Telling new stories for ancient heritage

Choosing to attend a presentation on Southern communal houses and pagodas as a birthday gift for herself in April 2023, Dinh Thi Bang Chau did not expect that decision to ignite in her a strong passion for heritage and urge her to form a project called "Soul of communal houses in the city".

Two years later, that idea took shape and became the final project of the group of students of the ABG Young Education Leaders program, course 05 (ABG Leadership Institute, headquartered in Hanoi), with the desire to develop an experiential education model associated with local cultural heritage.

What is special is that Master Phan Nguyen Kien Nam (University of Social Sciences and Humanities - Ho Chi Minh National University), who used to lead the presentation in the past, has now become a speaker accompanying the group throughout the project.

In addition, the program also received enthusiastic advice from Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Hoang Anh, Head of ABG Education, former lecturer at Foreign Trade University ( Hanoi ). The project " Soul of Communal Houses in the City" started with articles and shared images about communal houses in Ho Chi Minh City via fanpage. Next was a reality program designed as a journey connecting knowledge and experience that took place in early August.

Accordingly, in the morning, participants will learn basic knowledge about Han Nom and the Han Nom heritage system at the place of worship. In the afternoon, there will be a direct visit and study at Chi Hoa communal house, a national historical and cultural relic over 300 years old, where Vo Truong Toan taught during the period 1785-1792. Young people will learn about the history of the communal house, learn how to read and understand parallel sentences and listen to old stories that are still imprinted on each brick and roof tile.

“I was also a young person who found temples and pagodas to be something strange. But thanks to the opportunity to learn, I realized that young people's interest in heritage is an underground stream, never lost but just waiting for the right time to burst out. The project hopes to contribute to creating a space for learning and connecting between generations, between traditional values ​​and new approaches,” Bang Chau shared.

In the context of folk culture gradually fading away in the modern urban life, initiatives such as Hon Dinh Trong Pho open up a new direction to bring the village communal house culture closer to the community - especially the youth. With the support of technology and an open spirit, today's young generation can completely become new storytellers of ancient values, preserving heritage in a way that is both creative and imbued with the Vietnamese spirit.

LIBRA

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/ke-chuyen-moi-cho-di-san-xua-post807779.html