culture

Pyramide du Louvre (Kim tự tháp kính Louvre)

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La pyramide du Louvre au milieu de la cour Napoléon du musée Louvre

Version française

Version anglaise

Theo lời yêu cầu của cố tổng thống Pháp François Mitterand vào năm 1983, kim tự tháp kính  Louvre được xây bằng kính và kim loại ở giữa sân Napoléon của bảo tàng Louvre. Đây là tác phẩm của kiến trúc sư người Mỹ gốc Hoa , ông Ieoh Ming người được nhận nhiều giải mà  trong đó có giải Pritzkert thường đựợc xem là giải Nobel về kiến trúc. Khi kiến ​​trúc sư Ieoh Ming thiết kế kim tự tháp Louvre, ông đã thiết kế nó theo cùng tỷ lệ với kim tự tháp Kheops. Kim tự tháp kính Louvre có bề cao là  21,64 thước với đáy  hình vuông  mỗi cạnh là 35,42 thước. Toàn bộ kim tự tháp được xây bằng kính cùng các khớp nối bằng kim loại , gồm có tất cả là  603 tấm kính hình thoi (losange)   và 70 tấm hình tam giác (triangle). Lúc đầu kim tự tháp là môt đề tài tranh luận sôi nổi vì  có người cho rằng không phù hợp với khung cảnh cổ kính của cung điện Louvre nhất là  với  phong cách vị lai. Nhưng cuối cùng sự kết hợp của hai phong cách kiến trúc cổ đại và hiện đại nó đem lại không những một kết quả mỹ mãn mà còn đem lại một nét đẹp độc nhất ở giữa thành phố Paris, một viên kim cương hoàn hảo của điện Louvre . Kim tự tháp kính  Louvre trở thành hiện nay một trong những  biểu tượng tham quan không thể thiếu xót cùng tháp Eiffel và nhà thờ Notre Dame de Paris khi ai có dịp đến tham quan Paris.

pyramide

Version française

À la demande du feu président français François Mitterand en 1983, la pyramide du Louvre a été conçue et réalisée en verre et en acier au milieu de la cour  Napoléon du musée Louvre. C’est l’œuvre de l’architecte américain d’origine chinoise  Ieoh Ming  ayant reçu plusieurs prix parmi lesquels figure le prix d’architecture Pritzker considéré jusqu’alors comme le prix Nobel de l’architecture.  Quand l’architecte Ieoh Ming imagine la pyramide du Louvre, il lui donne les mêmes proportions que celles du Kheops. La pyramide du Louvre s’élève à 21,64 mètres sur une base  carrée  de 35,42 mètres de côté. Étant réalisé  avec une structure métallique en acier et en aluminium, le tout de la pyramide comporte 603 losanges et 70 triangles en verre. Au début de sa construction, la pyramide du Louvre est l’objet d’âpres  controverses  car selon certains, la pyramide est mal incorporée  dans le classicisme du palais Louvre avec un style futuriste. Mais finalement l’association de deux styles d’architecture classique et futuriste apporte non seulement un franc succès mais aussi un charme unique au cœur de la ville de Paris, un joyau d’architecture  parfait du palais Louvre.  La pyramide du Louvre devient aujourd’hui l’une des attractions touristiques qu’il est impossible de manquer avec la tour d’Eiffel et l’église  Notre Dame lorsqu’on a l’occasion de visiter Paris. (8,9 millions en 2011).

Version anglaise

At the request of the late French President François Mitterand in 1983, the Louvre Pyramid was designed and built in glass and steel in the middle of the Louvre’s Cour Napoléon. It is the work of Chinese-born American architect Ieoh Ming, whose many awards include the Pritzker Architecture Prize, considered until then to be the Nobel Prize for architecture. When Ieoh Ming designed the Louvre pyramid, he gave it the same proportions as those of Kheops. The Louvre pyramid rises to a height of 21.64 meters on a square base measuring 35.42 meters on each side. Constructed from a steel and aluminum structure, the pyramid features 603 rhombuses and 70 glass triangles. At the start of its construction, the Louvre Pyramid was the subject of bitter controversy, as some felt that the pyramid was poorly incorporated into the classicism of the Louvre Palace with its futuristic style. But in the end, the combination of classical and futuristic architectural styles not only proved a resounding success, it also added a unique charm to the heart of Paris, making the Louvre Palace a perfect architectural gem. Today, the Louvre Pyramid is one of the must-see tourist attractions, along with the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame Church, when visiting Paris (8.9 million in 2011).

 

Parc de Keukenhof (Amsterdam)

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Ouvert tous les ans à la même période au public pour huit semaines, le parc de Keukenhof est situé à Lisse, au sud-ouest d’Amsterdam  (Hollande). Ce parc de 32 ha est très connu non seulement pour ses tulipes mais aussi pour ses jardins thématiques.  Grâce à cette fleur, la Hollande est le premier producteur au monde avec plus de 4 milliards de bulbes vendus chaque année.

Vườn hoa tulipe Keukenhof

Open every year to the public  during the same period for eight weeks, the park of Keukenhof is located at Lisse in the southwest of Amsterdam.  This 33 hectare park is very known not only for its tulips but also for its theme gardens. Thanks to this flower, Holland is the largest world producer  with more than 4 billions bulbs sold each year.

keukenhof

Yin and Yang numbers (Âm Dương: Part 3)

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Yin and Yang numbers (Con số Âm Dương)

Version vietnamienne

Version française

We are used to saying in Vietnamese: sống chết đều có số cả (Everyone has their D-day for life as well as for death). Ði buôn có số, ăn cỗ có phần (One has their vocation for trade just as one has their share at a feast). In everyday life, everyone has their size for clothes and shoes. It is noticed that, unlike the Chinese who adore even numbers, the Vietnamese rather favor odd numbers (số âm) over even numbers (số dương).

The frequent use of odd numbers is found in Vietnamese expressions: ba mặt một lời (One needs to be face to face in the presence of a witness), ba hồn bảy vía (three souls and seven vital supports for humans, i.e., one is panicked), Ba chìm bảy nổi chín lênh đênh (very turbulent), năm thê bảy thiếp (having 5 wives and 7 concubines, i.e., having multiple wives), năm lần bảy lượt (several times), năm cha ba mẹ (heterogeneous), ba chóp bảy nhoáng (hastily and carelessly), Một lời nói dối, sám hối 7 ngày (A lying word equals seven days of repentance), Một câu nhịn chín câu lành (Avoiding one offensive phrase is like having nine kind phrases), etc. or those involving multiples of the number 9: 18 (9×2) đời Hùng Vương (18 legendary Hùng Vương kings), 27 (9×3) đại tang 3 năm (27 months) (or a mourning period of three years which actually translates to only 27 months), 36 (9×4) phố phường Hà Nội (Hanoi with 36 districts), etc.

We must also not forget to mention the numbers 5 and 9, each having a very important role. The number 5 is the most mysterious number because everything begins from this number. Heaven and Earth have the 5 elements or agents (Ngũ hành) that give birth to all things and beings. It is placed at the center of the River Map (Hà Đồ) and the Luo River Writing (Lạc thư), which form the basis of the transformation of the 5 elements (Thủy, Hỏa, Mộc, Kim, Thổ) (Water, Fire, Wood, Metal, and Earth).

It is associated with the Earth element in the central position, which the farmer needs to know the direction of the cardinal points. This thus returns to man the center in managing things, species, and the four cardinal points. For this reason, in feudal society, this place was reserved for the king because he was the one who governed the people. Consequently, the number 5 belonged to him, as did the color yellow symbolizing the Earth. This explains the color chosen by Vietnamese and Chinese emperors for their garments.

Besides the center occupied by man, a symbolic animal is associated with each of the four cardinal points: the North by the turtle, the South by the phoenix, the East by the tiger, and the West by the dragon. It is not surprising to find at least in this attribution the three animals living in a region where agricultural life plays a significant role and water is vital.

Ho Tou Lo Chou

(Hà Đồ Lạc Thư)

 This is the territory of the Bai Yue. Even a dragon, so fierce in other cultures, becomes a gentle and noble animal imagined by the peaceful peoples of the Bai Yue. The number 5 is also known as « Tham Thiên Lưỡng Đia » (or ba Trời hai Ðất or 3 Yang 2 Yin) in the theory of Yin and Yang because obtaining the number 5 from the combination of the numbers 3 and 2 corresponds better to the reasonable percentage of Yin and Yang than that resulting from the combination of the numbers 4 and 1.

In the latter, one notices that the Yang number 1 is greatly dominated by the Yin number 4. This is not the case with the combination of numbers 3 and 2, where the Yang number 3 slightly dominates the (Yin) number 2. This favors the development of the universe in an almost perfect harmony. In the past, the fifth day, the fourteenth day (1+4=5), and the twenty-third day (2+3=5) of the month were reserved for the king’s outings. It was forbidden for subjects to conduct business during his travels and to disturb his walk. This may be the reason why many Vietnamese today, influenced by this ancestral tradition, continue to avoid choosing these days for building houses, traveling, and making important purchases. It is customary to say in Vietnamese:

Chớ đi ngày bảy chớ về ngày ba
Mồng năm, mười bốn hai ba
Đi chơi cũng lỗ nữa là đi buôn
Mồng năm mười bốn hai ba
Trồng cây cây đỗ, làm nhà nhà xiêu

Do not go on the seventh day, do not return on the third day
The fifth, fourteenth, twenty-third
Going out is also a loss, let alone trading
The fifth, fourteenth, twenty-third
Planting trees, the trees fail; building houses, the houses collapse.

