The roads leading to the Hung Temple Complex in Viet Tri City seem to be getting smaller these days. More and more vehicles carrying people from all over the country are flocking to the holy site in the northern province of Phu Tho.

They are visiting the complex to pay tribute to the people’s ancestors, the Hung kings on their death anniversary. On the tenth day of the third lunar month, which this year falls on April 16, the death anniversary of the Hung kings is celebrated.

Although the official name of the festival is the Death Anniversary of the Hung Kings, the date is traditional and does not the mark the death date of any particular Hung king. The Hung Temple Festival became a national festival in 2007.

“I feel happy and proud seeing the complex renovated and the festival gather more and more people. It is well organised,” said Le Khac Tien, a pilgrim from the northern province of Hai Duong.

According to Luu Quang Huy, director of the Hung Kings’ Temple Relic Site, the managing board has applied various solutions to better control activities at the festival.

“Taking care of the site’s environment this year will be better as more cleaners are working at the site, more dust bins have been placed and more convenient public toilets installed,” he said. “ Shops and restaurants are well organised in separate areas,” he added.

Ha Ke San, deputy chairman of Phu Tho’s People’s Committee said various sporting and cultural activities have been taking place since April 12 at the complex and in neighbouring areas.

Three finalists of a national design competition for a Hung king statue have been selected. These will be on display at the site and the public can vote for which statue they like best.

“These are the best designs. All three expose the strength and power of the Hung King in his facial expressions and gestures,” noted Vi Kien Thanh, head of the Department for Fine Arts, Photography and Exhibition.

After polling people’s opinions at the site, the judges of the competition will select the most favoured design to cast as the winner. The final statue will be placed on a hill at the site.

This year’s festival has gathered thousands of professional and amateur artists from the northern province of Hung Yen, the central province of Binh Thuan and southern province of Ca Mau. The artists have been giving performances on outdoor stages in Viet Tri City.

The Hung Kings’ Temple Relic Complex is located within a total area of over 1,000 hectares, more than half of which is forest. The complex is dotted with dozens of temples dedicated to Hung kings.

There are over 300 temples dedicated to Hung kings and other figures of the Hong Bang dynasty (2879BC to 258BC) in Phu Tho Province, and nearly 1,500 sites dedicated to the kings throughout the country.

On December 6, 2012, UNESCO officially placed the ‘worship of Hung kings in Phu Tho’ on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

VNS