So Communal House

* So Communal House in Hung Dao Commune, Hanoi City, is a as a special national relic of Vietnam. It is communal house of So Village, comprising the two communes of Cong Hoa and Tan Hoa in Quoc Oai former, city of Hanoi, Vietnam. This is one of the most beautiful communal houses in the Doai region; folklore has a saying: "So Communal House is beautiful - Can Communal House is large". The communal house was built in 1673 to worship the Three Great Kings, who were generals of the Dinh Dynasty who helped the king Dinh Tien Hoang - Dinh Bo Linh suppress the rebellion of the 12 warlords.

Located about nearly 20 km, So Village is famous for two "specialties": its communal house and vermicelli. Located beside the Đáy River, So Village communal house has an architecture that harmonizes with the natural scenery while fully bearing the appearance of a traditional Vietnamese communal house, yet still fully expressing the refinement, intricacy, and artistic essence of the cultured Doai region.

* Architecture

The Main Hall - So Communal House on the festival day of the 8th day of the 2nd lunar month in 2019

The architecture of So Communal House has been evaluated by researchers and recognized as one of the ancient communal houses with the most exemplary architecture. Initially, the communal house was a small shrine built during the Dinh Dynasty (968-980) to worship the Three Great Marshal Kings. In 1673, during the Le Trung Hung period (1533-1788), the shrine was renovated and expanded into a communal house, and the work was completed in 1674. During the period 1953-2025, So Village was split into two communes, Tan Hoa and Cong Hoa, yet both communes shared one So Communal House; this is a special feature of this relic site. The current scale of the communal house is the noi cong ngoai quoc architectural style on an area of 1,100m2. In total, all the horizontal and vertical buildings of the communal house comprise 55 bays, with 64 large and small columns.

Over the years, the communal house has retained its refined and ancient beauty. The communal house rests against Turtle Mountain, with the dike in front Đáy River whose flow has been reshaped to form a semicircular lake. The three-entrance gate has a two-story, three-bay, four-roof architecture, with two small side entrances for passage. The decorative motifs and carvings on the roof of the three-entrance gate remain intact, beautiful, and refined.

Passing through the three-entrance gate leads to the communal house's tam mon. The tam mon is 54m2 wide, with curved corner eaves at its four corners creating a soft shape. The communal house has a total of seven bays, 2 wings, and 4 wide tiled roofs. Inside the communal house are 32 large and small ironwood columns arranged in 6 horizontal rows. Behind the worship hall is the "cung", which is opened only on the communal house's festival occasions. The floor inside the communal house is made of ironwood.

The communal house currently preserves 40 royal edicts conferring divine titles, from the 2nd year of Hoang Dinh (1601) during the Le Dynasty to the 9th year of Khai Dinh (1924) during the Nguyen Dynasty, along with many ancient horizontal lacquered boards and couplets. Therefore, in 1980, So Communal House was ranked by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as a National Relic requiring preservation.

* The Three Tutelary Deities

The hagiography of So communal house records: In the spring of Canh Dan (930), there were Mr. Cao Cong and Mrs. La Thi in Van Ky village, Gia Dinh district, Thuan An prefecture, circuit Kinh Bac whose family was very poor and made a living by fishing on the river. The two of them loved doing good deeds; even a small good deed they would do. One day the two of them were fishing on the Nhu Nguyet River, and pulled up 15 dật of gold. From then on, the two of them kept prospering in their work, so their life was very well-off. Unfortunately, the two were over 50 years old and still had no son. He often said: 'Money from the forest and rice from the sea, but without a child, life cannot be happy,' and discussed with her going to find a place to pray for a child. The two heard that at Huu Linh shrine, Son Lo page, was a place where prayers were efficacious and whatever one asked for was granted, so together they prepared offerings and went there to pray for a child. Early the next morning, they made a thank-offering ceremony and then got into the boat with two fishermen and went downstream Đáy River. As the boat was going, the sky suddenly darkened as if it were night, and a great wind rushed in. At this time the boat carrying them reached the territory of Son Lo page; the two looked up at the sky and saw a golden cloud descend toward her. Mrs. La was frightened and lay in a daze. After that she became pregnant. In the second month of the Quy Ty year (933), she gave birth to three sons. The three children grew into strong young men and then followed Dinh Tien Hoang going to suppress the rebellion of the 12 warlords. The great military exploits recorded of the three men were the battle with the warlord Do Canh Thac in the Do Dong region. When they crossed the Thanh Quyet River, they attacked Thuong Ve citadel, besieged Bao Da citadel, attacked Quen citadel (Liem Tuyet commune, Quoc Oai) and then set up camp at Son Lo Trang. When Dinh Bo Linh they were besieged at Boi Khe, the situation was extremely critical; immediately the three led troops to relieve the siege. The people of Son Lo page brought rice noodles and cakes in support, and also selected 300 strong young men to follow them as loyal retainers. In battle, the three brothers charged left and right, killed the chief general Do Thanh Long and tens of thousands of soldiers, and rescued Dinh Bo Linh. When Dinh Tien Hoang ascended the throne, he issued a decree conferring on the three the title Tam Vi Thong Hien Nguyen Soai Dai Vuong. Through the dynasties, the Three Saints were all granted beautiful titles, and Son Lo page was permitted to worship them for generations.