You should avoid leaving on the 7th day and returning on the 3rd day of the month. On the 5th, 14th, and 23rd days of the month, you would be at a loss if you go out or do business. Similarly, you would see the fall of a tree or the tilting of your house if you plant it or build it on those days.

The number 5 is frequently mentioned in Vietnamese culinary art. The most typical sauce of the Vietnamese remains fish sauce. In the preparation of this national sauce, there are 5 flavors classified according to the 5 elements of Yin and Yang: salty (mặn) with fish juice (nước mắm), bitter (đắng) with lemon zest (vỏ chanh), sour (chua) with lemon juice (or vinegar), spicy (cay) with crushed or powdered chili peppers, and sweet (ngọt) with powdered sugar. These five flavors (mặn, đắng, chua, cay, ngọt) combined and found in the Vietnamese national sauce correspond respectively to the 5 elements defined in the Yin and Yang theory (Thủy, Hỏa, Mộc, Kim, Thổ) (Water, Fire, Wood, Metal, and Earth).

Similarly, these 5 flavors are found in the sweet and sour soup (canh chua) prepared with fish: sour with tamarind seeds or vinegar, sweet with pineapple slices, spicy with sliced chili peppers, salty with fish sauce, and bitter with some okra (đậu bắp) or with the flowers of the fayotier (bông so đũa). When this soup is served, a few fragrant herbs are added, such as panicaut (ngò gai), rau om (an herb with a flavor close to coriander but with an additional lemony note). This is a characteristic feature of the sweet and sour soup of Southern Vietnam and different from those found in other regions of Vietnam.

We cannot forget to mention the glutinous rice cake that the Proto-Vietnamese succeeded in passing down to their descendants over the millennia of their civilization. This cake is tangible proof of the belonging of the Yin and Yang theory and its five elements to the Hundred Yue, of which the Proto-Vietnamese were a part, because in the making of this cake, the generative cycle of these 5 elements (Ngũ hành tương sinh)  found.

(Fire->Earth->Metal->Water->Wood)

Inside the cake, one finds a piece of porkmeat in red color ( Fire ) around which there is  a kind of paste made with broad beans in yellow color ( Earth ). The whole thing is wrapped by the sticky rice in white color ( Metal ) to be cooked with boiling water ( Water ) before having a green colouring on its surface thanks to the latanier leaves (Wood).

There is another cake that cannot be missing at weddings. It is the susê or phu-Thê cake (husband-wife), which has a round shape inside and is wrapped in banana leaves (green color) to give it the appearance of a cube tied with a red ribbon. The circle is thus placed inside the square (Yang within Yin). This cake is made of tapioca flour, scented with pandan, and sprinkled with black sesame seeds. At the heart of this cake is a paste made from steamed soybeans (yellow color), lotus seed jam, and grated coconut (white color). This paste closely resembles the frangipane found in king cakes. Its sticky texture recalls the strong bond that one wishes to represent in the union. This cake is the symbol of the perfection of marital love and loyalty in perfect harmony with Heaven and Earth and the five elements symbolized by the five colors (red, green, black, yellow, and white).

This cake is recounted by the following tale: once upon a time, there was a merchant indulging in debauchery and not thinking of returning to his family, although before his departure, his wife gave him the susê cake and promised to remain warm and sweet like the cake. That is why, upon learning this news, his wife sent him other phu thê cakes accompanied by the following two verses:

Từ ngày chàng bước xuống ghe
Sóng bao nhiêu đợt bánh phu thê rầu bấy nhiêu

Since your departure, as many waves as were met by your boat, so many afflictions were known by the susê cake.

Lầu Ngũ Phụng

 

In architecture, the number 5 is not forgotten either. This is the case of the meridian gate of the Huế citadel, which is a powerful masonry mass pierced by five passages and topped with an elegant two-level wooden structure, the Belvedere of the Five Phoenixes (Lầu Ngũ Phụng).

Seen as a whole, it resembles a grouping of 5 phoenixes intimately perched with their wings spread. This belvedere has one hundred ironwood columns painted red, supporting its nine roofs. This number 100 has been carefully examined by Vietnamese specialists. For the renowned archaeologist Phan Thuận An, it corresponds exactly to the total number obtained by adding the two numbers found respectively in the River Map (Hà Ðồ) and the Luo River Script (Lạc thư cửu tinh đồ), symbolizing the perfect harmony of the union of Yin and Yang. This is not the opinion of another specialist, Liễu Thượng Văn. According to him, it represents the strength of 100 families or the people (bách tính) and reflects well the notion dân vi bản (taking the people as the foundation) in the governance of the Nguyễn dynasty.

The roof of the central pavilion is covered with yellow « lưu ly » tiles, the others with blue « lưu ly » tiles. The main gate, right in the middle, is the meridian gate (Ngọ Môn) paved with « Thanh » stones dyed yellow, dedicated to the passage of the king. On both sides, there are the Left Gate and the Right Gate (Tả, Hữu, Giáp Môn) reserved for civil and military mandarins. Then the two other side gates Tả Dịch Môn and Hữu Dịch Môn are intended for soldiers and horses. That is why it is customary to say in Vietnamese: 

Ngọ Môn năm cửa chín lầu
Một lầu vàng, tám lầu xanh, ba cửa thẳng, hai cửa quanh »

The Meridian Gate has 5 passages and nine roofs, one of which is varnished in yellow and the other eight in green. There are three main doors and two side doors.
To the east and west of the citadel, there are the Gate of Humanity and the Gate of Virtue, which are reserved respectively for men and women.

The number 9 is a Yang number (or odd). It represents the power of yang at its maximum and is difficult to reach. That is why in the past the emperor often used it to show his power and supremacy. He climbed the nine steps symbolizing the ascent of the sacred mountain where his throne was located. According to legend, the Forbidden City of Huế, like that of Beijing, had 9,999 rooms. It is worth recalling that the Forbidden City of Beijing was supervised by a Vietnamese named Nguyễn An, who was exiled at a very young age during the Ming dynasty. The emperor, like each of his palaces, faces south, towards the Yang energy, so that the emperor receives the vital breath of the sun because he is the Son of Heaven. In Vietnam, there are the nine dynastic urns of the citadel of Huế, the nine branches of the Mekong River, the nine roofs of the Five Phoenixes pavilion, etc. In the tale titled « The Mountain Spirit and the River Spirit (Sơn Tinh Thủy Tinh), » the eighteenth (2×9) Hùng Vương king proposed as a dowry for his daughter Mị Nương’s marriage: an elephant with 9 tusks, a rooster with 9 spurs, and a horse with 9 red manes. The number 9 symbolizes the Sky, whose birth date is the ninth day of the month of February.

Less important than the numbers 5 and 9, the number 3 (or Ba or Tam in Vietnamese) is closely linked to the daily life of the Vietnamese. They do not hesitate to mention it in a great number of popular expressions. To signify a certain limit, a certain degree, they habitually say:

Không ai giàu ba họ, không ai khó ba đời.
No one can claim to be wealthy for three generations just as no one is unfortunate for three successive lives.

It often happens to the Vietnamese that they do not complete a certain task in one go, which forces them to perform the operation up to three times. This is the expression they frequently use: Nhất quá Tam. It is the number three, a limit they do not wish to exceed in accomplishing this task.

To say that someone is irresponsible, they refer to them as « Ba trợn. » One who is opportunistic is called Ba phải. The expression « Ba đá » is reserved for vulgar people, while those who keep getting entangled in small matters or endless troubles receive the title « Ba lăng nhăng. » To weigh their words, the Vietnamese need to fold the three thumbs of their tongue. (Uốn Ba tấc lưỡi).

The number 3 also is synonymous with insignificant and unimportant something.It is what one finds in following popular expressions: 

Ăn sơ sài ba hột: To eat a little bit.
Ăn ba miếng: idem
Sách ba xu: book without values. (the book costs only three  pennies).
Ba món ăn chơi: Some  dishes  for tasting. 

Analogous to number 3, the number 7 is often mentioned in Vietnamese literature. One cannot ignore either the expression Bảy nỗi ba chìm với nước non  (I  float 7 times  and I descend thee times if this  expression is translated in verbatim) that Hồ Xuân Hương poetess  has used and immortalized in her poem intituled « Bánh trôi nước” :

Thân em vừa trắng lại vừa tròn
Bây nỗi ba chìm với nước non
………. 

for describing difficulties encountered by the Vietnamese woman in a feudal and Confucian society. This one did not spare either those having an independent mind, freedom and justice.   It is the case of  Cao Bá Quát , an active scholar who was degusted from the scholastica of his time and dreamed of replacing the Nguyễn authoritarian monarchy by an enlightened monarchy. Accused of being the actor of the grasshoppers insurrection  (Giặc Châu Chấu) in 1854, he was condemned to death and he did no hesitate his reflection on the fate reserved to those who dared to criticize  the despotism and feudal society in his poem before his death: 

Ba hồi trống giục đù cha kiếp
Một nhát gươm đưa, đéo mẹ đời. 

Three gongs are reserved to the miserable fate
A sabre slice finishes this dog’s life. 

If the Yin and Yang theory continues to haunt their mind for its mystical and impenetrable character, it remains however a way of thinking and living to which a good number  of the Vietnamese continue to refer daily for common practices and respect of ancestral traditions.

