My Duong Communal House

My Duong is an ancient Vietnamese village located on the bank of the Day River since the Early Le dynasty. It was called 'Loi Duong', with the vernacular name 'Mai Chua', and belonged to Quoc Oai Chau, Dong Do Lo. According to the deity records and royal edicts of My Duong Village still kept at the Imperial Academy, now the Institute of Social Sciences Information, as declared in 1938 by Chief of the Association Le Van Tu, Village Head Nguyen Van Nho, and Head of Registration Nguyen Van Khan, the tutelary deity of My Duong Village was a famous general of the Le dynasty. He was talented in both civil and military affairs, followed the king for a long time, braved battles, and made many contributions, so King Le trusted him greatly and conferred on him the title 'Great General'. At that time, the 'Song' invaders from the north invaded our country. Le Hoan summoned his courtiers to discuss plans to fight the enemy. 'La Son Great General' was appointed to command an army advancing south. When the army reached Loi Duong Village, it was getting dark, and he ordered the troops to camp there. Hearing this, the people of Loi Duong Village brought provisions to help the righteous army, and many young people of the village asked to join the fight. When he received news that the enemy was about to reach Thanh Oai, he organized his troops for battle. In the fierce battle our army won a great victory, but the righteous army also suffered losses, and some young people of the village died heroically. In particular, he also devoted his entire life to the cause of protecting the country. When news of his death arrived, the people of Loi Duong Village were deeply respectful and regretful, so they submitted a petition asking the king to grant him the title My Tu and bring him home for worship. Since then, the people of Loi Duong Village have worshipped 'La Son Great General' as the local tutelary deity, and through the Ly, Tran, and Le dynasties there were edicts granting him worship and miraculous support. During the reign of King Le Thai To, when he led the great army to defeat the invading Ming, he also reached Loi Duong and spent the night there; the commander Le Loi performed a ceremony to pray to the deity for protection, and when the army set out to fight, it received the deity's support and won a glorious victory. After the resistance war against the Ming, King Le Thai To conferred on him the title My Tu and 'Upper Rank Deity'; through successive dynasties, edicts of My Tu were granted so that the people could worship him forever. Historical records state that he was a human deity of the Early Le dynasty; because he had the merit of defeating invaders and helping the country, on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month there was a national ceremony, and the villagers held a festival and rituals, including the ritual of offering hog maw and sugarcane to the tutelary deity. To remember the day the tutelary deity won the battle, the villagers still remember the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month and offer hog maw and sugarcane in worship.

According to records, the village communal house worships 8 royal edicts: - King Minh Mang, 2nd year, 10th month, 24th day: 1 edict. - King Minh Mang, 21st year, 11th month: 1 edict. - King Thieu Tri, 5th year: 1 edict. In the 6th month of that year, on the 18th day, another edict was granted. - King Tu Duc, 3rd year, 11th month: 1 edict. - King Tu Duc, 31st year, 11th month, 24th day: 1 edict. - King Dong Khanh, 2nd year, 7th month, 1st day: 1 edict. - King Duy Tan, 3rd year, 8th month, 21st day: 1 edict. All are 'Gia Tang Hiep Linh' upper-rank deities who pacify and protect the country and bring peace to the people. - King Khai Dinh, 9th year, 7th month, 25th day: 1 edict, 'Gia Tang Tang Bat Trung Dang Deity'. My Duong Village Communal House is an architectural and artistic relic of the Le dynasty. Because it was located by the Day River, rainstorms and floods affected the communal house architecture, so in the Nguyen Tu Duc era, year five, the communal house was moved to its present location. The communal house is designed in the shape of the character 'Cong'; the overall relic includes the Nghi Mon gate, the communal yard, and a landscape garden... The interior of the communal house includes Dai Bai, Trung Cung, and Thuong Cung, with Ta Vu and Huu Vu, Ta Mac and Huu Mac on both sides. At present, the village communal house still preserves many valuable artifacts and was ranked as a National Relic by the Ministry of Culture and Information under Decision No. 03/QD-BVHTT dated February 1, 2000. The people of My Duong Village live mainly by agricultural production, so offerings to the tutelary deity cannot lack round glutinous rice cakes and square glutinous rice cakes to offer to the tutelary deity, with the villagers' wish to pray for favorable rain and wind all year round, good crops, healthy people, and peace in every home. That aspiration is crystallized through religious rituals and folk cultural activities, namely the annual Village Festival. The My Duong Village Festival is held for 7 days, from the 10th to the 17th day of the 11th lunar month. The village festival includes many traditional cultural activities handed down from ancient times; the festival is an occasion for villagers to express their reverence for the tutelary deity and is a traditional beauty aimed at educating descendants for thousands of generations to forever remember the background and career of the tutelary deity honored and worshipped by the villagers.