Nghinh Ong festival in Ca Mau province – beauty of community culture

The event is typically celebrated in Song Doc town of Tran Van Thoi district in Ca Mau province between the 14th and the 16th days of the second lunar month. (Photo: camau.gov.vn)

Hanoi (VNA) - The annual Song Doc Nghinh Ong Festival in the southernmost province of Ca Mau, also known as the Whale Worshiping Festival, has been recognised as national intangible cultural heritage.

The event is typically celebrated in Song Doc town of Tran Van Thoi district in Ca Mau province between the 14th and the 16th days of the second lunar month.

To fishermen in Vietnam, especially on the central and southern coasts, the whale is not just an animal, it is worshiped as Ca Ong, or "Lord Whale", which protects them at sea.

Ca Ong is a deity who helps them overcome all hazards at sea, and so fishermen pray to the whale for a safe trip every time they go fishing. This is a ritual that has been maintained through generations.

Many fishermen tell stories about how they were rescued by a whale when they were in trouble at sea.

There is a temple worshiping Ca Ong in a residential area in Song Doc town, which was built in 1925.

Gia Long King (1802-1819) conferred the whale with the title of God “Dai Can Nam Hai Thuong Dang.” Local fishermen called him “Nam Hai Dai Tuong Quan” (General of the South Sea).

As the biggest traditional festival in Ca Mau, the Nghinh Ong festival offers an opportunity for visitors to learn about the cultural beauty of local fishermen.

The festival has been listed as one of the most 60 typical festivals in Vietnam, where local fishermen pray for favourable weather conditions, peace in the country, safe voyages and bumper hauls of fish.

Boats at the festival (Photo: VNA)

The Nghinh Ong festival consists of two parts: the ceremony and the festival. Especially, the procession around Song Doc town sees the participation of thousands of people, with the sounds of drums and trumpets as the background.

Hundreds of boats of all sizes are decorated colourfuly also join the festival. Guests aboard the boats are treated to free-of-charge food.

Apart from the rituals, the festival also features a range of games like chess, stick pushing, tug of war, volleyball and football.

Apart from Ca Mau, the festival has been part of the cultural identity in other southern and central coastal localities in Vietnam, which has been preserved and passed down through generations.

In many places around the country, fishermen celebrate Cau Ngu with fun and games and pray to the whale for a new year full of luck and bountiful harvests before setting off for the year’s first fishing trip.

While being rescued by a whale does appear supernatural and gratitude for being saved is a good enough reason to venerate the animals, there are also other explanations for this tradition.

Whale worship is now recognised as important cultural heritage, especially of people living in coastal areas.

The festival reflects the beauty of community culture and belief of local fishermen. To promote the festival and attract more tourists to Ca Mau, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism earlier this year included the festival in the list of national intangible cultural heritage.

On the evening of March 26, 2021, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ca Mau province in coordination with the People's Committee of Tran Van Thoi district held a ceremony to announce the recognition.

The event usually attracts large numbers of local people and visitors each year./.