Bibliography

–Xu Zhao Long : Chôkô bunmei no hakken, Chûgoku kodai no nazo in semaru (Découverte de la civilisation du Yanzi. A la recherche des mystères de l’antiquité chinoise, Tokyo, Kadokawa-shoten 1998).
-Yasuda Yoshinori : Taiga bunmei no tanjô, Chôkô bunmei no tankyû (Naissance des civilisations des grands fleuves. Recherche sur la civilisation du Yanzi), Tôkyô, Kadokawa-shoten, 2000).
-Richard Wilhelm : Histoire de la civilisation chinoise 1931
-Nguyên Nguyên: Thử đọc lại truyền thuyết Hùng Vương
– Léonard Rousseau: La première conquête chinoise des pays annamites (IIIe siècle avant notre ère). BEFO, année 1923, Vol 23, no 1
-Paul Pozner : Le problème des chroniques vietnamiennes., origines et influences étrangères. BEFO, année 1980, vol 67, no 67, p 275-302
-Dich Quốc Tã : Văn Học sữ Trung Quốc, traduit en vietnamien par Hoàng Minh Ðức 1975.
-Norman Jerry- Mei tsulin (1976) : The Austro asiatic in south China : some lexical evidence, Monumenta Serica 32 :274-301
-Henri Maspero : Chine Antique : 1927.
-Jacques Lemoine : Mythes d’origine, mythes d’identification. L’homme 101, paris, 1987 XXVII pp 58-85
-Fung Yu Lan: A History of Chinese Philosophy ( traduction vietnamienne Đại cương triết học sử Trung Quốc” (SG, 1968).68, tr. 140-151)).
-Alain Thote: Origine et premiers développements de l’épée en Chine.
-Cung Ðình Thanh: Trống đồng Ðồng Sơn : Sự tranh luận về chủ quyền trống
đồng giữa h ọc giã Việt và Hoa.Tập San Tư Tưởng Tháng 3 năm 2002 số 18.
-Brigitte Baptandier : En guise d’introduction. Chine et anthropologie. Ateliers 24 (2001). Journée d’étude de l’APRAS sur les ethnologies régionales à Paris en 1993.
-Nguyễn Từ Thức : Tãn Mạn về Âm Dương, chẳn lẻ (www.anviettoancau.net)
-Trần Ngọc Thêm: Tìm về bản sắc văn hóa Việt-Nam. NXB : Tp Hồ Chí Minh Tp HCM 2001.
-Nguyễn Xuân Quang: Bản sắc văn hóa việt qua ngôn ngữ việt (www.dunglac.org)
-Georges Condominas : La guérilla viêt. Trait culturel majeur et pérenne de l’espace social vietnamien, L’Homme 2002/4, N° 164, p. 17-36.
-Louis Bezacier: Sur la datation d’une représentation primitive de la charrue. (BEFO, année 1967, volume 53, pages 551-556)
-Ballinger S.W. & all: Southeast Asian mitochondrial DNA Analysis reveals genetic continuity of ancient Mongoloid migration, Genetics 1992 vol 130 p.139-152….

Yin and Yang theory: (Âm Dương Phần 2)

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French version

Vietnamese version

When speaking of the symbolic couple circle/square, one wants to evoke perfection and happy union. Starting from a square with 4 sides, one can have an octagon by doubling the number of sides. Then by continuously doubling the number of these sides, one finally obtains a circle with no sides. It is the perfect form (perfectissima forma) testifying to absolute perfection. That is why it is customary to say in Vietnamese « Mẹ tròn, con vuông » to wish the mother and her child good health at the time of birth. This expression was handed down by our ancestors to draw our attention to the creative nature of the universe. Roundness and square are the two shapes taken not only by glutinous rice cakes (Bánh Chưng, Bánh Tết) or wedding cakes (Bánh Su Sê or Phu Thê) but also by ancient Vietnamese coins (or sapèques).

The shape of these sapèques is linked to traditional Vietnamese cosmology: the roundness of these coins evokes that of the sky, and the central hole is square like the earth.

Old coin

For the surface area of these sapèques, there is always a percentage to respect: 70% for the round part and 30% for the square part. These two shapes are also found in the bamboo cane held by the eldest son walking behind the coffin during his father’s funeral procession. When the deceased person is his mother, he is obliged to walk backward while looking straight ahead at the coffin. This is the « Cha đưa mẹ đón » (Accompany the father, receive the mother) protocol to be respected in Vietnamese funeral rites. The bamboo of the cane represents the father’s uprightness and endurance.

It is replaced by another plant known as « cây vong, » symbolizing simplicity, gentleness, and flexibility when the deceased person is the mother. The cane must have a round head and a square base to symbolize Heaven and Earth, while the middle part of the stem is reserved for the children and descendants. This means that everyone needs the protection of Heaven and Earth, the education of parents, and mutual assistance among siblings in society. To show respect, the number of times the guest is required to bow in front of the coffin must be a Yin number, i.e., an even number (i.e., 2 or 4), because the deceased person will join the world of darkness with a Yin character (Âm phủ in Vietnamese). According to Vietnamese researcher Trần Ngọc Thêm, everything closely or remotely related to death must use even numbers
(Yin = peace = death)

In the past, it was customary to place a piece of pure gold (Yang) in the mouth of the deceased to infuse the mana contained in the precious metal. Gold, representing the Yang principle, is capable of preserving the body and preventing decay.

At the moment of the deceased person’s agony, their relatives must give them a nickname (or in Vietnamese tên thụy) that only they and their close ones know, with the agreement of the household spirit, because on the anniversary of their death, this nickname will be mentioned to invite them to participate in the offerings and to avoid awakening other wandering souls. That is why it is customary to say in Vietnamese tên cúng cơm to remind that everyone has a nickname. Similarly, a bouquet of flowers offered at funerals must consist of an even number (or yin) of flowers.

Ancestral altar

There is an exception to this rule when it comes to Buddha or deceased parents. In front of their altar, it is customary to place 3 incense sticks in the vase or to prostrate completely on the knees, with the head touching the ground, an odd number (Yang) (con số dương, số lẻ) of times because they are still considered living beings. Likewise, to show respect towards living elderly people, one only performs one or three prostrations. However, in wedding rites, the bride must prostrate before her parents to thank them for her birth and education before joining her husband’s family.

It is the even number (or Yin số chẵn) of times she must perform (i.e., 2 or 4) because she is considered « dead » as she no longer belongs to her original family. There is a custom for the ceremony on the first wedding night. An older woman, who has many children and is considered good and honest, is asked to take charge of spreading and overlapping a pair of braids on the bridal bed: one open and the other placed upside down, symbolizing the union of Yin and Yang.
 

Mẹ tròn, con vuông

In the past, young couples used to exchange a pinch of soil for a pinch of salt. They wanted to honor and perpetuate their union and fidelity by taking Heaven and Earth as witnesses of their commitment. The same meaning is also found in the following expression: Gừng cay muối mặn, reminding newlyweds never to part because life is bitter and deep with ups and downs, just like the pungent ginger and salt that retain their flavor over the years.

For speaking of virtue, one is accustomed to say in Vietnamese: 

Ba vuông sánh với bảy tròn
Đời cha vinh hiễn đời con sang giàu

As three squares can be in comparison seven circles, virtuous parents will have rich children.

By speaking of these three squares, one needs to reminder the square form of rice cake proposed during the new year. This cake constituted by straight lines  symbolizes loyalty and righteousness in the relationship of three submissions « Tam Tòng »: Tại gia tòng phu, xuất giá tòng phu, phu tữ tòng tữ (submission to the father before her marriage,submission to the husband during her marriage, submission to the elder son when widowed).

About 7 circles, one must think of the roundness of « bánh giầy ».  This one  is constituted by a sequence of dots equidistant from the center where there is the heart. This cake is the symbol of  a well-balancel soul that any passion does not bewinder. One finds in this heart the perfection of seven human sentiments: (Thất tình : hỹ, nộ, ái, lạc, sĩ, ố, dục )( Joy, anger, sadness, cheerfullness, love, hatred, desire). Does someone  realize a  ideal moral life if under any circumstances, he succeeds to maintain the loyalty and  righteousness with others and always keeps his equidistant gap in the manifestation of his feelings?

The expression  vuông tròn has  frequently been  employed in a great number of Vietnamese popular sayings:

Lạy trời cho đặng vuông tròn 
Trăm năm cho trọn lòng son với chàng!

I pray to God that  everything should go well and I should  eternally keep  my faithful  hearth  with you.

or 

Đấy mà xử ngãi (nghĩa) vuông tròn
Ngàn năm ly biệt vẫn còn đợi trông

Here is the signification of conjugal love
Despite the eternal separation, one continues to wait  for the  return with patience

or in the following verses 411-412 and  1331-1332 of Kim Vân Kiều‘s best-seller

Nghĩ mình phận mỏng cánh chuồn 
Khuôn xanh biết có vuông tròn mà haỵ

My fate is fragile like the dragonfly’s wing
Does the Heaven  knows that this union is durable or not?

or

Trăm năm tính cuộc vuông tròn,
Phải dò cho đến ngọn nguồn lạch sông

During your life (one hundred years), when you are concerned about your marriage, you must go upstream to the source. (One must inquire about the bride’s family down to the smallest detail.)

