Traces of ancient Kinh people in Tay Son Thuong Dao

A place of trade and gathering

When the Kinh people settled in the Gia Lai highlands, they built temples to worship gods according to their beliefs. An Khe communal house (also known as Trong communal house) existed from the early days of Tay Son Nhat hamlet and Cuu An communal house represents the re-establishment of the traditional beliefs of the Kinh people in Tay Son Nhi hamlet.

Cuu An communal house is a place that shows the traditional cultural identity preserved by the people.
for hundreds of years. **Photo: Ngoc Nhuan**

After many historical changes, An Khe communal house today has been restored and built on the old foundation, bearing the ancient architectural style of the front hall and the back hall. Mr. Tran Ngoc Hy - Head of An Khe communal house management board - said: "The communal house faces the South, in the distance is Mo O mountain. This place used to be the command post of the Tay Son three heroes in the early days of gathering the insurgents and starting a great career".

What is special about An Khe communal house is that in front of the communal house there are 3 small palaces with traditional architecture combining Kinh and Bahnar culture, with pillars shaped like stilt houses and two-wing roofs located in the middle of a space shaded by ancient trees.

In front of An Khe communal house, there are 3 small palaces with traditional architecture combining Kinh and Bahnar culture. **Photo: Ngoc Nhuan**

Standing in front of the palaces, Mr. Hy said: “The worship of these palaces is the responsibility of the temple’s people. Under the Nguyen Dynasty, everything related to the Tay Son Dynasty was destroyed and completely banned. Therefore, An Khe temple on the surface worships gods, just like these palaces worship Ong Ho, Co Cau (Dinh Doi), the local tutelary god according to folk beliefs, but in their hearts, the people anonymously worship the Tay Son Three Heroes.”

Cuu An communal house today was rebuilt in 1934 and is located on Dat mountain. After many restorations and renovations, Cuu An communal house today still retains its ancient architectural beauty.

In addition to the communal house in the middle, which worships Thanh Hoang and many other gods, on the right is Thanh Minh Temple, on the left is Huong Vong Duong, which worships the ancestors and descendants who have contributed to the village's establishment.

According to Mr. Tran Thanh Luan - Head of the Cuu An Communal House Ritual Committee: Here, the three Tay Son heroes built their forces, trained soldiers, and placed warehouses to store food and military supplies.

“The former Cuu An communal house was about 2 km from the current communal house. During the Nguyen Dynasty, on the outside, people worshiped the gods in the communal house, but in their hearts, the villagers forever secretly recited “the gods are worshiped on the surface, the Three Heroes are worshiped on the surface” - the form of worshiping the gods, the inner heart worshiping the Three Heroes of Tay Son” - Mr. Luan added.

Since the 18th century, An Khe and Cuu An communal houses have been both religious institutions and "living evidence" of an important historical period of the Tay Son peasant uprising under the leadership of the three Tay Son heroes: Nguyen Nhac, Nguyen Hue, and Nguyen Lu.

Preserving the cultural soul of the plateau

Today, An Khe and Cuu An communal houses are still important places for cultural and spiritual activities of the local community. Every year, people perform mountain opening ceremonies, spring and autumn ceremonies, etc. to pray for national peace and prosperity, favorable weather, good crops, and a prosperous and happy life for the people.

These rituals are not only religious, but also connect the community, affirming the strong relationship between ethnic groups living together on the Gia Lai plateau.

People still regularly practice spiritual and cultural activities at communal houses and temples.
**Photo: Ngoc Nhuan**

Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nguyen - Deputy Head of the Cuu An Communal House Ritual Committee - contributed: "The elders in the village recounted that in the past, at Cuu An Communal House, a very large barn was built to store the harvested rice in the communal house's fields. This was the community's profit used to take care of the worship and rituals at the communal house. In years of poor harvests, the communal house's management officials would release the communal house's rice warehouse to lend to the people without interest, and when the harvest season came, they would donate the borrowed rice seeds back to the communal house."

Village communal houses in the Tay Son Thuong Dao region are often modest and simple, but have unique values in the cultural exchange in architecture, the ritual of worshiping the tutelary god combined with the mountain and river worship beliefs of the indigenous ethnic minorities.

Mr. Tran Ngoc Hy - Head of An Khe Communal House Management Board - shared: "On the day of the festival, on the day of Tet, the rituals held at An Khe Communal House are not only the Kinh community, but also the Bahnar and H'mong people come to attend in large numbers. They also visit the communal house, worship the gods, and express their sincerity in the donation box. The communal house becomes a meeting place and a place for the local community to meet and exchange."

It is this fusion that has created a unique character for An Khe communal house and Cuu An communal house, as well as many other communal houses of the Kinh people in the highlands, contributing to enriching the cultural appearance of Tay Son Thuong Dao.

In the modern flow, An Khe and Cuu An communal houses are places that preserve the souls of many generations, reminding us of community harmony and national solidarity, creating a solid foundation for the long-term development of the community.

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/dau-tich-nguoi-kinh-xua-o-tay-son-thuong-dao-post564477.html