Objects of worship: Tran Hung Dao
Time: The 20th day of the eighth lunar month
Destination: Kiep Bac Temple, Chi Linh District, Hai Duong Province
Characteristics: Palanquin procession on land andj on boats, the re-enactment of the battle on Luc Dau River.
The Kiep Bac Temple, where people come to worship Tran Quoc Tuan, the main general of the Tran Dynasty, is located in Hung Dao Commune, Chi Linh District, Hai Duong Province. Tran Quoc Tuan was the general who defeated the Chinese Nguyen-Mong invaders three times. Because of his merits to the nation, he was proclaimed a saint.
To get to Kiep Bac Temple from Hanoi City, take the National Highway that leads to the township of Bac Ninh (about 30 km). Then, go along National Highway No.18 that stretches from Bac Ninh to Pha Lai, and which eventually leads to Kiep Bac Temple. The Kiep Bac Temple Festival lasts from the 15th to 20th day of the 8th lunar month.
A pilgrimage to the Kiep Bac Temple Festival has been deemed a centuries old Vietnamese custom honouring Saint Tran. The main day of the festival occurs on the 20th day of the 8th lunar month, but from the previous days onward, the festival attract visitors from all over. The main ceremony is followed by a great ceremony with elaborate worshipping procedures. This ceremony is followed next by a procession where Saint Tran's ancestral tablet is brought on a golden procession chair, passing three walled gates toward the river bank. The procession chair is then placed on a royal barge. The procession march lasts for two hours and then Saint Tran's ancestral tablet is brought back to the main temple for the last religious service.
In the olden times, the religious service in the Kiep Bac Temple Festival was simple and conducting a trance was the main activity. The festival has been improved, but it still bears the special characteristics of the traditional national identity. One of the most interesting activities in the festival is the boat race on the Luc Dau River, in which hundreds of boats participate. The boat race is like flying arrows rushing through the air as the boats are urged along by drumming sounds and the screaming of excited people. Taking part in the Kiep Bac Temple Festival, participants relive the atmosphere of when Tran Quoc Tuan placed his troops into a battle-array. This festival makes the Vietnamese people feel proud of the glorious traditions of their nation
Starting Dates in Western Calendar 2009 Oct 03, 2010 Sept 22, 2011 Sept 12, 2012 Sept 30
