VietNamNet Bridge - Violent images in traditional festivals such as chopping pigs or killing buffalos to sacrifice to gods has created negative views on traditional festivals.

 

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The pig chopping ritual in the festival of Nem Thuong village, Bac Ninh province.

Cruel rituals

The “pig chopping” festival in Nem Thuong village, in Tien Du district, Bac Ninh province is held on the 6th day of the lunar year, with many scary rituals.

Pigs are stretched then chopped into two while blood is everywhere on the yard of the communal house. Thousands of exciting people shout and try their best to dip their banknotes into the pig blood in the belief that it would bring luck in the New Year. This ritual has been complained by many people, especially foreigners, to be so brutal.

There are other festivals in Vietnam that are also criticized for their “brutality,” for example the buffalo stabbing festival in the Central Highlands and the buffalo fighting festivals in Hai Phong and Vinh Phuc, which end up with the bloody death of one of the buffaloes.

These festivals are criticized for their violence and brutality, they are still held in the eagerness of local people, in the name of “traditional festivals.”

Prof. Ngo Duc Thinh, former head of the Institute of Vietnamese Culture Studies, says that these festivals originated from the demand of community. They sacrifice animal to god for fortune and prosperity. In general, the animals are slaughtered before they are offered to the god but in some areas, the animals are killed on the spot. He adds that his foreign friends and foreign visitors do not like these cruel rituals.

Dr. Trinh Hoa Binh, from the Institute of Social Studies, says that the rituals were initially to honor the wild beauty and the strength of human impact on the nature. However, these rituals can have negative influence on young people.

"It is not a coincidence that the measures to implement the death penalty are more civilized. Today, the death penalty is enacted by lethal injection, not a firing or a sword as in the past. Social development must go with violence reduction. The festivals with brutal rituals are not at variance with the rhythm of development," Dr. Binh says.

Binh adds that researchers and the authorities need to consider these brutal rituals carefully, though they are traditional, since they have bad effect on the society.

The rituals shouldn’t be removed?

Prof. Ngo Duc Thinh, former head of the Institute of Vietnamese Culture Studies, quotes the song that is sung in the buffalo slaughtering ritual to defend it.

“Buffalo! We don’t want to kill you.
Please don’t be mad at us.
Just because our village is lacking food.
We must win the god’s support,
So we have to kill you.”

According to Prof. Thinh, this song shows the human spirit before killing a buffalo. That act comes from the need of seeking the god’s support.

He says that the “outsiders” may see the ritual brutal and scary but local people don’t share the same view because they find it as spiritual act. Therefore, it is impossible to ban the ritual.

Meanwhile, many people suggest abandoning brutal rituals in festivals, such as the animal chopping and stabbing rites or at least use fake animals in these rites. Prof. Thinh believes that these suggestions are unfeasible because they will affect the sacredness of custom.

According to this expert, the problem is the view of the “outsiders.” If these rituals are maintained within the local community, they will harm nobody. He suggests turning the pig chopping ritual into an internal event of Nem Thuong village, which only has the attendance of the villagers, and only the adults.

At the fifth session of the 12th National Assembly in June 2009, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Anh Tuan was questioned about the festivals that “encourage violence and cause fear”.

At the session, Deputy Dinh Xuan Thao recommended abandoning the buffalo stabbing festival in the Central Highland and the buffalo head chopping ritual at the buffalo fighting festival in Do Son, Hai Phong.

Minister Hoang Anh Tuan said that the pig slaughtering or buffalo head chopping rituals are no longer appropriate and these rituals should not be maintained. However, the minister was afraid that these violent rituals may be hard to be removed if only administrative measures are taken.

He believed that education and propaganda to change people’s perception so that they understand thoroughly and decide themselves to not perform these inappropriate rituals is the best solution.

P. Linh