Hai Phong held a ceremony to commemorate the 583rd death anniversary of National Hero Nguyen Trai.

VHO - On the morning of October 7, at Nguyen Trai Temple in the Con Son - Kiep Bac special national relic site, the Hai Phong City Party Committee - People's Council - People's Committee - Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee solemnly held a ceremony to commemorate the 583rd death anniversary of National Hero Nguyen Trai.

This is a major cultural event of the city, demonstrating respect for history, to review the tradition of patriotism, the will of independence and self-reliance, national pride and educate the morality of "when drinking water, remember its source"; to remember and honor the great men who have made great contributions to the cause of protecting and building the country.

Delegates and leaders of Hai Phong City attended the Memorial Ceremony

Nguyen Trai, whose pen name was Uc Trai, was born in the year of Canh Than (1380) in the capital city of Thang Long. His father was Nguyen Phi Khanh, originally from Chi Ngai village (now Tran Hung Dao ward, Hai Duong city); later moved to Ngoc Oi village (now Thuong Tin district, Hanoi city). His mother was Tran Thi Thai, daughter of Grand Tutor Tran Nguyen Dan.

During his childhood, Nguyen Trai lived with his maternal grandfather in Thang Long and Con Son. When his maternal grandfather passed away, Nguyen Trai returned to live with his father in Nhi Khe village. Nguyen Trai soon became famous for his talent and ambition. In 1400, at the age of 20, he passed the Thai Hoc Sinh exam and the following year he took up the position of Chief Inspector of the Imperial Censorate under the Ho Dynasty.

Since 1407, the Ho Dynasty weakened, and our country fell under the domination of the Ming invaders. They caused the utmost tragedy in our country: “Cutting down all the bamboos of Nam Son cannot record all the crimes; draining the waters of the East Sea cannot wash away all the filth.”

In his speech at the memorial ceremony, Mr. Nguyen Minh Hung - Vice Chairman of Hai Phong City People's Committee, Permanent Deputy Head of the Organizing Committee of the Con Son - Kiep Bac Autumn Festival 2025 - emphasized:

With hatred for the enemy and a seething spirit of patriotism, Nguyen Trai decided to nurture the will to save the country and save the people. He went to Lam Son to gather the righteous, presented the Binh Ngo book , "ten years behind the curtain, five times rolling in the tiger's mouth", devoted his heart and soul, wholeheartedly and loyally helping Binh Dinh King Le Loi.

The ritual of reading the eulogy at the ceremony

He became the soul of the resistance against the Ming invaders, liberating the country in the 15th century.

After the victorious resistance, Nguyen Trai wrote the Proclamation of Victory over the Wu - an immortal "Declaration of Independence", a masterpiece of heroic literature that skillfully summarized the great resistance of the nation.

Talking about Nguyen Trai, the late Prime Minister Pham Van Dong once wrote: “Nguyen Trai, a national hero, was both a literary and a martial artist: "literature" is politics, saving the country, saving the people, internal affairs, diplomacy, opening up eternal peace, washing away hatred for thousands of years; "martial" is military, strategy and tactics, the weak fighting the strong, the few fighting the many... defeating brutality with great justice; "literature" and "martial" are both weapons, strong as a storm, sharp as a sword or knife".

A peaceful country, with the desire to participate in "renovating the country, building eternal peace" and the thought "humanity is based on peace for the people", the thoughts and morality of that great man have gone beyond national space and time for many centuries.

After the successful resistance war against the Ming invaders, he continued his political, cultural and social activities under the Le Dynasty and made great contributions to creating the economic and social foundation, the harmony between "country and people" - the resource for building a strong Dai Viet country at that time.

For a long time, in the minds of the people of the whole country, Con Son is the land that nurtured the shining Khue star in the history of the Vietnamese people.

With Con Son - the land that was associated with him during his childhood years, it was also the place where he took refuge to "think about the present, think about the future, consider all the reasons for prosperity and decline", to later write Binh Ngo Sach , outlining the path to fight the enemy to save the country and liberate the nation.

During the reign of King Le Thai Tong, he was assigned to oversee the Northeast. Con Son was also the place where he built his house, ground ink, and composed many valuable works on history, literature, philosophy, military affairs, diplomacy, etc., becoming precious legacies for posterity.

A typical example is Con Son Ca , until now no literary person has written about Con Son better than this.

Nguyen Trai has gone down in history as a great national hero and an outstanding cultural celebrity. Although his life ended in a tragic tragedy, history has recognized and honored him for his illustrious and glorious career, which had a great influence on the strategy of protecting and building the country.

Drum performance at the ceremony

Nguyen Trai Temple – Uc Trai Linh Tu – has long become a sacred space for generations of people to deeply engrave the morality of “when drinking water, remember its source”, to honor and respectfully remember Uc Trai.

Here, every spring and autumn, hundreds of thousands of tourists come to visit, worship, and immerse themselves in the pure, sacred space to remember and show gratitude to their ancestors.

"In the smoke of incense, in front of the sacred Nguyen Trai Temple, in memory of the national hero Nguyen Trai, we see more clearly the great responsibility in preserving and promoting the unique and globally outstanding cultural heritage values ​​of the Con Son - Kiep Bac relic site.

The ideology and eternal values ​​of the Truc Lam Buddhist ancestral land at Con Son Pagoda and the outstanding cultural celebrity Nguyen Trai here have made important contributions, meeting the criteria for the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son, Kiep Bac Monuments and Landscape Complex to be nominated for inclusion in the World Heritage List.

Nguyen Trai Temple - Uc Trai Linh Tu

Respecting the history and promoting the cultural heritage values ​​of the Con Son - Kiep Bac relic and scenic area so that this place can continue to shine, become an endogenous resource, and support generations of Vietnamese people in the past, present and future to firmly step forward in the work of protecting, building and developing a rich, democratic, civilized country, reaching out to enter a new era" - Mr. Nguyen Minh Hung clearly stated.

After the memorial speech and the eulogy for Nguyen Trai, representatives of the city's leaders and the people respectfully offered incense to commemorate the national hero and world cultural celebrity Nguyen Trai, praying for national peace and prosperity, a sustainable and constantly renewed country.

Before the memorial ceremony, delegates, along with many local people and tourists from all over, offered incense at Con Son Pagoda and held a procession from Con Son Pagoda to Nguyen Trai Temple.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/hai-phong-to-chuc-le-tuong-niem-583-nam-ngay-mat-cua-anh-hung-dan-toc-nguyen-trai-172933.html