Bustling March festival season

While in many other localities, the festival season usually takes place in the days after the Lunar New Year, with the popular saying “January is the month of entertainment…”, in Khanh Hoa province, the festival season focuses on the third lunar month, with a series of festival events associated with the worship of Mother Goddess Thien YA Na, including: Am Chua Festival (from March 1 to 3); Ba festival in Suoi Do (on March 8, 18, 28); Ponagar Tower Festival (from March 20 to 23). In addition, there is also a celebration of the Bach Dang Giang victory associated with the merits of Hung Dao Dai Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan (March 8); incense offering ceremony in memory of the Hung Kings on the Hung King's death anniversary (March 10); mausoleum and communal house worshiping ceremonies during the spring period in many communes and wards... All of these have created a festival atmosphere that is both solemn and sacred, yet bustling and bustling.

People participate in the Am Chua festival in 2025.

In folklore, since ancient times, there has been a saying "Am Chua hien nhan, Thap Ba hien thanh", and Suoi Do is considered the place where Mother Thien YA Na travels and saves the world. Entering the first days of March, people flock to the Am Chua National Monument on Dai An Mountain (Dien Dien Commune, Dien Khanh District) to join the festival together. Each person brings with them offerings to Mother Thien YA Na, including fruits, simple agricultural products, and a sincere heart praying for good things to come to themselves, their families, and the community. When the Am Chua festival ends, many followers of the Mother Goddess worship return to the Thien YA Na shrine in the Suoi Do area on Hoang Nguu mountain (Dien Toan commune, Dien Khanh district), where writer Quach Tan wrote in the book Xu Tram Huong: "It is said that this is where Thien YA Na comes to sit and enjoy the cool breeze or rest while traveling. When she comes, there are three thunderclaps, then a green light, wide and long like a silk tree, falls from Chua mountain in Dai Dien or from Ba mountain in Cam Lam and lands."

And the biggest and most anticipated festival is the Ponagar Tower Festival at the Ponagar Tower Special National Monument (Vinh Phuoc Ward, Nha Trang City). The Ponagar Tower Festival takes place with traditional rituals such as: Water procession ceremony; changing of Mother Goddess's clothes ceremony; flower lantern releasing ceremony; national peace and prosperity ceremony; food offering ceremony; Cham people's peace praying ceremony; traditional sacrifice ceremony... This is also a festival that clearly shows the cultural exchange and integration of the two ethnic groups, Vietnam and Cham, in Khanh Hoa. People and tourists coming to the Ponagar Tower Festival also demonstrate the spirit of solidarity and unity of the community of ethnic groups. “It has become a tradition that every year in the third lunar month, members of our religious group make a pilgrimage to attend the festivals worshiping Mother Thien YA Na in Khanh Hoa province. Although the journey is far, being able to return to Mother, offering her offerings, dances, and songs makes each member of the group feel very happy,” said Mr. Nguyen Van Phuc (from Hue City). Mr. Kieu Hoang Mieu (Cham ethnic group in Phuoc Nam commune, Thuan Nam district, Ninh Thuan province) said: “Going to the Mother of the land Po Inư Nagar is a regular activity of my family. This year, my family also went to all the festivals from Am Chua to Suoi Do and will soon return to attend the Ponagar Tower festival.”

People attend the Hung Kings' death anniversary in 2025 at Hung Kings Temple in Nha Trang City.

The Bach Dang Giang victory celebration and the Hung Kings' death anniversary incense offering ceremony demonstrate the national moral tradition of "When drinking water, remember its source" and "When eating fruit, remember the person who planted the tree". A very special thing is that even during the years when the country was still divided by war, in Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa, people still joined hands to contribute labor and money to build two works: Tran Hung Dao Temple and Hung Vuong Temple. The historical and cultural relic of Tran Hung Dao Temple (No. 124 Nguyen Trai, Nha Trang) was built in 1962, at the initiative of the North Vietnam Friendship Association. At that time, this was the only temple in the Central region to worship Hung Dao Dai Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan. The Hung Kings Temple (No. 173 Ngo Gia Tu, Nha Trang) was started in 1971 and completed in 1973. Although these works are not large in scale, they are an affirmation of the feelings of the children in the far South who always turn to the roots of the nation, always remembering the contributions of the saints to the country. "Having the opportunity to attend the festival activities at Tran Hung Dao Temple and Hung Kings Temple in Nha Trang City, I was really surprised and impressed by the steadfast hearts of the previous generations towards the historical and cultural traditions of the nation. Just as Uncle Ho once affirmed: Vietnam is one, the Vietnamese people are one" - said Ms. Dinh Thi Giao (Hre ethnic group, from Quang Ngai province).

According to Mr. Le Van Hoa - Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Mother Goddess worship of the Vietnamese people in Khanh Hoa has for generations had cultural exchanges and resonance with the Mother Goddess worship of the Po Inư Nagar land of the Cham people to create unique beauty at the relics of Am Chua, Suoi Do, and Ponagar Tower. The third lunar month is considered the Mother Goddess festival season in Tram Huong land with the heritage journey of Mother Goddess worship taking place continuously at all three relics mentioned above. This is the basis for building a dossier on the intangible cultural heritage of the practice of Mother Goddess worship of Thien YA Na to submit to UNESCO for consideration and recognition as a representative intangible cultural heritage of humanity. The festival at Tran Hung Dao Temple and Hung Vuong Temple is an opportunity for everyone to remember their ancestors, as well as national heroes. All of these festivals have demonstrated the unique and diverse cultural identity of the land and people of Agarwood, contributing to preserving and promoting traditional cultural values, while promoting the image of Khanh Hoa to domestic and international friends.

FAMILY

Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/van-hoa/202504/ron-rangmua-le-hoi-thang-ba-f1e2b9f/