Unique Festival of 'living kings and lords' procession in Dong Anh, Hanoi

Every New Year, Thuy Lam commune in general and Thuy Loi villagers in particular organize Sai Temple Festival which lasts from January 11-15 of the Lunar calendar with a unique opening ceremony of welcoming the king and lord as real people and beheading the white chicken spirit, attracting a large number of tourists from all over.

Sai Temple Festival has its origin linked to the story of King An Duong Vuong building Co Loa citadel in Thuy Lam commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi . (Source: Dai Doan Ket Newspaper)

Sai Temple historical relic was ranked as a national historical relic by the State in 1986. This place worships Saint Huyen Thien Tran Vu who helped King Thuc - An Duong Vuong build Co Loa citadel.

Legend has it that at that time, King Thuc built a citadel in Viet Thuong land, a thousand feet wide, curled up like a snail, so it was called Loa Thanh. The citadel kept collapsing after being built, so the king was worried, so he fasted and prayed to heaven, earth, and the mountain and river gods, then started to rebuild. The king asked why the citadel collapsed so many times, and the Golden Turtle replied that it was because the spirit of the mountains and rivers in this area had a demon named Bach Ke Tinh (white chicken spirit) hiding in That Dieu mountain. The king and his entourage, including the lord and the mandarins in the court, built a platform to pray to the gods, so Huyen Thien Tran Vu sent the god Kim Quy to appear and advise him on a plan to kill the white chicken spirit so that the citadel construction could be completed.

To commemorate the merits of Huyen Thien Tran Vu, the king built a temple on the top of That Dieu mountain, which is Sai temple today. The temple is also where Huyen Thien practiced, so it is also called Vu Duong Son.

The festival of carrying real kings and lords is held with the wish for a new year of wealth, success, peace and happiness, and is considered an encyclopedic museum of the rich cultural and spiritual life of the people of Thuy Loi village, Thuy Lam commune in particular and the people of Dong Anh in general.

The person playing the role of lord has his face painted red to distinguish him from the king. (Source: Hanoi Moi)

To prepare for the Sai Temple Festival, the locals had to choose people to play the role of the fake king, fake lord and mandarins. The chosen people had to be old men of 75 years old and of happy family. Before the procession, the lord would go to the back of the temple yard to perform the symbolic chicken slaughtering ceremony.

During the procession, following the king was the Tan Ly mandarin, one of the four mandarins who sat in a hammock participating in the procession. In addition, there were three other mandarins known as the "four pillars of the court" including the Thu Ve mandarin, De Linh mandarin and Tran Thu mandarin (all mandarins were over 60 years old). They sat in hammocks and were carried by soldiers throughout the journey.

The king's palanquin was carried by dozens of young people who took turns supporting and cheering, helping to liven up the festival. (Source: Urban Economics )

After being carried from the village temple, the king performed a ceremony to worship Cao Son Dai Vuong at the Upper Temple, while the lord paid homage to Huyen Thien Tran Vu at the Sai Temple. In the early afternoon, the king returned to the Upper Temple to prepare for the second procession back to the communal house. After the worship ceremony, the "living king and lord" were carried on a palanquin to the field, the king performed a ceremony to worship Duc Thanh Huyen Thien at the Sai Temple, then, together with the mandarins, returned to the communal house. The palanquin of the "king and lord" was carried by dozens of young men, descendants of the two people chosen to play the role of king and lord, taking turns supporting and cheering.

The King's Procession Festival is an opportunity for each citizen and each tourist to exchange, sympathize and pass on traditional cultural values and good morals of the nation so that each person can put into it their feelings and aspirations for a better and more valuable life. It is not only a beauty, but also a priceless asset that needs to be preserved, passed on, preserved and promoted.

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