This Yin and Yang bipolarity is expressed in various forms in Vietnam. In China, if there is a single marriage genius, in Vietnam there is a couple of male and female geniuses (Ông Tơ Bà Nguyệt). Likewise, in Vietnamese pagodas, there is a couple of male and female Buddhas (Phật ông Phật bà) on the altar instead of a single Buddha. Vietnamese people firmly believe that each of them is associated with a certain number of digits. Before birth, the embryo needs to wait 9 months and 10 days. To say that someone has a happy fate, it is said that they have a « happy destiny » (số đỏ). Conversely, the « unfortunate destiny » (số đen) is reserved for people with a bad fate.

 

NEXT (Yin and Yang numbers)

 

 

Yin and Yang theory (Âm Dương : Phần 1)

j050807 Culture, Traditions, Văn Hóa, Vietnam , ,

yinyangviet

French version 

Vietnamese version

The theory of Yin and Yang continues to be closely linked to the daily life of the Vietnamese and finds its application in all fields. Everything that is fluid, cold, humid, passive, dark, internal, immobile, of feminine essence such as the sky, the moon, the night, water, winter, is of Yin nature. Everything that is solid, warm, bright, active, external, mobile, of masculine essence such as the earth, the sun, fire, summer, is of Yang nature.

This Yin and Yang characteristic is even found in Vietnamese grammar through the use of the words « con » and « cái« . Analogous to the definite articles « le » and « la » in French, these are used to indicate gender in certain restricted cases, but one can also base their use on the « mobile » or « immobile » nature of the object they accompany to indicate its belonging to the corresponding semantic class. The word « cái » is used when the object has the « immobile » character (tĩnh vật): cái nhà (house), cái hang (cave), cái nồi (pot), etc. On the other hand, when the « mobile » state (động vật) is part of the nature of the object, the word « con » is used to precede it. This is the case for the following words: con mắt (eye), con tim (heart), con trăng (snake), con ngươi (pupil), con dao (knife), etc.

The eye moves constantly just as the heart beats. Likewise, the snake moves just like the pupil. The knife is considered by the Vietnamese as a sacred animal. It is nourished with blood, wine, and rice. The same name given to an object can lead to two different interpretations depending on the use of the word « cái » or « con. » The following example translates the mobile (con) or immobile (cái) nature of the object thuyền (or boat in French) used: Con thuyền trôi theo dòng nước (The boat moves along the water). This means that someone is making the boat move with the oar or with the engine. On the other hand, when one says « cái thuyền trôi theo dòng nước » (The boat moves along the water), the emphasis is on the fact that there is no one maneuvering the boat. It is the flow of the water that makes the boat move by itself. This notes the immobile nature of the boat. The influence of Yin and Yang is not unrelated to the way the gender is sometimes attributed to common objects. This is the case with the knife (dao): dao cái (large knife), dao đực or dao rựa (or machete). This observation was noted by Alain Thote, the French archaeologist and sinologist, in his article entitled « Origin and Early Developments of the Sword in China« : The swords of Yue enjoyed great fame in antiquity.

This is the case of the fish entrails sword that the butcher named Zhuan Zhu (Chuyên Chư) used to assassinate the Liao sovereign (Ngô Vương Liêu) of the state of Wu (nước Ngô) during the Spring and Autumn period (Xuân Thu), etc. Some swords bore a name and could be masculine or feminine. The expression « đực rựa, » often heard in conversations to refer to men, comes from the old Vietnamese custom of carrying machetes when going out.

The association of sexes has also been visible for a long time in Vietnam in rice cultivation: the man plows and the woman transplants. The plowshare that pierces the earth (âm) (Yin) symbolizes the male sex (Yang) (dương), while through transplanting, the woman transmits her fertilizing power (âm) (Yin) to the rice plants (dương) (Yang). To denote the perfect harmony in the union of Yin and Yang, it is customary to say in Vietnamese: United, husband and wife can scoop all the water from the Eastern Sea. (thuận vợ thuận chồng tát biển Đông cũng cạn).

Being rice farmers, the Proto-Vietnamese were attached not only to the land but also to the environment because, thanks to natural phenomena (rain, sun, wind, clouds, etc.), they could have good harvests or not. Extensive rice cultivation by slash-and-burn or in naturally flooded fields depended on climate uncertainties. That is why they needed to live in harmony with nature.

They considered themselves the link between Heaven and Earth (Thiên-Nhân-Địa). Based on this notion, it is common to say in Vietnamese: Thiên Thời, Địa Lợi, Nhân Hòa (being aware of weather conditions, knowing the terrain well, and having popular support or national harmony). These are the three key factors of victory often referenced by Vietnamese strategists (Trần Hưng Đạo, Nguyễn Trãi, Quang Trung) in their struggle against foreign invaders. The Vietnamese take this triad (Tam Tài) into account in their way of thinking and daily life.

For them, there is no doubt that this notion has an undeniable influence on the person themselves: their destiny is dictated by the will of Heaven and depends on their birth date. With the external and internal environment of their dwelling, they can receive the harmful or beneficial breath (qi) generated by the earth. The art of harmonizing the environmental energy of one’s place of residence allows one to minimize troubles and promote well-being and health. A flat terrain without undulations or hills is lifeless and lacks qi breath (Khí). The Vietnamese call hills and mountains Dragons and Tigers. Buildings should have a green dragon to the west and a white tiger to the east. The benevolent Dragon must be more powerful than the Tiger (Hữu Thanh Long, Tã Bạch Hổ) that is to say the Dragon mountain must be higher than the Tiger hill. The notion of harmony takes on its full meaning when a site backed by a mountain and surrounded on two sides by chains of hills that protect it from winds dispersing the Chi (or cosmic energy) gives access to a lake or a river where there is water and food essential for life and the accumulation of cosmic energies (Chi).

This model can be found in the case of the historic city or citadel of Huế (Kinh thành Huế). It is oriented towards the south because in the Yi King it is written: the one who governs the country must look towards the south « Thánh nhân nam diện nhi thính thiên hạ thí » (the king turns his face to the south to rule the world). The enclosure of this citadel is a defensive construction with a military character based on the fortress technique of the famous engineer Vauban and encompassing near its southern front the imperial city bounded by a second rectangular enclosure measuring 622×606 meters. Inside this is the purple forbidden city forming the symbolic heart of the empire within a third and last almost square enclosure of 330×324 meters. The interlocking of these three enclosures refers to the Triad (Heaven, Man, Earth).

The southern front of the citadel, where the Meridian Gate is located, follows a convex path along the Perfume River. Resembling a dragon lying in the West, it undulates and rises towards the North, weaving through small hills and making a 90° bend to the East. It first reaches the protective islands of Dã Viên and Cồn Hến before joining the sea. This creates an ideal position (Chi Huyền Thủy) in accordance with the scheme described above, with a green dragon to the East and a white tiger to the West represented respectively by the shell islands (Cồn Hến) and Dã Viên, facing a natural screen symbolized by the Royal Screen Mountain (Núi Ngự Bình).

 

Man can act and influence his own life. By performing benevolent acts towards others, he can find happiness and improve his karma. In the past, there was a Nam Giao or Tế Giao ceremony in Vietnam, organized every year by the court of Hué in honor of Heaven and Earth. It is the emperor’s privilege to annually associate his deified ancestors with the homage paid to Heaven and Earth on a monumental esplanade built in 1806 in the southern suburbs of Huế because he is the son of Heaven. There are three levels corresponding to the triad: Heaven, Representative (emperor), Earth (Thiên, Nhân, Địa).

Each level has its own shape and a different color: the sky is spherical and the earth square (trời tròn đất vuông), thiên thanh địa hoàng (the sky is light blue and the earth yellow). Previously subjected to isolation and fasting, the emperor ascended the esplanade of sacrifices and acted on behalf of his people to ask the natural forces of the universe to improve the environment on earth. The emperor is the only figure qualified to be the intermediary between Heaven and Earth. This triad (Thiên, Nhân, Địa) has often been mentioned in Vietnamese legends.

In the legend of the « The God of Mountains and the God of Rivers (Sơn Tinh Thủy Tinh) » there is a girl named Mi Nương who is sought in marriage by these two spirits, or in the legend of the Kitchen genius myth  (Chuyện Táo quân), the woman is torn between the love of her former husband and that of the new one. In the legend of the « Betel Quid, » the triad (wife, husband, younger brother) is represented by the woman, her husband, and her twin brother who, once deceased, respectively become the betel leaf, the areca nut, and the lime stone. The betel quid well reflects the notion of balance and harmony found in the theory of Yin and Yang. To prepare the betel quid, a little slaked lime is spread on a betel leaf.

Then, orange-yellow colored root bark of Artocarpus tonkinese is added, and finally a betel nut finely sliced is incorporated. The whole mixture is placed in the mouth and slowly chewed. After about twenty minutes of chewing, the remaining quid is spit out. The five tastes can be found in the betel quid: sweet from the betel nut, spicy from the betel leaf, bitter from the root, salty from the lime, and sour from the saliva. Through the image of the fresh betel vine emerging from the earth symbolized by the lime stone and entwining the slender areca palm trunk in this legend, one wants to note the character of the perfect balance between Yin (Earth) and Yang (Heaven) in perfect harmony. The betel quid is the prelude to every conversation (Miếng trầu là đầu câu chuyện), as often said in an old Vietnamese proverb. Acceptance carries deep meaning and amounts to a firm commitment, a given word that no one would think to take back. If the exchange occurs between a girl and a boy, it is equivalent to a proposal of marriage or union. In Vietnamese tradition, the betel quid is a symbol of conjugal happiness. It cannot be missing from marriage rites.

