The commemoration of Hung Kings, known as the national death anniversary, is often from the eighth day to the eleventh day of the third lunar month with the tenth day observed as the major event.
The ritual part of the commemoration feature incense offerings to Lac Long Quan, the father of the Vietnamese people, and his fairy wife Au Co, the mother of the Vietnamese people, tributes to ancestors, and ceremonials to pray for peace and prosperity for the country and people.
The festive part is varied, ranging from cultural, music and sport activities, like Xoan singing, Chung “square rice cake’ and Day “round rice cake” making contests, to crossbow shooting and folk games to introduce Vietnamese distinctive culture to visitors to the event.
Last December, the worship of Hung Kings was honoured by the UNESCO as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This was the organisation’s first recognition of an ancestral worship ritual as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
The Hung Kings Temple Festival demonstrates a strong desire for national prosperity and symbolises community spirit. Coming to the festival is like returning to the ancestral land, a customs that deeply rooted in the mind of Vietnamese people in and outside the country./.
