Unique Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio

The Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio has many unique features of (Photo: VietnamPlus)

Hanoi (VNA) – Locals in Ho Chi Minh City’s outlying Can Gio district are eager to celebrate Nghinh Ong Festival, an important traditional festival of the local community, which takes place from September 9-11, or the 14th to 16th days of the eighth lunar month.

The annual festival is a chance for fishermen to show respect for the whale and express gratitude for a huge catch of fish.

This year, the festival will coincide with the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The procession will start from Ong Thuy Tuong Temple (Temple Worshiping the Whale) and then move to the sea. It will be followed by local residents and fishermen in traditional costumes and dozens of fishing vessels.

The ritual aims to allow fishermen to show respect to whales that help them at sea, as well as worship of whales and a bountiful season of fishing.

The organisers will hold music shows featuring songs and dances in praise of the city and the country at Can Thanh park every night during the festival.

The shows will include performances from the Tran Huu Trang Cai Luong (reformed opera) Theatre and the HCM City Hat Boi (classical drama) Theatre, whose performers will offer several extracts from famous plays.

The festival will include a release of lanterns to the sea organised by young people who will pray for a good fishing season, and a visit to Rung Sac War Martyrs Cemetery to remember soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect the country.

The organisers will host exhibitions showcasing photos and objects which feature fishing activities, and the Can Gio mangrove forest, a world biosphere reserve recognised by UNESCO in 2000.

A trade fair introducing OCOP (one commune one product) products from Can Gio and HCM City will also be held.

Folk games, water puppet performances and a Mid-Autumn festival for local children will be included as well.

The organisers will also host a series of sports such as cycling, marathon and water sports during the festival. Notably, the “Green Can Gio Marathon 2022” will be held from September 17-19.

The Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio was recognised as a national Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2013. It is the only traditional festival for fishermen held to celebrate their fishing vocation and lifestyle.

The event, organised by the city Department of Culture and Sports, helps to promote tourism in Can Gio, as well as nurture young people’s love for Vietnam’s fishing culture, sea and islands.

Sharing many similarities with other rituals such as the Cau Ngu and Nghinh Ong festivals in the region, the Nghinh Ong festival in Can Gio district has its own unique characteristics in terms of festival rituals. Legends and folk tales about the history and development of the mangroves of Can Gio also bring a distinct colour typical of the locality during the Nghinh Ong festival.

The Nghinh Ong Festival whale worshiping has been handed down over the generations, modeled after the cultural, spiritual and social life of coastal fishermen in the coastal Can Gio district. The origin of this festival is associated with folk legends introduced in Can Gio during the cultural exchange of Can Gio fishermen with fishermen in coastal provinces from Quang Binh to Ha Tien. This is a traditional festival associated with whale worship to pray for peace when going to the sea and wish for a prosperous and happy life.

The festival helps the community prepare and look forward to the coming season full of expectations. This is a festival that shows respect, gratitude, and thanksgiving to the God Nam Hai (Whale) and God of the Sea of fishermen in Can Gio district./.