In the civilization of wet rice cultivation, there are other trinities as important as the triad (Heaven, Man, Earth). This is the case with the triad (Thủy, Hỏa, Thổ) (or (in French Water-Fire-Earth)) or the triad (Mộc, Kim, Thổ) (or Wood, Metal, Earth). We need the earth for rice cultivation, water, and fertilizers derived from ashes caused by fire to fertilize the soil. Similarly, plants are used for food and metals to make appropriate tools for agriculture. We notice that these triads have a common element, which is earth. That is why it occupies a central place in the management of the four cardinal points. It is the pivot around which the other four elements revolve. In agricultural life, the most important element after earth is water. It is the phrase: Nhất nước nhì phân (First water, second fertilizer) often heard from a Vietnamese farmer. Since water has a Yin nature, it is attributed to the North direction because it is compatible with cold (winter). On the other hand, being Yang in nature, the fire element of the triad (Thủy, Hỏa, Thổ) is better associated with the South direction with heat and radiation (summer). The wood element clearly recalls plants whose birth often takes place in spring. It is associated with occupying the west direction with the growth of Yang. As for the metal element, which is malleable and can take different forms, it is associated with the east direction, which is linked to autumn.

The Vietnamese find in the theory of Yin and Yang an idea of alternation rather than opposition. Yin and its complementary element Yang form an entity that allows for the establishment of a good balance and harmony. For them, the world represents a totality of cyclic orders constituted by the combination of two alternating and complementary manifestations. It is known that in an opposing relationship, both Yin and Yang each carry the seed of the other within themselves. (Nothing is completely Yin or completely Yang; within Yin there is Yang and within Yang there is Yin). Yin and Yang are considered as the wheel of a chariot. Having reached their end, they begin again. Once their limit is reached, they return again.

A set of popular sayings reflecting the law of causality concretely testify to the mutation of Yin and Yang. That is why it is customary to say in Vietnamese « Trong rũi có may » (In misfortune, there will be luck), « Trong dỡ có hay » (In what seems bad, there is also something good), « Trong họa có phúc » (In misfortune, there will always be happiness). « Sướng lắm khổ nhiều » (The more satisfied the desire, the more one will suffer), « Trèo cao ngã đau » (The higher you climb, the more painful the fall). « Yêu nhau nhiều cắn nhau đau » (The more we love each other, the more we hurt each other). Lost possessions are therefore sometimes the ransom of a human life. This is clearly expressed by the Vietnamese proverb: Của đi thay người (possessions go away instead of people). The factors Phúc (happiness) and Họa (misfortune) must vary inversely to each other.

It is thanks to this Yin and Yang bipolarity that the Vietnamese are accustomed to seeking a good balance in daily life. They try to find perfect harmony with everyone and with nature even beyond their death. This was discovered in the Lạch Trương necropolis (Thanh Hóa), dating back to 3 centuries before Christ, with wooden burial objects (Yang) placed in the North (Yin) and those made of terracotta (Yin) in the South (Yang).

This notion of balance can even be found in the pagoda with the spirits of good and evil (Ông Thiện Ông Ác). It is thanks to this philosophy of balance that the Vietnamese have the ability to adapt to all situations, even in extreme cases. It is also this principle of balance that Vietnamese leaders have continued to uphold in the past during confrontations with foreign countries. To avoid the humiliation of the Mongols, who were defeated twice in Vietnam, General Trần Hưng Ðạo proposed paying tribute to Kubilai Khan in exchange for lasting peace. After defeating the Ming Chinese, Nguyễn Trãi, the strategic advisor to King Lê Lợi, did not hesitate to allow Wang Tong (Vương Thông) to return to China with 13,000 captured soldiers and proposed a vassalage pact with a triennial tribute of two medium-sized statues made of fine metal as compensation for two generals who died in battle, Liou Cheng (Liễu Thăng) and Leang Minh (Lương Minh). Similarly, King Quang Trung showed humility and agreed to send an envoy to Emperor Qianlong to seek peace after crushing the Qing army at Hanoi in 1788 within a very short time (6 days).

We must not forget either the conduct and flexibility demonstrated by the communist leaders in diplomacy during the confrontation with the French and the Americans. The Geneva (1954) and Paris (1972) agreements once again testify to the search for balance or the middle way ingeniously found by the Vietnamese in the theory of Yin and Yang.
In Vietnam, spherical objects (tròn) are integrated into Yang, and square-shaped ones (vuông) into Yin. This tendency dates back to a time when it was believed that the sky was spherical and the earth was square because the ancient Vietnamese had to square the land before they could use it for plowing and building houses. It was in this mindset that the Bai Yue (of which the Proto-Vietnamese were a part) used to divide a portion of land into nine lots based on the character 井 tĩnh (giếng nước, meaning water well). The central lot was designated for building a water well, and the remaining eight lots were intended for constructing houses, thus forming the first housing unit in agricultural society.

The following Vietnamese popular saying: trời xanh như tán lọng tròn; đất kia chằn chặn như bàn cờ vuông (The blue sky is like a round parasol; the earth is firm like a square chessboard) reflects this belief well.The Proto-Vietnamese knew that the sky was round and the earth was square to distinguish between the round aspect of the sky at the moment of its existence (thể) and the square aspect of the earth at the moment of its use (dụng).

 NEXT (More reading Part 2)

Bibilography

–Alain Thote: Origine et premiers développements de l’épée en Chine.
–Cung Ðình Thanh: Trống đồng Ðồng Sơn : Sự tranh luận về chủ quyền trống đồng giữa học giã Việt và Hoa.Tập San Tư Tưởng Tháng 3 năm 2002 số 18. 
-Brigitte Baptandier : En guise d’introduction. Chine et anthropologie. Ateliers 24 (2001). Journée d’étude de l’APRAS sur les ethnologies régionales à Paris en 1993.
-Nguyễn Từ Thức : Tãn Mạn về Âm Dương, chẳn lẻ (www.anviettoancau.net) 
-Trần Ngọc Thêm: Tìm về bản sắc văn hóa Việt-Nam. NXB : Tp Hồ Chí Minh Tp HCM 2001. 
-Nguyễn Xuân Quang: Bản sắc văn hóa việt qua ngôn ngữ việt (www.dunglac.org)
-Georges Condominas : La guérilla viêt. Trait culturel majeur et pérenne de l’espace social vietnamien, L’Homme 2002/4, N° 164, p. 17-36. 
-Louis Bezacier: Sur la datation d’une représentation primitive de la charrue. (BEFO, année 1967, volume 53, pages 551-556) …..

 

 

 

Eastern Han Dynasty (Nhà Đông Hán)

j050807 Culture, Histoire, Lịch sử, site touristique, Paris , ,

 Version française
 Vietnamese version

Eastern Han dynasty (Nhà Đông Hán)

titre_dynhan_9 Guimet museum of Asian art (Paris)

 

Chronology of Eastern Han dynasty 

icon_daihan

 Đông Hán

25-57: Guangwudi reign

57-75: Mingdi’s reign

75-88: Zhandi reign

88-106: Heidi reign

106: Shangdi reign

106-125: Andi reign

125: Shaodi reign

125-144: Chongdi reign

145-146: Zhidi reign

146-168:  Huandi reign

168-189: Lingdi reign

184: Yellow turban rebellion

189: Shaodi impeachment.

189-220: Xiandi reign.

190: Increasing power of General Cao Cao (Tào Tháo)

220: Death of  Cao Cao and Xiandi.

End of Eastern Han dynasty

 

In the  territories conquered by  the Han, in particular in the South China, the Chinese assimilation continued in full swing. That is why revolts firstly  succeeded each other in the Dian kingdom (Điền Quốc)  (86, 83  before J.C., 14 after J.C., from 42 to  45 ). They were repressed with severity. These upheavals were largely due to   the Han officials exactions and the Chinese settlers’ behaviour in possession of fertile soils and expulsion of local people in remote  corners on his territory.  In addition, the latter had to adopt the language, customs and religious beliefs practiced by the Han.

In year 40, a serious rebellion broke out in Jiaozhou province (or Giao Châu in Vietnamese) including at this time, a great  part of  Kouangsi  and Kouang tong territories. It was led by the local prefect’s daughters, the elder Trưng Trắc (Zheng Cè)  and  her youngest daughter Trưng Nhị (Zheng Èr). As the husband of the elder Shi Suo (Thi Sách) opposed the Chinese assimilation policy conducted  brutally  by the Chinese proconsul Su Ding (Tô Định), the latter did not hesitate to kill him for making an example against Yue rebels. This killing revolted sisters Trưng and trigged immediately the insurgent movement in Yue territories.

 

icon_tigre

Mat weight 

intended to maintain the mat edges thanks to its weight.

 

Sisters Trưng succeeded in gaining control of 65 citadels for a very short period of time.  They were  proclaimed Queens on conquered territories and etablished themselves in Meiling (or Mê Linh). In year 41, they were defeated by Chinese general Ma Yuan ( Mã Viện, Phục Ba tuớng quân)(the flow tamer) and preferred the suicide instead of the reddition by pluging into the Hát river. They thus became the symbol of Vietnamese resistance. They continue to be venerated today not only in Vietnam but also in certain areas of Yue territories belonging to China (Kouangsi et Kouang Tong). Ma Yuan began to apply a policy of terror and assimiltaion at forced march by placing at all level administration, Chinese trustwothy men and imposing the Chinese as the official language over the territory of the Vietnamese. It is the first Chinese domination during just 1000 years before the war of liberation started by General Ngô Quyền. In the meantime, Guangwudi  (Quang Vũ Đế) succeeded to bring prosperity and stability in his empire by reducing the tax on crops and profits. After his death,   his son Mingdi (Hán Minh Đế) imitating Wudi, pursued the policy of expansion by taking an offensive against the northern Xiongnu (Hung Nô)  with the aim of releasing the States of Central Asia from the guardianship of the latter and restoring the security of the silk road (con đường tơ lụa) for the benefit of China. Being the brother of Ban Gu (*)(Ban Cố) historian of this time, General Ban Chao (Ban Siêu)  was in charge of this  military expedition. He succeeded in reaching the sea Caspienne and subduing the  Yuezhi (Nguyệt Chi or Nhục Chi) thanks to the Kusana assistance.

