Among those present at the event were Politburo member and President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan, Politburo member and Minister of Public Security Tran Dai Quang, provincial authorities at all levels, local residents and thousands of pilgrims and visitors.
The ceremony is a traditional custom dating back the Tran dynasty (1225-1400), which is held to pray for a prosperous nation and people, and for a new year resplendent with good health, good jobs and success. The ceremony also inspires national pride and promotes the tradition of patriotism. Pilgrims and visitors flock to the event each year to acquire replicas of the Tran Temple’s seal in hopes of having happiness and success in the new year.
The ceremony opened at 10.40pm with a seal procession ritual from the Co Trach shrine (which worships Great King Tran Quoc Tuan) to Thien Truong shrine (a temple that worships the 14 kings of the Tran dynasty). The seal opening rituals then took place in a solemn atmosphere at 11:15pm, in line with the traditional rites.
Replicas of the Tran Temple’s seals are available to the public from 7am on the 15th day (February 14) until the 20th day (February 19) of the first lunar month.
A variety of cultural, arts and traditional sporting activities promise to entertain the pilgrims and tourists during the six-day event, including dragon and lion dances, human chess, wrestling contests, ‘Cheo’ (traditional opera) performances, ‘Chau Van’(spiritual) singing, and traditional martial arts demonstrations.
* On the same night, an annual food distribution ceremony was held at Tran Thuong Temple in Nhan Dao commune, Ly Nhan district, Ha Nam province, to pray for fruitful crops and nice weather. Vice State President Nguyen Thi Doan attended the event.
The Tran Thuong Temple, which worships Great King Tran Quoc Tuan, was built on the site of one of the national granaries constructed to serve the nation’s battle against the Mongol invasion of the 13th century.
At this year’s event, around 100,000 symbolic portions were distributed to locals and visitors, expecting to bring the recipients luck for the new year.
