A palanquin procession taking offerings to the Au Co Temple (Photo: VNA) Phu Tho (VNA) - A festival dedicatedto Mother Au Co – the legendary mother of Vietnam – opened in Hien Luongcommune of Ha Hoa district, the northern province of Phu Tho, on February 22(or the seventh day of the first month of the Year of the Dog).
The festival began with a ritual worshipping theguardian deity at the local communal house. A palanquin procession took offeringsfrom the communal house to the Au Co Temple to pray for peace, good weather,prosperity and happiness.
The Au Co Temple festival marked the startof festive activities in Phu Tho in spring.
The temple was built under the reign of King LeThanh Tong (15th century) and named a national historical and cultural relicsite in 1991. On January 23, 2017, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourismrecognised the worship of Mother Au Co at the temple as part of the nationalintangible cultural heritage.
A ritual at the opening ceremony (Photo: VNA) Legend has it that Au Co, who was a fairy,descended to earth on the seventh day of the first lunar month. She met withLac Long Quan and gave birth to 100 sons. Fifty of them followed their fatherto the sea and the other half followed their mother to the mountains in theupstream Red River.
When they arrived in the area which is now HienLuong commune, Au Co and her children were so captivated by the area’sfertility and stunning landscapes that they decided to settle there, and thiswas where the eldest son was crowned as Hung King – the legendary founder ofVietnam.
The festival draws crowds of people (Photo: VNA) Mother Au Co taught locals to practise waterrice cultivation, plant mulberry trees, and breed silk worms before returning toheaven on the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month.
Vietnam has about 8,000 festivals each year. Ofwhich, nearly 90 percent are traditional festivals, 6 percent are religiousones and 4 percent are historical ones.-VNA
Sport games take place during the festival (Photo: VNA)
VNA