 

 (*) Author of Hanshu (Hán Thư)

 

Galerie des photos

guimet_han

Con rồng cháu Tiên (English version)

j050807 Culture, Histoire, Văn Hóa, Vietnam , ,

French version

Vietnamese version

 Long time ago, Vietnam was a country half-wild, half-cultured, infested with wild beasts that cohabitated with men in deep caves in the forest. Lived then a young man named Lạc Long Quân intelligent and endowed with extraordinary powers. In his vein flowed a bloodstream mixed with the blood of the Dragons form Bách Việt country. During his travels through mountains and valleys, he arrived at a maritime region of southeast Lac Việt. Seeing the population decimated by a marine monster, he took a spear that he got red hot in fire and threw in the mouth of the monster killing it. He cut its body in three pieces which he threw into three different places that received three geographical names: the head was in a mountain named Cầu Dầu Sơn, the body in another mountain Cầu Dầu Thủy and the tail in the islet called Bạch Long Vỹ.

Lạc Long Quân and Âu Cơ


Once the people of Lac Viet in peace, the hero headed for the Long Bien region where its inhabitants were terrorized by a fox which became a monster. The latter often turned itself into a young man to enter villages taking away women and young girls. Lac Long Quan had to fight for three days and three nights before beating the monster and entering its cave to free his survivors. Arriving at the Phong Châu area, he confronted the monster of trees so ferocious he had to turn to his father Kinh Dương Vương to chase it to the South. After having brought peace to the three countries, he was so moved by compassion for such an unfortunate and simple people. He decided to stay to protect and teach them how to grow rice, cook it, cut trees to build homes that sheltered them from rain, wind and savage beasts. He educated them in the family virtues of parents and spouses. The people revered him and considered him as their Chief. They also considered him as their father, the one who gave them their lives.

Before he joined his mother in the Palace of Waters, he recommended to his people, in case of misfortune, to call him aloud: Father. And he would come back right away. Some time later, the Lord of the High Regions of the North, Ðế Lai, leading his troops, invaded Lac Viet while bringing with him his delightful daughter Âu Cơ. De Lai oppressed and fleeced the people who had to supply his army with meat and rice. In distress people called: Father, come back and save us. Lạc Long Quân was on the spot, but did not find De Lai. Au Cơ was there alone, out for a walk amid her servants. Dazzled by her beauty, he took Au Cơ to his palace. Au Cơ herself, charmed by the young man, consented to live with him. Ðế Lai, coming back in rage, sent his troops out to besiege the town.

But Lac Long Quan commanded savage beasts to push him back. Incapable of struggling against such a strong son-in-law, Ðế Lai withdrew from Lạc Việt, leaving his daughter on the strange land.

Lac Long Quân with the monster

Amid their happiness, Au Cơ brought to the world a big pouch from which got out one hundred eggs that gave birth to one hundred sons as robust as their father. When came the time to separate and return to his mother, Lạc Long Quân told his wife Au Cơ : « You are of the race of Immortals. I am of that of the Dragons. We cannot stay together for the rest of our lives. You need to live up high. I need to live down by the sea. So you stay here with fifty children. I will bring the other fifty to the maritime region, we settle on the same land ». From then on, Au Cơ stayed in the mountains with her fifty children. Those became the ancestors of all the peoples living nowadays on high plateaus and mountains (these are the montagnards and minorities ). As for Lạc Long Quân, he descended on the plain, by the sea, with his children that he taught how to clear the land to establish a kingdom there. His eldest son became thus the first king of Vietnam and took the dynastic name of Hùng Vương and called his country Văn Lang.

That’s why Vietnamese are proud of being  » Children of the Dragon, Grandchildren of the Immortal »
(Con Rồng Cháu Tiên).

Vietnamese heroes (Anh hùng dân tộc)

j050807 Histoire, Lịch sử, Văn Hóa , ,

Version française

Version vietnamienne

History museum of Saïgon

On the road of the history of Vietnam, the list of heroes is so long it is difficult to cite them all. But it would be unbelievable for a young Vietnamese not to know heroes such as Lê Lai, Trần Hưng Ðạo and Quang Trung Nguyễn Huệ because these characters illustrate each of them a model example to follow.

Lý Thường Kiệt: winner of the  Song and the Cham.

Trần Hưng Đạo: winner of the Mongol (or the Yuan).

Nguyễn Trãi: winner of the Ming of Chou Di.

Nguyễn Huệ:  winner of the  Qing and the Siamese (Thaïs)

histoire1Unforgettable words

Better being a phantom in the South is worth than to become a prince of North.

Trần Bình Trọng (the general of the Trần dynasty captured and sentenced to death by the Mongols))

The life is a game of chance. The chance is against us. Better is worth to die now for this country and to give the example of the sacrifice.

Nguyễn Thái Học (the nationalist leader guillotined by the French colonialists)

Trời đất nể nang người khí khái
Nước non tây vị kể tài tình

Heaven and Earth have consideration for men of character,
Mountains and Rivers favour great-hearted and talented people.

Hưng Đạo Vương Trần Quốc Tuấn

(1228- 1300)

The great destiny belongs to people of talent and heart
Nghiệp lớn thuộc về người tài đức.

Facing a Mongolian army of 500,000 warriors of Kubilai Khan, it is difficult for a country as small as Vietnam to resist this barbarous invasion. In spite of that, Vietnam has arrived at defeating the Mongolian army repeatedly twice in 1257 and in 1287 with shining victories on Bạch Ðăng river thanks to the talent of general Hưng Ðạo Vương Trần Quốc Tuấn. As for historians, Vietnam is the only country in Asia and Europe that succeeded in countering Mongolian invasion in this episode.

Nothing is surprising if a glance is made on the autobiography of this general. Coming from the royal family, he was a beyond-common character.  

He knew how to conciliate all the political forces of the country at that time, to galvanize the spirit of unity and the enthusiasm of all the people with the Vietnamese army through popular gatherings ( Hội Nghị Diên Hồng ) and surrounding himself with talented people among whom figured a character of exceptional value of the name Phạm Ngũ Lão.


Kubilai khan

Grandson of Genghis Khan (1215-1294)

Thanks to the strategy of this one, the Vietnamese people’s army entirely decimated the Mongolian army by planting stakes in the bed of the Red river to break all the joncs.Despite the shining victories, Hưng Ðạo Vương knew it was difficult to win the war facing a strong enemy such as the Mongolian army.

Ðằng giang tự cổ huyết do hồng
The river Bạch Ðằng continues to be stained with blood red.

Aware of geographic realities and potilical necessities, he knew how to avoid cutting completely all ties with his powerful neighbor by proposing that Vietnam continued to pay tribute in exchange for a long lasting peace. Thanks to this general’s perceptiveness, Vietnam found a period of peace and independence. This general is highly praised by the Vietnamese people because it is found in him all the qualities of a politician. His memory is honored every year at the temple of Kiếp Bắc.

His advice to king Trần Anh Tôn before his death in 1300 served several times as reference for most of Vietnamese in the struggle for independence:

When the enemy advances roaring like fire and wind, it is easy to overcome them. If they use patience like the silkworm nibbling berry leaves without looking for a quick victory and without fleecing people, we need to have not only good generals but also an elaboration of adequate tactics like in a chess game. In any way, the army should be united, having only one heart like father and sons in a family, the people should be treated with humanity so we can guarantee deep roots and durable bases.

Người anh hùng của dân tộc

Nguyễn Huệ

(1753-1792)

Quang Trung Nguyễn Huệ was a native of Tây Sơn where his ancestors resettled to get away from the war between the Trinh and the Nguyen. With his two brothers Nguyễn Nhạc and Nguyên Lữ, he led the uprising of Tây Sơn. (this region is located near Quy Nhơn in the south of Vietnam). Despite his young age, it was he who played the role of a leader in the revolt and also in the management of state affairs of Ðại Việt after having eliminated the Nguyen and the Trinh. His first success was the victory he knew how to get with an alarming rapidity in 1785 west of the Mekong against the Siamese (Battle Rạch Gầm-Xoài Mút (Mỹ Tho)). The latter were dispatched by the Siamese monarchy to reestablish Nguyễn Ánh to the throne. From an army of 50,000 troops at the start, it remained only 2,000. That permitted to cut dry the Siamese expansion in the direction of Cochinchina.

His fame was due a great deal to the way of making a lightning war against the Qing in 1788.

