"Twin Trees" Dong Tien version

(Baonghean) - The banyan tree in Dong Tien village (Lang Khe - Con Cuong) is one of the few ancient trees with a beautiful shape and massive size. Right next to it is a persimmon tree that is also easily a hundred years old. The combination of these two ancient trees not only creates an interesting landscape, but in the minds of the villagers, it is something very sacred…

The ancient banyan tree stands majestically beside the stilt houses of Dong Tien village, overlooking the terraced rice fields, lush green twice a year, evoking a cheerful and peaceful scene. With a height of approximately 40 meters and a trunk circumference of over 10 meters, it can be seen from neighboring villages, even from tens of kilometers away. The persimmon tree is somewhat more modest in size, possibly planted by a local elder or village chief. The persimmon tree is considered a symbol of nobility, beauty, and fragrance in the spiritual culture of the villagers.

"Twin trees" in Dong Tien village (Lang Khe - Con Cuong).

Mr. Vi Dinh Toan, also a respected elder of Dong Tien village, now over 70 years old, recounts: "When I was a child, I saw the ancient banyan tree standing there, its majestic form as if it knew everything about the village, past and present. In the past, to determine the location or find the way back to the village, people often used the ancient banyan tree as a landmark. Standing on a hilltop or climbing a tree, seeing the banyan tree meant knowing the location of Dong Tien village."

During the feudal era, every year after the Lunar New Year celebrations, the villagers would gather at the village temple under the ancient banyan tree to hold a ceremony to honor the souls of those who died in battle. Previously, Dong Tien village was called Tan Xa village. This name recalls the late 19th century, when the Xa people, incited by feudal and colonial forces, committed acts of robbery in many mountainous areas. At that time, Dong Tien village was the place that repelled the Xa robbers. Later, people did not want to remember such a sad past, so the village changed its name. Only the elderly and older people still prefer to call it by its old name.

According to Mr. Vi Dinh Toan, the Dong Tien village temple festival, organized by the villagers, usually involved offerings of chickens and pigs. This continued until 1953, when the temple was damaged by French bombing. Later, a small shrine was rebuilt, but it was constantly filled with incense smoke throughout the year. During the war against the Americans, the shrine was bombed again, and the villagers focused on the resistance, interrupting the worship once more. In the 1990s, the village's Elderly Association requested permission from the government to rebuild the shrine and continue the ancestral worship rituals.

The people of the Tay Thanh ethnic group in Dong Tien village believe that, thanks to the spirits residing in the ancient trees, no one in the village has ever drowned! The villagers are also quite prosperous. Therefore, these ancient banyan and persimmon trees are carefully protected by the villagers. Every year, dozens of bee colonies from the forest come to build nests in the trees, and no one dares to disturb them. Occasionally, during the season when the banyan fruit ripens, a large monkey, as big as a human, returns to pick the fruit. And the squirrels choose the banyan tree as their home. During each fruiting season, the fragrant scent of persimmons wafts through the village lanes, evoking a fairytale atmosphere. For the people of Dong Tien village, the banyan tree is a symbol of prosperity, while the persimmon tree brings joy to the people…

Huu Vi