Láng Festival

June 06, 2010 9:00 AM GMT+7

VGP - The Láng Pagoda now belongs to Đống Đa District, Hà Nội. This old Pagoda is said to date back to the Lý Dynasty (12th century) but its present physiognomy is more recent, dating from the 19th century.

Láng Pagoda in the early 20th century
The Láng Festival starts on March 7 (lunar year), that is the beginning of the dry season, and is in fact a common festival of many villages located on both banks of the Tô Lịch River.

The Festival is also connected with Monk Từ Lộ, alias Từ Đạo Hạnh.

Classical history books say that Từ Lộ was a Buddhist monk who fed a religious life in a pagoda in Thầy Mountain (also called Phật Tích or Sài Sơn Mountain, Quốc Oai District, Hà Nội), and also practiced magic. On his death (1116), he reincarnated himself as Dương Hoán, the son of the King’s brother. Later, Dương Hoán became King Lý Thần Tông (1116-38).

Từ Đạo Hạnh passed away in June, 1116 (lunar year) but the Lang Festival, held in his honor, takes place in March, presumably because he was born on March 7, and also to provide an opportunity for merry-making to young men and women during the fair, dry Spring weather.

Láng Pagoda today
Local legends add some strange and mythical details about the life of Từ Đạo Hạnh: Từ Đạo Hạnh’s father, Từ Vinh, was a local inhabitant of Láng area, while his mother hailed from a village on the other bank of the river (now Yên Hòa Village, alias Giấy Village).

Being fond of beautiful women, Từ Vinh fell in love with the wife of Marquis Diên Thành Hầu of Vòng Village. He therefore used magic to make himself invisible and sneak into the lady’s room and tease her. The lady who felt that at night something heavy was weighing on her belly, notified her husband of her apprehensions. Her husband sought the assistance of Magician Đại Điên. Đại Điên instructed the young lady to put a long piece of colored thread on her belly and to immediately tie it up when she felt something weighing heavily on her. The instructions were followed strictly and Từ Vinh was caught. As he was unable to get away from the knot he had to reappear as a cockroach, “If you reappear in your real form, I will forgive you.” Từ Vinh immediately reappeared as a human being, but Đại Điên, swallowing his promise, killed Từ Vinh and threw his remains into the Tô Lịch River. The corpse drifted along the river to some village and was buried by the local villagers. Later, the spirit of Từ Vinh, used to help the local villagers in many ways. As a result, these 3 villages built pagodas to worship Từ Vinh.

Từ Đạo Hạnh, as he grew up, made up his mind to avenge his father. Having duly learned the magic arts, he went one day to the bank of the river in order to test his supernatural powers. He threw his stick into the river. The stick then flew from Cống Cót to Giấy Village and Vòng Village. Onlookers, including Đại Điên, flocked in their thounsands to get a glimpse of the flying stick. The stick thereupon pounced on Đại Điên and hit him on the head. Covering his wounded head with his hand, Đại Điên ran to his house and died immediately on arrival there. The place where Đại Điên was hit by the stick is now called the “Hit Alley” (Ngõ Vụt). Thereafter, Vòng Village erected a temple to worship Đại Điên at the very place where he was buried. It was called the Thánh Tổ Temple.

Subsequently, Từ Đạo Hạnh embraced Buddhism, and went to Thầy Pagoda to lead a religious life there. He died in the same Pagoda.

As different from the classical annals, the people in Láng Village believe that Từ Đạo Hạnh died as a monk who reached enlightenment on September 26 and used to perform a ceremony accompanied by a vegetarian food offering on that day, while a general food involving meat is offered on March 7, his birthday, as he was then a common human being.

The Thầy Village, where the monk reached enlightenment, also holds a festival on his birthday, March 7.

Historical Relics

  1. The Láng Pagoda, also called as “Cả” (Elder) Pagoda, is said to date back to the reign of King Lý Anh Tông (1138-75), and later became a scenic spot of Thăng Long the royal capital. The Pagoda contains a painted rattan statue of Từ Đạo Hạnh and a statue of King Lý Thần Tông.
  2. The Nền Pagoda, which is said to have been built on the foundations of the former house of Từ Vinh, now contains two statues of Từ Vinh and his wife put at the same place.
  3. Dịch Vọng Village still has the Thánh Tổ Temple, where Đại Điên is worshipped, and the “Hit Alley”, a small street located to the North of the temple and connecting the temple with the bank of the Tô Lịch River.

At the entrance of the same village, is the Hoa Lang Pagoda (alias Ba Lang Village) where is worshipped the mother of Từ Đạo Hạnh. The Pagoda is said to have been built on the land where the old lady was buried.

Both Láng and Thầy Villages hold the Festival on the same day and month. While the festival in Thầy Village does not involve a fight between geniuses, it is credited with the water puppet shows which, along with the folk theatrical plays (chèo) are said to have been created by Từ Đạo Hạnh.
Playing human chess at the Láng Pagoda during its festival

Láng Festival

Láng Village does not hold a festival every year, but once every 15 years.

Preparations for the festival start since the end of February (lunar year) involving the following : village notables appointing the leader of the ceremonies and the official participants thereof; villagers cleaning and putting the pagodas in order; young people preparing signal firecrackers, sky-rocket firecrackers, ordinary firecrackers, etc…, to be used during the fight between geniuses; old folks prepare trays of offerings and try to make them as tidy as possible; and the girls get their clothing ready for the occasion.

