Elegant hobby in spring

Asking for calligraphy - a beautiful spring custom at the spring flower market in Hai Duong city (documentary photo)

Some people choose to play with words, some choose to play with paintings, some choose to play with flowers and ornamental plants... Just like that, over time, those elegant hobbies in Spring have become a unique cultural feature of the Vietnamese people, maintained, continued and promoted by generations.

Spring wishes through each stroke of the handwriting

“Every year when peach blossoms bloom/ I see an old scholar/ Displaying Chinese ink and red paper/ On a crowded street”. Along with the custom of writing the first words of the year, Vietnamese people also have the elegant pleasure of asking for calligraphy in the spring, containing wishes for a new year of harmony, luck and peace for each person and each family. This is an activity with many cultural meanings, originating from the Vietnamese people’s love of learning, respect for words and knowledge.

In the past, the person who gave the calligraphy had to be someone who had studied hard, maybe a teacher or someone who had passed the exams, "whose name was known to the mountains and rivers". The words were written in calligraphy, usually in Chinese characters and could be written in many ways on red paper. Each word that appeared under the hands of the teachers was not only a work of calligraphy art, but also revealed the heart, personality, soul and creativity of each individual. People who asked for the calligraphy were usually of all ages, classes and professions. Each word was given to each person, each situation, each job, carrying a certain feeling, thought, wish or idea. But usually the words were asked for: Phuc, Loc, Tho, An Khang, Cat Tuong, Nhu Y... to pray for peace for the family and children. Traders asked for the words Phat, Loc, Tai, Vuong... with the hope that their business would develop and go smoothly. Young people who strive often ask for the words: Chi, Thanh, Dat, Dac, Nhan... to wish to always be steadfast, determined to overcome difficulties, and achieve the goals they have set in life; children are often asked by their parents for the words: Hoc, Hieu, Le, Nghia, Tien... with the hope that their children will grow up to be filial children of the family, become useful citizens to society...

When receiving the desired parallel sentences or words, the player brings them home and hangs them in the most solemn, most sacred, and most visible place. That is a delicate and precious cultural feature of the Vietnamese people's tradition of loving learning and respecting words.

Tet paintings - a place to preserve a part of the Vietnamese soul

"First calligraphy, second painting, third porcelain, fourth wood" are elegant pastimes of the ancient Vietnamese people during the Lunar New Year. Playing with paintings on Tet is a diverse and multifaceted pastime, depending on local customs and practices, as well as the social status and rank of the owner. According to legend, the custom of playing with paintings on Tet appeared around the Ly Dynasty (1010-1225) and Tran Dynasty (1225-1400).

Usually after the Kitchen Gods Day, whether rich or poor, everyone goes to the market to buy Tet paintings, hoping to welcome glory and wealth into their home and take down old paintings and hang up new ones with the meaning of "Sending out the old, welcoming the new". Folk Tet paintings are very diverse in genres such as religious paintings, congratulatory paintings, historical paintings, satirical paintings, landscape paintings...

Most rural families often hang small, affordable folk paintings of various themes to express many wishes at the same time. In the ancestral altar, families hang a picture of a tray of five fruits. Outside the gate, people often post two paintings, one of Mr. Tien Tai, the other of Mr. Tien Loc, with the wish to welcome much wealth and happiness to the homeowner. In the house, people often hang and post Dong Ho or Kim Hoang folk paintings with popular themes during Tet, such as: "Mother and herd of chickens", "Mother and herd of pigs"; "Vinh hoa" and "Phu quy"; "Ga rooster" paintings are colorful and majestic...

For families in the city, hanging and displaying paintings is not simply to have a Tet atmosphere, but the painting is also a decoration to create a luxurious space, demonstrating the family's etiquette. Therefore, they often choose to hang Hang Trong paintings such as: "To Nu" painting showing the gentle, fresh and familiar beauty between humans and nature; "Tu Quy" painting expressing the wish that the four seasons of spring-summer-autumn-winter are always filled with joyful sounds; "Ly Ngu Vong Nguyet" painting with the wish to pass the exam, like a carp jumping over the dragon gate...

In addition to Tet paintings imbued with cultural, historical and spiritual nuances, people can also reserve a prominent place in their homes to welcome the new year with paintings of the zodiac animals representing the upcoming year. Therefore, Tet paintings have become an indispensable part of the traditional Tet atmosphere of the past and present.

HOANG YEN