Lucky red

Red is used in the costumes of ethnic minorities as insurance for the spirit of life, as a sign of eternal life.

On the costumes of the mountain people, embroidery or patchwork patterns are almost indispensable in red. Just look back, from Pa Then, Dao, H'Mong, Xa Pho, Lo Lo, Pu Peo in Viet Bac and the Northeast, to Thai, Kho Mu, Lu in the Northwest and the whole Central Highlands such as Xo Dang, Ba Na, E De, red is everywhere. Some places are as rushing as a waterfall, some are delicately dotted with white, green, yellow, purple. Red is always the main color. It is like plain rice in the meals of rice farmers.

The most brilliant is still the bright red color on the Pa Then people's costumes. If other ethnic groups, indigo is the main color on the shirt, pants, and skirt, then on the Pa Then costumes, the main color is red. Red covers the Pa Then people from the skirt to the scarf. There is only a white belt that separates the body, but it also acts as a catalyst for the red color to be more intense. Of the dozen Dao ethnic groups, the Red Dao, Dai Ban Dao, and Tieu Ban Dao are also resplendent in red. Two rows of bright red cotton balls on the chests of the Red Dao in Cao Bang challenge the vision. The two red-squared pants also control this hue. The H'Mong have the Flower H'Mong branch with the most abundant and red-colored clothing. The dresses of the H'Mong, Dao, Xa Pho, and Lo Lo Hoa people also have the most sophisticated embroidery and the most delicate use of red. When alternating between white, blue, yellow, and purple, red always plays the dominant role. In the Central Highlands, the costumes of Xo-dang men have two diagonal flaps in front of the chest, also prominently red.

Red is like fire in the mountains and forests, soft in the green of the trees and leaves. The hot red on the clothes seems to balance with the cold green of nature. It is like a reminder that, although humans are small, they are not overwhelmed by nature, but still blend into a unified whole. Looking at the embroidered flaps on the H'Mong people's skirts, the embroidery on scarves, on the shirts of Dao women and some other ethnic groups, people seem to see a miniature map of nature, in which the white, blue, yellow, red, purple colors are flowers, leaves, the breath of nature blowing on it. The shirt, belt, and headscarf are formed from observing nature, making people blend into the peaceful nature and it is also nature that shares with people through those embroidery lines and colors.

On the wedding day, the wedding costume of the Dao bride is very elaborate. Not to mention the wedding dress, just the headscarf is already a solemn sign of happiness. The same is true for all Dao branches, the headscarf of the bride before the wedding reception and the wedding night is always affirmed by the bright red color, strong, confident and proud.

Red is the color of fire, the color of life. In the beliefs of many ethnic groups, red is the color that drives away evil spirits and brings luck and happiness.

Why?

In the ceremonies of the Kinh people, besides the bowl of water for offerings, there is always a lamp, a candle, and an incense stick. The lamp, candle, and incense are red. Fire is yang, water is yin. Having these two things is a balance of yin and yang, all things follow each other, there is peace in life. In the world of spirits or the world of humans, fire and water always go together as a pair of unified categories between two opposite sides. That is a sign of existence. That is the key to establishing the value of red, by default it is the color to ward off evil spirits. Red is fire. With water, with fire, there is life. Red is sensitive to vision.

In the middle of the cold, deep forest, just a piece of coal, a fire, even though far away, is easy to recognize and affirm its position. The red color gives a feeling of warmth like sitting next to the stove in each house. In the mountainous region, the fire is kept all year round in the house, never letting the stove go out. Mountain people burn incense and take the fire from the stove. The fire from the stove is the source of the fire. The Kinh people keep a small oil lamp on the altar, also lit from the fire. The Kinh people do not have forests to have firewood to keep the fire in the stove day after day, but they know how to keep the fire with straw, no different from the mountainous people keeping the fire in a pile of firewood. That fire is the source fire. In a broader sense, every Olympic torch relay takes the fire from Olympia, passes it to other countries, and then lights the Olympic torch in the host country. So is the world's practice any different from the Vietnamese customs and the highland ethnic groups' customs regarding the role of fire? Red is fire, the color of the source of life. The strongest color of the Pa Then people's costume is red, so they also have a fire dancing festival with a very vibrant red color. Among the fire dancing festivals of the Dao - Pa Then group, the fire dancing festival of the Pa Then people is still the most brilliant.

Where there is water, there is life. Along with water, there is fire to protect people. Fire not only gives people safe food and drink, but also keeps people warm on cold winter days in the middle of the wild forest and in the dark caves. There, the red fire will chase away the cold. Wilderness and cold are the devils of death. Perhaps that is why the color red is used on clothes as insurance for the spirit of life, on scarves, on belts, red is like a sign of eternal life. Red is like a charm to ward off evil and chase away all the bad luck that comes to people. Is that why red is used like salt in meals, indispensable in the costumes of every ethnic group on the mountain, because it brings luck and happiness!

Heritage Magazine