Cultural life

Young men in loincloths take mud baths in the Van village festival

TB (according to Znews) • May 20, 2024 19:31

The mud wrestling festival in Van village (Viet Yen district, Bac Giang) belongs to the Sun God worshiping belief, has the characteristics of wet rice culture, and shows the desire of agricultural residents.

According to custom, every four years, on the 12th and 14th of the fourth lunar month, the people of Van village hold a water wrestling festival (or mud wrestling festival), a dramatic festival that has existed for a long time. On the afternoon of May 19 (April 12 of the lunar calendar), 16 "ballot officials" were present in the main yard of the Tam Giang Saint Temple to perform the ceremony before entering the water wrestling festival.

The chosen men are young men from the village, with clear backgrounds, and no family members in mourning. All the men wear loincloths and are shirtless. Before wrestling, they perform a ceremony in the temple yard, drink wine and eat fruit to increase their courage. After the ceremony and greeting the wrestling ring, 16 young men line up in two rows and wrestle to determine the winner. The water wrestling ring has an area of about 200 square meters, the surface of the ring is muddy, at both ends of the ring there are two holes to push the ball down into the wrestling ring.

According to the village’s convention, the festival used to be held every four years, but after it was recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage, it was held every two years. After the ball was served to the field, the two teams’ ballers fought for the ball in the mud, determined to win the luck.

The two holes of the court include one hole on the east side (where the sun rises) and one hole on the west side (where the sun sets). According to folk belief, if Giap Thuong wins in a year, that year will have favorable weather and prosperous business.

It is known that this year's bridge-taking and training will be held from April 4 (lunar calendar). According to the people of Van village, the meaning of the festival is to capture the bridge, to capture the solar energy, to capture luck for the villagers, to make the rice and potatoes grow well, for the crops to be bountiful, for the people to be safe and prosperous... so the festival every year is very dramatic.

The ball weighs about 20 kg and is made of ironwood. The players on each side must capture the ball, move, and attack to get the ball into the hole against the "fierce" blocking of the opponent.

Scoring and scoring is a challenge when the court is muddy and the ball is slippery. Attack and defense are both fierce.

The shuttlecock players will use every means to capture the shuttlecock and attack the opponent to score points, even by lifting it up.

Not only the "officials" but also the audience sitting and watching were submerged in mud, but this has become a familiar thing.

Fierce competition in the muddy field left the officials covered in mud. Water for watering the field was taken from the Cau River located right next to it and was used to clean the field during the break between rounds.

A steal of the ball, a sprint before scoring for Giap Thuong, heralded a year full of luck.

People cheered when Giap Thuong scored.

Unable to hide their excitement when Giap Thuong scored, people rushed onto the field to celebrate, ignoring the mud. Many people believe that this will be a lucky and favorable year for the people of Van village.

TB (according to Znews)