Village Gate Past and Present

(Baonghean) - Village gates were born very early, closely associated with the formation and development of the village. In addition to the dividing boundary, the village gate clearly shows the style and soul of the village. The village gate also preserves many unique traditional cultural values, sometimes containing the meaning of preserving something sacred, so the movement of restoring and building new village gates is increasingly flourishing...

I once heard the "Hanoi scholar" Nguyen Vinh Phuc and the painter Quach Dong Phuong - who spent decades traveling around the villages of the North to take pictures of village gates, explain: Village gates are ancient architectural products of the Vietnamese people, with a defensive character. When there is chaos, war, or a sudden change, the village gate is closed. At night, there are always patrol teams on guard. Houses have gates, so do villages. Gates are the symbolic boundary between one village and another, representing the authority of the village. Gates divide the residential land and the cultivated land, divide the life of the living and the life of the dead. Village gates include a front gate and a back gate, the front gate usually faces the Southeast to catch the good wind. The back gate faces the West to the setting sun. Traditional village gates are very rich and diverse in design and material, they are ancient architectural works that, in addition to their historical and cultural value, also express the soul of the countryside and the character of each Vietnamese village.

Trung village gate, Hung Tan commune, Hung Nguyen district

I have also wandered many times by the old terracotta village gates to listen to the echoes of the village gate in Bang Ba Lan's poem: "Today, even though I am far away/ But when I return to the banyan tree at the village entrance/ So many dreamy scenes/ Appear when I glimpse the village gate in bamboo"; listening to the melody of the song "Village Gate Festival Drum" by poet and musician Nguyen Trong Tao. And I have known one thing, the village gate is a place that is both familiar and sacred, not only witnessing the ups and downs of that village, but also witnessing the ups and downs of each person's life. The beauty of the village gate is associated with the rice civilization, depicting and evoking the aspirations of the community from generation to generation... Wanting to have a unique image of the village gate to warm my soul, I have many times lingered in front of Thanh Vinh gate.

Last year, I took my mother to the Dong Cu village festival (Hamlet 5, Hung Tan Commune, Hung Nguyen District). My mother has been a resident of the city for many years, but she always remembers her roots. The inauguration day of the Dong Cu village gate was very bustling. My mother still remembers that in the past, the village had a gate, a majestic pagoda... Now, Hung Tan is a model commune for building a new rural area, so in addition to spacious electricity - roads - schools - stations, the economy is expanding, people focus on developing family culture, preserving and promoting traditional cultural values. The village gate was rebuilt. My uncle, a veteran now over 75 years old, with white hair, smiled and said: "The village gate was built with the affection and heart of the people of our village, my child. People who came back from far away contributed money, well-off families in the village contributed whatever they wanted, but the poor did not. The straw is the origin of those who left, the gate is a historical witness welcoming those who returned with honor. The village gate is a witness, a will and a source of strength...". Unlike the massive Trung village gate nearby, Dong Cu village gate is smaller, built in a unique, elegant, simple and ethereal style.

Life is getting better and better, the countryside is changing, people's lives are gradually becoming more prosperous and rich. The preservation and restoration of traditional values ​​is emphasized. Many villages, suburban villages and even whole blocks have flourished in the movement of restoring and building new village gates in the traditional style. To me, that is a very happy feature mixed with some concerns. I heard a story in a flooded area of ​​your province: Commune and village officials decided to build majestic village gates, but after finishing the construction, they did not have enough money, so they owed the contractor. After the historic flood, people had just received relief money from charitable organizations and individuals, and immediately had their debt deducted by commune and village officials for the contributions to build the village gates.

During my work trips back and forth across the province, I have also seen many large and impressive cultural village gates. Many districts such as Hung Nguyen, Nam Dan, Do Luong... have focused on rebuilding village gates. Up to now, many districts have achieved over 50% of villages having new village gates; for example, Do Luong has 100% of cultural villages with village gates. To me, many village gates are magnificent but not complete. The village gates are large but the people's lives are still very poor; there are gates in mountainous villages that are beautiful but beautiful according to the architecture of the Kinh people, not bearing the identity of their own people; the village roads are narrow and the gates are built in the style of a three-door gate; many village gates and welcome gates have been neglected and forgotten, so they are cracked, dirty and graffitied. And as mentioned, the joy will be more complete if behind each village gate is a life of people who are always prosperous, peaceful and imbued with their own identity...

I still want my hometown to have its village gate back, but I want it to be free of poverty even more. I also hope that the next village gates will be built, whether simple or majestic, they must represent the soul and character of the hometown; each person living behind that gate must carry out well the words written on the gate, so that whoever goes far away will remember - when returning, respectfully bow their heads and step through.

Article and photos:Thanh Son