There is another legend about the three village tutelary deities named Hien Ho, Thien Gia, and Menh Gia, who had merit in helping the king Dinh Tien Hoang suppress the rebellion of the 12 warlords. According to folk legend, the three lords were children of the water deity who on the 8th day of the 2nd lunar month reincarnated to live with mortals. They were very skilled in river and water matters and also proficient in martial arts; King Dinh valued them and entrusted them with many important duties. General Hien Ho was appointed Commander, General Thien Gia was appointed Chief of Guards, and General Menh Gia was appointed Captain commanding troops to suppress rebellion, and several times had merit in rescuing the king. When the enemy was defeated and the people were at peace, the three lords all fell ill and ascended to heaven on the 10th day of the 12th lunar month. The king Dinh Tien Hoang was extremely grieved and conferred on Hien Ho the title 'Dong Linh Thong Hieu Nguyen Suy Dai Vuong', and conferred on Thien Gia and Menh Gia the title 'Nguyen Suy Dai Vuong'.

* So communal house festival

So village communal house has three great ceremonies a year: the festival from the 8th day of the 2nd lunar month, the troop-feasting ceremony on the 10th day of the 7th lunar month, and the sanctification ceremony on the 10th day of the 12th lunar month. The So village festival takes place over three days, from the 8th to the 10th day of the 2nd lunar month, with many activities such as rituals, palanquin processions, blindfolded goat catching, singing, sports ...

So village has a sacred flag up to 24 square meters wide; whenever the flag flies against the blue sky, casting its shadow on the shimmering lake surface together with the sound of thunderous drums, the village is holding a festival. The So communal house festival, So village festival, takes place on two occasions: spring and autumn.

The spring festival is the festival celebrating the Saints' birthday on the 8th day of the 2nd month. On this day the villagers organize a procession of the tablets from Mr. Shrine and Mrs. Shrine, who are the parents of the Saints, to the communal house so that they may share in the villagers' reverence

The autumn festival, the So communal house festival, is held on the 10th day of the 7th month to commemorate the day the Saints relieved the siege, won the battle, offered thanks to heaven and earth, and feasted the soldiers. The troop-feasting celebration is a joyful festival among the people. On this day, the offering presented is a buffalo. The village has 28 giáp; each year, one giáp must take care of preparing the offerings. Thus, if this giáp prepares the offering this year, it will be 28 years before it is their turn to prepare the offering again. The buffalo must be singed skillfully, with yellowish-brown skin, kneeling on a wooden stand, its muzzle turned up, and its horns wrapped in red paper. The buffalo's internal organs have been removed and cleaned, so the sacrificial buffalo is called by the villagers 'trâu trong' (clean buffalo). The scene of sacrificing the clean buffalo is truly solemn and dignified. After the sacrifice is finished, the people share the blessed offerings, and in the afternoon and evening they gather to listen to singing at the communal house or at shrines and temples in the village. The performers sometimes, after finishing singing at one shrine, carry their instruments to another shrine.

The sanctification day is the 10th day of the 12th lunar month. Today it is a vegetarian offering ceremony. Preparations for the vegetarian ceremony are carried out a whole month in advance. Those who prepare for the vegetarian ceremony are always boys about 18 or 19 years old. They must bathe cleanly and then gather at someone's house to select rice for making cakes.