That year, allied with the puppet king Lê Chiêu Thống, the Chinese arrived in front of the capital Thăng Long without any resistance, Ngô Văn Sỡ, the chief of the Tây Sơn at Thăng Long having preferred to withdraw his troops to Thanh Hóa

Nguyễn Huệ decided to attack the Qing on the day of Tet when the discipline was relaxed with the Qing. In five days, he succeeded in retaking the capital Thăng Long. Like Hưng Ðạo Vương Trần Quốc Tuấn, Nguyễn Huệ showed proof of humility before China whose power was incomparable in spite of her defeat, which restored peace along the border. During his years of reign, he imposed the nom as the official script to get away from the Chinese cultural domination. Despite his will to reform the country, he did not have the time to reign. He died in 1792, leaving an heir only 10 years of age.

This allowed Nguyễn Ánh, the last survivor of the Nguyễn dynasty to conquer little by little all Vietnam and become later emperor Gia Long.

For the majority of Vietnamese, Quang Trung is not only a reforming king but also one of the strategists the best known.

Người anh hùng áo vải

Lê Lai

It was in a phase of decisive struggle that Lê Lợi was besieged at the Chí Linh mountain by the Chinese determined to capture him to render the resistance leaderless. Le Loi had an idea of looking for someone who would accept to disguise himself under his traits, fight in retreat in another direction to trick the Chinese in their pursuit and thus allow him to escape and continue the struggle for liberation.

Among his troops there was a soldier of the name Nguyễn Thân who consented to play this stratagem. As foreseen, the Chinese followed the false Lê Lợi, captured him and killed him. Thanks to Nguyễn Thân, Lê Lợi, after 10 years of struggle, triumphed and founded the dynasty of the Le who would reign almost one hundred years. Admiring the man who had accepted to die in his stead, and the sacrifice of Nguyễn Thân for the great national cause, Lê Lợi granted the latter the privilege of bearing the royal family name Le and the individual name Lai, and ordered posterity to perpetuate Le Lai’s anniversary which falls on the eighth month of the lunar year. This has recalled in the Vietnamese youth a sublime sense of solidarity between the individual and the great cause, of which Lê Lai is the supreme illustration.

Vietnam history (Lịch Sữ Việt Nam)

j050807 Culture, Histoire, Lịch sử, Vietnam , ,

 

Vietnamese version

French version

The word Vietnam was first known only in the 19th century when Emperor Gia Long decided to rename the country from Nam-Viêt. Marco Polo evoked it in the account of his voyage entitled The Book of Marvels under the name of Caugigui ( Giao Chỉ Quán ). Vietnam’s history can be summarized in a few words: struggle for independence, conquest of new land, and reunification of the country. The Vietnamese appear for the first time at the Bronze age ( Ðồng-Sơn civilization ). The Vietnamese tribes who lived scattered south of China and north of Vietnam were undoubtedly wandering hunters kind of people who, because of hunting, liked to move constanly beyond the borders. The Chinese character « nam » ( or « nan » in Mandarin ), meaning « southern », was used to indicate these Vietnamese of the South as to differentiate from the Vietnamese of the North who remained in China. As for the word Viet (or Yuê in mandarin ), it was used by the Zhou dynasty ( 1050-249 B.C ) to indicate the territories located south of China. These Vietnamese of the south, or Southern Vietnam had, by the end of the second millenium ( two thousand years ) formed kingdoms.

The first kingdoms of the legendary dynasties were located north in Tonkin. By the 10th century they had, as a name kingdom Văn Lang, then kingdom Âu Lạc, started from the Red River delta, the cradle of the Vietnamese nation, a movement characterized as Nam Tiến (Advancement toward the South)

This nation relentlessly pushed new cells in each parcel of land favorable to its mode of growth. It was based on a multitude of small, politically independent hearths consisted of soldier-peasants reeinforced sometimes by troops from the central authority and behaved like a gigantic madrepore forming its atoll littlle by little, ending up with enclircling and assimilating the new country and thus enlarge Vietnam. It constituted an undeniable advantage for a policy of expansion but would on the other hand always require a strong central authority. The Wise  Confucius had already talked about these Vietnamese in his Book of Rites ( Kinh Lễ ). Thanks to the prehensile capability of their well detached big toes from the others, these Viets could cross rice fields and climb mountains without ever being tired. The history of Vietnam is not that of dynasties or great movements of thoughts. But it is the history of a people of stubborn peasants who work hard in their rice fields and leave their marks in the landscape.

 

phongcanh

At the least relaxation of the latter, the country crumbles easily. This is one of the main reasons of why the history of Vietnam is filled with disorders and eternal wars. It had the advantage of a triple coherent national structure: a bureacratic state built on the Confucian model around an imperial function having the mandate of Heaven, the family, and the village. This helped in preserving the country’s civilization lived by each and every Vietnamese like a total attachment to the forces of the land and the ancestors. This policy of nibbling silkworms allowed the slow absorption of the space occupied by the Khmer and the Chàm people. Their vestiges currently found in central Vietnam ( Phan Thiết, Ðà Nẫng etc.) and in the delta of the Mekong River illustrate very well this conquest.

The attachment to independence has been proven many times in the past and in the war in Vietnam. It requires long centuries of struggle, wars, pains and jolts for Vietnam to finally become the size of a dragon today. One finds in the history of Vietnam a succession of small stories that the draftmen and storytellers Vink and Sơn succeeded in telling through theircomic strips. They know how to give to each a resonance of grandeur of a people who witness the dignity and the nobility in their poverty and sufferings. One finds in this history two thousand years of constant fight against the  nature and water, which translates into not only a close attachment to the land but also an intimate and profound agreement between these peasants and this nature. Paul Mus did not hesitate in underscoring it in his work entitled « Vietnam, Sociologie d’une guerre, Paris, le Seuil 1952 ». This agreement proved to be so intimate that, everywhere where these circumstances were realized no people has resisted the thrust of the Vietnamese, nor any foreign force then came to the end of their engagement on the ground.

In spite of the Chinese occupation for one millenium, the Vietnamese ingrained of their culture, have preserved their language although it was transcribed in Chinese characters and later romanized after the arrival of Alexandre de Rhodes. If the Vietnamese have not refused any contribution from abroad, it is because they have succeeded with the « Vietnamization » in keeping what is dear to any people in the world, and that is the traditions. It is those that have been transmitted from one generation to the next by the frail men whose feet are buried in the mud of the rice field.

How not to stick to this Vietnam, this lost country where sacrifice is not a vain word? This sacrifice is found time and again in the Annals of the history of Vietnam. I would rather be a ghost in the South than a prince in the North, declared General Trần Bình Trọng before being executed by the Mongols in 1257. Life is a game of chance. The chance is against us. It’s worth dying now for the country and set an example of sacrifice, said the nationalist leader Nguyễn Thái Học before being guillotined on June 17, 1930 in Yên Bái. How to erase in the collective memory the innocent face of the young captive emperor Hàm Nghi, exiled to Algeria at the age of 18 with tears in the eyes? How to forget the tragic death of the exiled emperor Duy Tân ( an aircrash in OuBangui-Chari, Africa ) whose announced return could probably change in 1945 the regrettable events of the history of Vietnam during the last decades?

How not to regret this native country that was however not tender ?. It was the feeling expressed by writer Huỳnh Quang Nhường in his best-seller « The land I lost », published by Castor Poche Flammarion.

Is a country that I like to exist still in the course of its history?.

Văn Lang civilization (Thời kỳ Hồng Bàng: Part 2)

j050807 Đồng Sơn, Histoire, Lịch sử, Traditions, Văn Hóa , ,

 

French version

One also retains the outstanding event underlined by the Chinese historian Trịnh Tiều in his work « Thông Chí« : In the southern China, under the reign of  Nghiêu king  (2253 before J.C.), there was the emissary of a tribe named Việt Thường who offered to the king as a pledge of allegiance, an old tortoise living more than 1000 years and 3 meters long. One found on its back, the inscriptions carrying the characters in the shape of a tadpole (văn Khoa Ðẩu) and allowing to interpret all the changes of the Sky and nature. King Nghiêu decided to attribute to them the name Qui Lịch (or tortoise calendar). This form of writing was recently found  on a stone belonging to the cultural vestiges of the region Sapa-Lào Cai in the North of Vietnam. The Vietnamese historian Trần Trọng Kim raised this question in his work entitled Việt Nam sử lược (Abstract of the history of Vietnam). Many clues have been found in favour of the interpretation of the same tribe and  people. One cannot refute  there is an undeniable bond between the writing in the shape of tadpoles  and the toad found either on the  bronze drums of Ðồng Sơn or the  Ðông Hà popular Vietnamese stamps,  the most of which known remains the stamp « Thầy Ðồ Cóc » (or the Master toad). On the latter, one finds the following sentence: Lão oa độc giảng ( the old toad holds the monopoly of teaching ). Although it had appeared 400 years ago only, it ingeniously reflected the perpetual thought of the Hùng vuong time. It is not by chance that one attributed to the toad the Master role  but one would like to highlight the importance of the representation and the significance of this image.

The toad was the carrier of a civilization whose the writing in the shape of tadpoles was used by the  Lac Viet tribe  at the Hùng Vương time  because he was the father of the tadpole. In the same way, through the stamp of « Chú bé ôm con cóc » (or the child embraces the toad ), one detected all the original thought of  Lạc Việt people. The respect of the child towards  the toad or rather  its Master (Tôn Sư trọng đạo) was an already existing concept at the Hùng vương time. Could one conclude from it there was a correlation with what one found later in the confucean spirit with the sentence « Tiên học lễ, hậu học văn  » ( First learn the moral values then  the culture )?

