Practicing the Mother Goddess Worship in the Digital Age

Artists perform the ritual price of the Second Princess. (Photo: Institute for Research on Preservation and Development of Southeast Asian Culture)

However, along with development opportunities, there are also challenges in preserving the original and sacred nature of the heritage.

With just a few basic keywords related to the Three Palaces Mother Goddess Worship, it is easy to find hundreds, even thousands of videos about the rituals of spirit mediumship and singing posted on social networking platforms. As a medium, researcher, and direct lecturer at many universities, Dr. and artist Nguyen Duc Hien is also one of the pioneers in using digital technology to promote this belief to young people and international friends.

On his personal YouTube and TikTok channels, he has posted many videos sharing knowledge about Mother Lieu Hanh, explaining each price, introducing the props associated with the practice of the Mother Goddess Worship of the Three Palaces. Every video receives thousands of views, shares, and many positive comments from the public. Mr. Hien said: “Using digital technology to promote the Mother Goddess Worship of the Vietnamese people is a great thing. Because the cost is cheap compared to posting on media channels and newspapers; Vietnamese culture reaches the world faster and more; it is easy to interact with the public, connecting people who share the same passion for researching and practicing heritage. This is also a way to preserve cultural beauty that lasts over time, passing it intact from generation to generation.”

Mr. Nguyen Van Thu, former Chairman of the Association for the Protection and Promotion of the Heritage of the Practice of the Mother Goddess Worship of the Vietnamese in Nam Dinh Province (old) said that almost every medium has a social media account to post personal activities revolving around the story of the Practice of the Mother Goddess Worship of the Three Palaces. However, this also encounters some shortcomings, most of them use social media platforms spontaneously, without really having a clear plan or goal in spreading the heritage systematically.

Master Hoang Kim Duc, Chief of Office of the Institute for Research on Religion and Beliefs, said: One of the biggest shortcomings in the application of digital technology is the risk of commercialization and "virtualization" of heritage, leading to distortion or falsification of original values; taking advantage of beliefs to transform, gain personal gain, and even commit fraud. Mr. Nguyen Duc Hien noticed: When posting videos on social networks, there are also many comments and opposing views that are provocative, causing misunderstandings about the nature of beliefs. To overcome the above limitations, state management agencies, relevant units and organizations have actively participated in moving towards standard digitalization of heritage.

In Nam Dinh province (old), the homeland of the Mother Goddess Worship, in 2021, the Provincial People's Committee approved the project "Protecting and promoting the value of the practice of the Mother Goddess Worship of the Vietnamese people in Nam Dinh province until 2030". The task of the project is to comprehensively inventory relics, research, document, and digitize to introduce the heritage value to the public. In recent years, the Institute for Research on Religious and Belief Issues has focused on proposing research on grassroots topics; organizing scientific topics on Mother Goddess Worship in the Institute's special issue, publishing articles and research papers by leading prestigious cultural experts.

In early September, the Institute successfully organized the first annual Forum on Vietnamese Mother Goddess Worship in 2025; and continued to develop plans for the second forum in 2026 with the participation of countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea.

Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Ngoc Linh, Director of the Institute said: “The forum is a journey to accompany the community in preserving Vietnamese cultural identity in the flow of integration, spreading the profound humanistic values of Mother Goddess Religion into contemporary life. Thanks to technology, the Institute's activities reach many people as well as connect heritage lovers with the same passion.”

Established in 2021, during a time when digital technology was developing rapidly, the Institute for Research on Preservation and Development of Southeast Asian Culture quickly caught up, utilizing the strengths of digital technology to promote culture in general and the Vietnamese Mother Goddess Worship in particular. The Institute has collected and digitized documents on hat van, hau dong, and historical and cultural relics; recorded audio and video of rituals in practice to post on the Institute's electronic information portal and social networking platforms.

The Institute is developing a project to establish a museum on Southeast Asian culture, combining the display of real artifacts and virtual displays to tell stories about Mother Goddess Religion and the practice of the Three Realms Mother Goddess Worship using virtual reality technology. Director Pham Van Thang said: Along with digitizing data, the Institute organizes seminars, exchanges, and discussions on digital platforms so that many people can easily access and learn about the Three Realms Mother Goddess Worship; at the same time, it will organize exchanges and introductions in countries in the Southeast Asian region by the end of 2025.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Thu, digitalization also has certain boundaries. There are things that can be digitized immediately, but with the practice of the Three Realms Mother Goddess Worship ritual, it must be carefully calculated because it is closely linked to the sacred space when practicing. To locate standard rituals, it is advisable to invite experienced and prestigious artisans who understand the esoteric secrets to record videos as a model, thereby widely promoting them at home and abroad to help the public understand the true nature and rituals. As a very special type of heritage, the problem of using digital technology, no matter how thoroughly it is solved, is only suggestive and introductory to attract the public to learn. To fully feel the beauty of the Three Realms Mother Goddess Worship Practice, there is no better way than to directly participate and experience it.

THANH DUNG

Source: https://nhandan.vn/thuc-hanh-tin-nguong-tho-mau-tam-phu-thoi-cong-nghe-so-post913170.html