Photo: Lu Thi Loan with the gong set to celebrate the New Year. (Photo: Minh Thu/Vietnam+) 30-year-old Lu Thi Be got up early in the morning to cook rice and boil water to prepare for the worshiping ritual of the Go ro (New Year) festival, the most important event of the year of Kho Mu ethnic people in Tuong Duong district, the central province of Nghe An.
Go ro festival is celebrated in coincidence with the Lunar New Year, wishing for a new year with favourable weather conditions, good luck and health for everyone in the family and the village.
Rituals’ sacredness
According to Lu Van Quang, head of Xa Kha village in Yen Hoa commune, Tuong Duong district, Nghe An province, from the end of l1th lunar month, all local families are rushing to prepare wine and other offerings for the grand festival.
“To celebrate the Go ro festival, every local family prepare a full set of offerings including: a pair of chickens (1 rooster, 1 hen), a jar of Can wine, and a plate of betel nut. If one of these three things is missing, it is impossible to perform the rituals of New Year's Day," said Lu Van Quang, head of Xa Kha village, Yen Hoa commune, Tuong Duong district, Nghe An province.
Photo: To celebrate the Go ro festival, every local family prepares a full set of offerings including: a pair of chickens, a jar of wine, and a plate of betel nut. (Photo: Minh Thu/Vietnam+) The ritual often starts at about 8am. The shaman is an elderly person in the family or being invited by the family. The first cup of wine is offered to the ancestors and forest and mountain gods to thank them for giving them favourable weather and good crops. After that, people apply chicken blood on everyone’s knees, wishing each other good health and peace.
“After the ritual, the family members raise their hands to their foreheads to show respect and gratitude. The purpose of this act is to tell their children and grandchildren to appreciate the food and never waste it,” said Lu Thi Be.
Photo: Offering tray of the Kho Mu people. (Photo: Minh Thu/Vietnam+) Preserving ethnic cultural identity
The Go ro festival consists of two parts, the ritual and the festival. The ritual is always sacred, solemn and mysterious, while the festival is very jubilant and attracts everyone to participate.
During the bamboo dance, groups of boys and girls in traditional costumes hold hands, dance to the rhythm of the bamboo knocking.
Photo: A dance in the New Year celebration of the Kho Mu at the Vietnam Ethnic Culture and Tourism Village. (Photo: Minh Thu/Vietnam+) “The Go ro festival today still has traditional rituals handed down from ancient times. We are very proud to be able to recreate our festival for visitors at the Vietnam Ethnic Culture and Tourism Village to better understand the culture of the Kho Mu people,” Lu Thi Be said.
Lu Thi Be in her colorful dress also participates in bamboo dancing and sword dancing in her ethnic group's New Year festival. Be said this is the most sacred ceremony of the year, showing the proverb says: “When you drink water, remember the source”, the beauty of the cultural life of the Kho Mu ethnic group. It also serves as an opportunity for family members, relatives, and villagers who work far away from home for the whole year to meet each other, strengthen solidarity, and overcome all difficulties and challenges together to build a more prosperous and happy life in each family and the whole village. Therefore, generations of the Kho Mu are proud to preserve and continue that tradition./.
