The art of playing human chess in Co Loa

During the spring opening festival, in the middle of the spacious communal house yard, there is a chessboard not placed on a table but spread directly on the ground, with chess pieces that can walk, stand, and obey commands.

Legend has it that when An Duong Vuong built the sturdy spiral citadel and, with his powerful magic crossbow, defeated the invading army of Zhao Tuo, Zhao Tuo used a stratagem to sue for peace and sent his general Sai Ban to Au Lac to play chess with the Thuc king. From those games, Sai Ban secretly came to understand the Thuc king's subjective and underestimating character, so he returned home, devised a plot with Zhao Tuo, and sent Trong Thuy to ask for the hand of Princess My Chau.

Previously, only piece chess was played; later, when the Co Loa festival was organized, the game developed into human chess. From 1953 to 2005, the Co Loa festival did not organize human chess but only played piece chess. In 2006, this art form was restored and has been maintained until now, mainly during the spring festival, and occasionally performed in competitions.

A human chess match must be carefully prepared months in advance. First, choose the chess ground: a spacious, airy place, usually the yard of a communal house or pagoda or a flat dry field near the communal house or pagoda. Then choose the people to play the chess pieces: 16 young men and 16 young women, who must be “handsome and elegant,” children of well-ordered families respected by the villagers. From among them, select two generals – one male general and one female general – along with a “chief of chess” (referee), the person who directly helps the organizers monitor the match. These three people must come from fairly well-off, affluent families and be able to “treat the troops when necessary.” The people playing the chess pieces must pass several rounds of selection and have good moral character.

After selecting the people, the organizers meet with the two teams to agree on costumes and train the “chess pieces” in some basic moves.

Before the match, a drum is beaten to open the chess game. Hearing the drum and the chief referee's commands, the chess pieces enter the yard, and each piece stands in the correct position for its role. The two chess players stand right in the yard, directly directing each chess piece to move; each time a move is made, a gong is struck. The side whose general is checkmated loses.

The chess pieces' costumes are provided by the two sides themselves but must be uniform by side – the black pieces wear all black, the red pieces wear all red, and the colors are usually vivid; on the chest, the symbol of the chess piece they play is embroidered in Chinese characters. When it is sunny, the chess pieces may wear conical hats. Previously, costumes were simple, usually only one color, black or red; now they are more diverse in color and pattern.

Human chess requires a collective spirit and the responsibility of the player commanding the pieces. It is an intellectual and profound art that requires players to have organizational skills, to “command troops and generals,” and to be far-sighted. For the people of Co Loa, human chess is a unique game full of humanity, deeply imbued with Vietnamese cultural identity, and expressing a community culture.

Co Loa has a Chinese chess club with more than 20 members, aged 35 to 85, which is the core force organizing the commune's human chess tournaments. In the area there are about 300–400 people who know how to play Chinese chess, including 3 people capable of teaching and 35 people currently learning. Members play chess with one another to teach each other, participate in competitions to learn experience and new moves; anyone who wants to learn can contact the club, and members teach for free.

Human chess in Co Loa is currently practiced infrequently and is at a serious risk level: young people are less interested, there are few learners and practitioners, elderly artisans are weak and lack conditions to teach. The authorities respect the club's activities, create conditions for performances during holidays and Tet, and annually reward contributing individuals and groups. Practitioners hope for systematic teaching, more attention, and attracting more young members so that the human chess pieces can continue to stand in the communal house yard every festival season.