Exciting Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival 2023

Remembering the merits

Pu Nha Thau Templeis a provincial historical and cultural relic, located on the top of a sacred mountain in Na Luong village, Huu Kiem commune. The temple is associated with legends and stories passed down among the people, and is a place to worship General Doan Nhu Hai, Mau Thuong Ngan and other gods who have contributed to protecting the country and the people...

At the Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival, camps are set up to simulate the architecture and housing layout of each ethnic community in Ky Son. Photo: Dao Tho

Legend has it that Princess La Binh, daughter of Son Tinh and My Nuong, granddaughter of King Hung, once came to this borderland to enjoy the scenery of mountains and rivers. Wherever she went, she tried her best to teach and help the people how to make a living, and reorganize the village so that they could settle down and make a living. The people admired her so much that they honored her as Mau Thuong Ngan (Mother of the mountains and forests) and built a temple to worship her when she was no longer around. Mau Thuong Ngan Temple is very sacred, always protecting the villagers from natural disasters and wild animals.

Around 1355, the Ai Lao invaders invaded and harassed the Nam Nhung hamlet (including the present-day districts of Ky Son, Tuong Duong and Con Cuong), making the people's lives miserable. Despite his advanced age, the retired Emperor Tran Minh Tong still decided to personally lead troops to this border area to defeat the Ai Lao invaders and appointed Doan Nhu Hai as the Governor. Upon arriving at Nam Nhung, the Governor chose a high mountain in the area of ​​Na Luong village, Huu Kiem commune to set up a camp to train soldiers and observe the enemy's activities. The people wholeheartedly supported the Tran army in killing the enemy and keeping the border peaceful. Among them was an elderly woman who still encouraged her husband and children to participate in the battle. She herself directly acted as a liaison to supply military provisions.

Procession at Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival. Photo: Cong Kien

In a fierce battle at the river junction, General Doan Nhu Hai sacrificed his life. Retired Emperor Tran Minh Tong and the generals of the Tran Dynasty retreated to consolidate their forces, then attacked and swept the Ai Lao invaders out of the country. Before the sacrifice of General Doan Nhu Hai, the people of Nam Nhung hamlet deeply mourned and worshiped him at the Mau Thuong Ngan temple and held annual ceremonies. At this time, the old mother who raised the army was no longer there. Realizing the great contributions of the General and the old mother who raised the army, the people of Na Luong village brought the spirit tablet to worship at the temple. Since then, the people of the villages burned incense all year round, the temple on the mountain became a place to entrust their souls, the people used to call it Tran temple or Pu Nha Thau temple (Temple of the Old Lady Mountain).

Festival on the mountain top

Over hundreds of years with many ups and downs, the people of Ky Son district have always been conscious of preserving and protecting the sacred temple on the top of Pu Nha Thau. During the years of fighting against the US, the temple was bombed twice and collapsed, the villagers immediately rebuilt the temple. In particular, the people of Na Luong village, Huu Kiem commune preserve the temple as their own home, voluntarily look after the temple every day and do a good job of cleaning the environment in and around the temple.

On the full moon and first days of the lunar month, the ethnic people of Ky Son prepare offerings and burn incense to express their respect to the gods who have contributed to driving out foreign invaders, protecting the lives of the people, and praying for peace and prosperity.

People enjoy bamboo dancing at Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival. Photo: Dao Tho

During the festival days, Pu Nha Thau peak becomes bustling, crowded with people and tourists from all over coming to worship and attend the festival. The sound of gongs, flutes, and pipes resonate, the singing and laughter are joyful and exciting. Everyone here chooses for themselves the most beautiful traditional costumes to wear on the festival day, contributing to beautifying the village and homeland. Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival is truly a festival of the ethnic communities in Ky Son, because the mountains, forests, and villages are filled with spring colors, people's hearts are filled with joy and hope, joining hands to build solidarity and love.

The Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival in 2023 takes place from February 13 to 15 (ie January 23 to 25 of the Lunar calendar) on a district scale, with exciting and diverse activities imbued with cultural identity. The ceremony will take place solemnly with the proclamation ceremony, the procession and the grand ceremony. The procession starts from the center of Na Luong village, down Highway 7A, then follows the road up to the top of the mountain to the location of Pu Nha Thau temple. The gods' tablets are brought into the temple, everyone respectfully turns to the main hall, where the grand ceremony begins. After offering the offerings, the shaman respectfully invites the gods and ancestors to attend the festival and enjoy, blessing the villages with prosperity, prosperity, full fields of rice, full rivers of fish, lush forests, and the villagers to be happy and united...

Some sports activities and folk games at Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival. Photo: Dao Tho

In addition to the ritual part, there is a festival part with a cultural and artistic exchange program, ethnic costume performance, drinking rice wine, Lam Vong dance and attractive folk games (tug of war, crossbow shooting, throwing con, to mac le, pushing sticks). In previous years, many visitors were really impressed with the unique camp of Pu Nha Thau Temple festival. The camps were built to simulate the architecture and housing layout of ethnic communities in Ky Son (Thai, Mong, Kho Mu and Kinh). Entering each camp, visitors will feel part of the cultural life of the ethnic people, and have an additional experience of highland life. In particular, coming to the festival, visitors will have the opportunity to enjoy mountain and forest products prepared by the skillful hands of Na Luong women. These are specialties such as five-color sticky rice, bamboo rice, black chicken, black pork, taro, sticky rice wine...

The Pu Nha Thau Temple Festival was held again after 2 years of suspension due to the Covid-19 pandemic, bringing joy and excitement to the ethnic people of Ky Son. This is an opportunity for people to improve their spiritual and cultural life, create motivation for the work of the new year and promote traditional cultural values, educate morality and national solidarity and promote the tourism potential of the homeland.

Ms. Vi Thi Quyen - Vice Chairman of Ky Son District People's Committee