The "pearls" in the ancient village covenant

(Baonghean) - Up to now, My Thanh village, Hung My commune, Hung Nguyen (formerly known as Ngoc Hot village, Do Yen commune, Do Yen canton, Hung Nguyen district, Nghe An province) still preserves a village covenant in Chinese characters that is about 200 years old. This village covenant was discussed and drafted by all the people and the local leaders of Ngoc Hot village since the 5th year of Gia Long (1806). The basic content of the village covenant regulates the organization of annual rituals in Ngoc Hot village (field sacrifice ceremony, main festival, sacrifice to the lord, thanksgiving ceremony, longevity celebration ceremony, opening ceremony, blessing ceremony...) and regulations on weddings, funerals...

The village covenant consists of 19 provisions. In addition to the provisions on organizing rituals during the year, the village covenant also mentions the punishment of those involved in drinking and gambling. Specifically: "If the village organizes a meal, anyone who gets drunk and speaks nonsense, if he is a famous and beautiful person, he will be fined 3 quan, and if he is a commoner, he will be punished with 30 lashes" (article 18). Or: "If anyone in the village gambles and is discovered by the village chief, or is discovered by a local person and is caught red-handed, he will be fined with good wine and 12 quan, and each person sitting on the mat will be punished with 6 quan and 30 lashes. Or if groups of 5 or 3 gamble on various items, and before the opening ceremony of the first lunar month, they will go on a spring outing, then they are allowed to be excused, but after the opening ceremony, they must strictly follow the rules, and there is no room for evasion" (article 19).

First page of the village charter of Ngoc Hot village

In the 33rd year of Tu Duc (1880), considering that some of the contents of the village covenant were no longer suitable, all the people and dignitaries of Ngoc Hot village met again to discuss and amend. In terms of form, the provisions in the new village covenant of Ngoc Hot village were expressed more concisely and succinctly. In terms of content, in addition to the provisions on rituals during the year, some new provisions aimed at encouraging learning, employing talented people and maintaining order and security were also included in the village covenant. In particular, this village covenant devoted 3/19 provisions to encouraging learning and examinations. This proves that for a long time, Ngoc Hot village had a tradition of loving learning and that learning was not only a private matter of each family but also a common matter of the whole village and commune. The village rules stipulate: "The village rules state that if someone passes the imperial examination, the congratulatory money is 60 quan, a banner, betel and areca nuts, and congratulatory wine. If a bachelor is awarded 30 quan, a banner, betel and areca nuts" (Article 8); "If there is a scholar in the village who is studying and plans to take the exam, the village sets a custom of sending him off with 3 quan" (Article 10); "Any family with a child studying, regardless of whether he passes or not, will be exempted from all tax and service duties according to the country's rules to enrich his literary style" (Article 11).

In order to ensure security and order and preserve traditional customs, the Ngoc Hot village convention devotes 7/19 articles to regulating punishment for violators. This is a regulation to punish those who destroy public property and the interests of the entire community: "Anyone who destroys roads, breaks through the earth's veins, damages bridges and culverts, selfishly harms others, must compensate as before and be fined 6 quan" (Article 12). And this is a regulation to punish those who destroy cultural and spiritual works: "Anyone in the village who damages the temple of the Saint, the pagoda worshiping Buddha, or harms trees, the village chief or others will be rewarded 1 quan, and that person will be fined 6 quan, if he knows but hides when discovered, he will be fined 2 quan" (Article 12). The village covenant also stipulates quite strict penalties for property theft: "Anyone in the village who steals rice, crops, and property from other people's fields and gardens and is caught and reported by the village chief or others will be fined 3 quan of money, and the property and other items must be returned to the owner and must write a petition to amend and reform to eliminate the crime. If they stubbornly refuse to admit it, or are ashamed to deny it, they will be immediately arrested and brought back to be punished. The dignitaries will meet to discuss and decide that they will not be allowed to hold positions in the village for life" (Article 15). To maintain harmony in each family, the people of Ngoc Hot village came to an agreement: "Anyone who commits the crime of being unfilial, not being in harmony, doing bad things like a child insulting his parents, a sister-in-law insulting her brother-in-law, a younger brother insulting his elder brother, if their relatives discover and denounce them, and see and hear with their own eyes and ears, will be fined in different amounts depending on the severity of the crime. A light crime is fined 3 quan, a heavy crime is fined 6 quan" (Article 18).

Perhaps due to the construction and drafting of a fairly strict village charter, which both ensures solemnity and contains profound humanity, the people of Ngoc Hot village have always preserved the good cultural values ​​left by their ancestors. Generations of people here have always been conscious of reminding their descendants to preserve good customs, preserve the land and customs, and ensure standards of behavior and communication in the family as well as in society. Therefore, up to now, My Thanh village (old Ngoc Hot) has still maintained many beautiful traditional features in the village community life, the village and neighborly relationship is always strong, and order and security are always guaranteed.

We are launching the movement "All people unite to build a cultural life in residential areas" and build cultural villages, in which villages are encouraged to build village covenants. Although it was drafted more than 200 years ago and was born in a feudal society, the village covenant of Ngoc Hot village still has many reasonable points, which are worth our reference.

Cong Kien