In particular, Ông Lệnh, the leader of the procession, gathers a required number of carriers who are divided into 2 groups. The first group, comprising 18 persons, must wear mourning clothes (implying deep mourning for Từ Vinh, father of Từ Đạo Hạnh) and carry the palanquin from the Tô Lịch River. The second group would carry the palanquin from the other bank of Tô Lịch River to the Hoa Lang Pagoda where a ceremony is held and, thereafter, carry it back to the river bank. As the trip is rather long, the second group must comprise 36 carriers (18 main carriers, 18 reserves).

On March 5, a procession, escorts the palanquin of Từ Đạo Hạnh to Nền Pagoda (so that he may visit his native place), and on March 6 to Tâm Huyền Pagoda (so that he may visit his father). On these two occasions, the palanquin does not carry Từ Đạo Hạnh’s statue, but only his tablet.

March 7 is the main day of the Festival. On the evening of March 6, Từ Đạo Hạnh’s statue is brought into an octagonal building (restructured since the 19th century) so that the Genius can witness the Flower Presenting Ceremony. This Ceremony is in fact a dance performed by 10 girls who, carrying at the back of their hand a paper flower and in the palm of their hands a burning candle, dance while moving around the place where is located Từ Đạo Hạnh’s statue, to the accompaniment of music. The girls are clad in colorful traditional dresses, red gauze turbans, black satin skirts and have their hair done in such a way as to make the buns look like the tail of cocks.

Early in the morning of March 7, three rounds of drum beats resound, accompanied by firecrackers. The palanquin carrying Từ Đạo Hạnh’s tablets is taken out of the pagoda and stops for a while at the gate in order to wait for the palanquin carrying the tablet of his father, Từ Vinh, coming from Mọc Thượng Đình, so that both father and son may go and visit the mother.

When everyone is present, the procession proceeds to the high way. By various standards, this is the religious procession, most typical of the Red River Delta in the old days.

The procession is proceeded by a myriad of flags: first, two ceremonial flags woven from silk threads (but purported to be made from the hair of the tail of a rhinoceros), then 5 brocade flags made of various colors, then 4 red woolen flags of which feature one of the four sacred animals: dragon, unicorn, tortoise, phoenix. The flags are carried by young men clad in traditional military costumes – short conic hats, close-fitting blue dresses, tight pants.

The flags are followed by drums and gongs. The main drum is carried by two persons. The drum chief walks behind the main drum and regularly beats the drum. A man accompanies him, holding a parasol over his head. Behind the main drum is the main gong which is also carried by two persons, with a gong chief covered by a parasol. Each drum beat is immediately followed by a gong beat.

Then come an elephant and a horse, with two escorts carrying a gilded wooden scimitar and a spear. They are followed by 4 persons carrying 4 golden parasols, which are specific symbols of the King. Then comes a group of guards – young men carrying glided wooden temple weapons such as spears, scimitar, sticks, etc.

They are followed by two young men, disguised as girls of easy virtue, who, carrying each a small drum, hit their drums while walking and making eyes to people around.

Then comes the leader of procession, a man clad in traditional clothing and hat, holding a brocade flag with one big embroidered word “Order.” He is covered by a big parasol. Marching behind him is a music band which plays various folk tunes.

Local women ready for a religious ritual at the Láng Festival

At last comes the Royal Palanquin which, as related above, is carried by 18 men, who wear melon-shaped hats, red loin cloths, yellow towels, a bag of betel leaves and areca nuts hanging on their hips and, on their shoulder, a fan to protect them against the scorching sun. Walking behind the palanquin are the notables in ceremonial dresses and old men and women, all of them reciting prayers and telling their beads.

Thus, the procession proceeds toward Cót Village, and then Vọng Tiên Village. It stops in front of the Thánh Tổ Temple at the very moment when Vọng Tiên villagers take the latter’s palanquin to the shelter, which is in fact a well surrounded by a wall in front of the temple. Then, a fight between the 2 geniuses takes place: after the explosion of a signal firecracker, thousands sky-rocket and ordinary firecrackers are hurled into the Thánh Tổ Temple and the place where Đại Điên’s palanquin is sheltered. Old men and women of Vọng Tiên sit around the palanquin and recite prayers in a loud voice, while their offspring also hurl firecrackers at the palanquin of Từ Đạo Hạnh carried by the Láng villagers. This simulated battle, in the form of attacks and counter-attacks with firecrackers, is sometimes so violent as to cause small fires and result in some broken tiles on the temple roof. The onlookers, who follow the battle with interest and emotions, make the scene even more tumultuous with their shouts and exhortations. The battle ends after half an hour and, thereafter, the procession escorting Từ Đạo Hạnh’s palanquin continues its march to Ba Lang Pagoda. On arrival there, all the flags bearers must stand outside the gate, while the palanquin and its royal parasol enter the pagoda yard and stop in front of the worship house. Standing behind the palanquin, in due order of precedence, are village notables, old folks, palanquin carriers, weapons holders and members of the musical band who will perform a new ceremony. At the end of the ceremony, the Leader of the procession takes the string of beads stored in the palanquin and go into the back chamber in order to report to Lord Buddha, and thereafter comes back and puts the strings of beads on the neck of Từ Đạo Hạnh’s statue. This gesture means that Lord Buddha has graciously agreed to Từ Đạo Hạnh becoming a Buddhist deity. Thus ends the ceremony relating to Từ Đạo Hạnh’s visit to his mother. By midday, the procession returns to Láng Pagoda.


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