rituals must be carefully selected, they must be young and healthy,” village elder Ho Van Do shared.
On the third day of the festival, people respectfully send off their ancestors' souls to their final resting place, the tombs of each clan. The Ariêu Piing festival is usually held every 5-10 years, depending on the economic conditions of each region.
In 2024, the festival was solemnly and enthusiastically organized by the Pa Ko people in A Bung commune. During the festival days, every family prepared offerings, food, and provisions to entertain distinguished guests. Throughout the villages, the sounds of gongs, drums, and the songs and dances of young men and women resounded.
“For young people like us, the Ariêu Piing festival is very meaningful because through it I can feel more deeply the emotional relationships of my family members and relatives, so that I can live better,” said Ms. Ho Thi Nghe, a local resident.
The Ariêu Piing Festival is also known as the reburial ceremony, the grave-excavation ceremony, the construction and renovation of ancestral tombs. This is a common task of the whole community with the desire to bring peace and respect to the deceased and pray for a stable and prosperous life for the villagers. This is also an opportunity for the Pa Ko people to sit together, discuss and find ways to solve problems in the customs and lives of the people. |
In an effort to restore traditional cultural festivals of ethnic minorities, recently, Dakrong district and the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism have implemented synchronous and effective solutions.
In particular, the Ariêu piing festival of the Pa Ko people has been invested in to restore, organize regularly and establish a dossier of intangible cultural heritage. In November 2023, at the request of the People's Committee of Quang Tri province, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognized this unique festival as a national intangible cultural heritage.
“Ariêu Piing is one of the biggest festivals, a traditional cultural beauty, unique to the Pa Ko people in the Truong Son mountain range. Restoring and maintaining this festival not only preserves and promotes the cultural identity of the Pa Ko people to join hands in building a prosperous, prosperous and happy village, strengthening the great national unity, but also contributes to the construction and development of an advanced Vietnamese culture, imbued with national identity. This festival, along with the new rice festival, is also a unique tourism product of Dakrong to bring new and interesting experiences to visitors from near and far”, said Phan Xuan Lieu, Head of the Department of Culture and Information of Dakrong district.
Le Truong
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