 

The master toad (Thầy Ðồ Cóc)
 In Vietnam, the tortoise is not not only the symbol of longevity and immortality but also that of transmission of  spiritual values in the Vietnamese tradition. One finds its representation everywhere, in particular in commonplaces like communal houses, pagodas and temples. It is used at the temple of literature ( Văn Miếu ) to raise steles praising the merits of laureates to the national contests.

 

The crane on the tortoise back
On the other hand, in the temples and communal houses, one sees the tortoise  always carry a crane on its back. There is an undeniable resemblance between this crane and the bird wader with a long beak found on the bronze drums of Ðồng Sơn. The  crane statue on the tortoise  back probably reflects the perpetuity of all the religious beliefs resulting from the  Văn Lang  civilization through the time.

The tortoise  omnipresence in the history and culture of the Vietnamese results neither from the long domination of the Chinese nor the effect of chance but it  owed  to the fact that the Văn Lang kingdom should be located in an area populated by large tortoises. It was only in the south of  the Basin  Yang Tsé river (Sông Dương Tữ) that one can find this species of large tortoises in extermination. It is what was reported by the Vietnamese author Nguyễn Hiến Lê in his work entitled « Sử Trung Quốc  » (History of China ) (Editor Văn Hoá 1996) « .

It is not very probable to  find one day, the archaeological vestiges proving the existence of this kingdom like those already found with the Shang  dynasty. But nothing invalidates this historical truth because in addition to the facts evoked above, there is even  in this kingdom the intangible proof of a very old civilization often named  « the Văn Lang civilization » , one found the base of which  in the theory of Yin and Yang and  the five elements (Thuyết Âm Dương Ngũ Hành ). 

Âm Dương
This one was highlighted through the sticky rice cake « Bánh Chưng Bánh dầy » which was exclusively specific to the Vietnamese people since the   kings Hùng period.  One could raise questions about the origin of this theory which was attributed until now to the Chinese. According to the historical Memoires of Si Ma Qian ( Sử Ký Tư Mã Thiên ), one knew that  the philosopher of the country of Qi ( Tề Quốc ) ( 350-270 before J.C.) Tseou Yen (Trâu Diễn), was the first Chinese to highlight the relation between the theory of Yin and Yang and that of the 5 elements ( Wu Xing )(Thuyết Âm Dương Ngũ Hành)  at the time of the Warring States (thời Chiến Quốc). 

The Yin and the Yang  was evoked in the  Zhouyi book (Chu Dịch) by the son of king Wen (1)or Duke of Zhou (Chu Công Đán) while the theory of the five elements had been found by Yu the Great (Đại Vũ) of the Xia dynasty ( Hạ ). There was practically an interval of 1000 years between these two theories. The concept of the five elements was quickly integrated into  the yin and the yang to give an explanation on the « tao » which is at the origin of everything. In spite of the success met in a great number of domains (astrology, geomancy, traditional medicine), it is difficult to give a coherent justification to the level of the publication date of these theories because the concept Taiji  (thái cực) ( supreme limit ) from which the two principal elements were born ( the yin and the yang ), was introduced only at the time of Confucius (500 years before J.C. ).  Taiji was the object of meditation for  philosophers from all horizons  since the philosopher of the Song  period  and  founder of the Neo-Confucianism, Zhou Dunyi ( Chu Ðôn Di ), had given to this concept a new definition in his bestseller: « Treatise on the figure Taiji » ( Thái Cực đồ thuyết ):

Vô cực mà là thái cực, Thái cực  động sinh Dương, động đến cực điểm thì tĩnh, tĩnh sinh Âm, tĩnh đến cực đỉnh thì lại động. Một động một tĩnh làm căn bản cho nhau….

From Wuji (no limit) to Taiji (supreme limit or  grand extreme). The supreme limit, once in motion, generates the yang and at the limit of motion, it is in the rest state.   In turn, this one generates the yin and at the limit of the rest state, it is  the return to  the motion state.  For the latter  and the rest state, each takes roots in the other.

For the Chinese, there is a sequence in the beginning of the universe:
Thái cực sinh lưỡng nghi là Âm Dương, Âm Dương sinh Bát Quái

Taiji is  the « One » referred to in the Dao principle of creation. From Taiji,  Yin and Yang which are the basic attributes of the universe give rise to the eight trigrams.

 Hà Đồ (Map of the River)
The incoherence is so visible in the chronological order of these theories because one had attributed to Fu Xi (Phục Hi)(1) the invention of the eight trigrams 3500 years ago before J.C. while the concept of Yin and Yang was introduced at the time of Zhou (1200 years before J.C.). While relying on the recent archaeological discoveries, in particular on the discovery of the manuscripts on silk  at Mawangdui (1973), the Chinese specialists of today advance unimaginable statements: The hexagrams precede the trigrams…, which proves that the chronological order of these theories is likely to be modified unceasingly in accordance with the new situations. One is brought to find in this imbroglio, an another explanation, an  another approach, an  another assumption according to which the theory of Yin and  Yang and  5 elements was adequated to an  another civilization. It would be that of Văn Lang. The confusion continues to be anchored in the  reader mind with the famous River map and Writing of Luo (Hà Ðồ Lạc Thư). 

The Writing of Luo was to be found before the appearance of the Plan of the River. That highlights the contradiction found in the chronological order of these discoveries. Certain Chinese had the occasion to call in question the traditional history established up to that point in the confucian orthodoxy by the Chinese dynasties. It is the case of Ouyang Xiu (1007-1072) who saw in this famous plan the work of man. He refuted the « gift from heaven » in his work entitled « Questions of a child about Yi King ( Yi tongzi wen ) » (Zhongguo shudian, Peking 1986). He preferred the version of the human invention.

How can  one grant  the veracity to the Chinese legend when  a complete inconsistency is known in the chronological order of the discovery of these famous Plan of the River and Writing of Luo?

Fou Xi (Phục Hi) (3500 before J.C.) discovered first, the River map ( Hà Ðồ ) at the time of an excursion on the Yellow River (Hoàng Hà). He saw leaving the water a dragon horse (long mã) bearing on its back this plan. It is to You the Great (Đại Vũ)  (2205 before J.C.) that one attributed the discovery of the Writing of Luo found on the  tortoise back. However it is thanks to the Writing of Luo and with its explanation (Lạc Thư cửu tinh đồ) that one manages to establish and  interpret correctly the stellar diagram drawn  from the polar star (Bắc Ðẩu) and found on this famous Plan of the river according to the Yin and Yang and 5 elements.

The famous word « Luo » ( Lạc ) found in the text of the Great Commentary of Confucius:

     Thị cố thiên sinh thần vật, thánh nhân tắc chi, thiên địa hóa thánh nhân hiệu chi; thiên tượng, hiện cát hung, thánh nhân tượng chi. Hà xuất đồ, Lạc xuất thư, thánh nhân tắc chi

     Cho nên trời sinh ra  thần vật, thánh nhân áp dụng theo; trời đất biến hoá, thánh nhân bắt chước; trời bày ra hình tượng. Hiện ra sự  tốt  xấu, thánh nhân phỏng theo ý tượng. Bức đồ hiện ra sông Hoàng  Hà, hình chữ hiện ở sông Lạc, thánh nhân áp dụng.

The Heaven gives rise to the divine things, the Wise men  take them as criterion. The Heaven  and the Earth know changes and transformations, the Wise men  reproduce them. The images expressing fortune and misfortune are suspended    in the Heaven, the Wise mens imitate them. The Plan comes from the Yellow River, the Writing  from the Luo river, the Wise men take them as models.

continues to be interpreted until today like the name of the Luo river, an affluent of the Yellow River which crosses and nourishes the center of China. One continues to see in these famous Plan of the River and Writing of Luo the first premises of the Chinese civilization. From the drawings and figures to the trigrammatic signs, from the trigrammatic signs to the linguistic signs, one thinks of the march of the Chinese civilization in Yi King without believing that it could be the model borrowed by the Wise one from another civilization. However if Luo is associated with the word Yue, that indicates the tribe Lạc Việt  (Luo Yue ) from which the Vietnamese come.  Does it seem  like  a sheer coincidence or a name used by the Wise men  You the Great  or Confucius to refer to the Văn Lang civilization? Lạc Thư indicates effectively the writing of the tribe Luo, Lạc tướng its generals, Lạc điền its territory, Lạc hầu  its marquis etc…..

It is rather disconcerting to note that the theory of Yin – Yang and  5 elements finds its perfect cohesion and its functioning in the  intangible proof of the  Văn Lang civilization, the sticky cake. In addition to the water, one finds in its constitution the 4 essential elements (meat, broad beans, sticky rice, bamboo or latanier leaves). The cycle of generation (Ngũ hành sinh) of 5 elements is quite visible in the making of this cake. At the interior of the cake, one finds a red  piece of porkmeat  (Fire) surrounded by a kind of paste made with  yellow broad beans (Earth). The whole thing is wrapped by the white  sticky rice (Metal) to be cooked with boiling water  (Water) before finding a green colouring on its surface thanks to the latanier leaves (Wood).

The two geometrical forms, a circle and a square which this cake takes, correspond well to the  Yin ( Âm ) and  the Yang (Dương). As the Yang breath reflects plenitude and purity, one gives it  the shape of a circle. However, one finds in the  Yin breath the impurity and  limitation. That is why it recovers the form of a square. A light difference is notable in the definition of Yin-Yang of the Chinese and that of the Vietnamese. For the latter, Yin tends to be in motion (động).

Cycle of generation

Fire->Earth->Metal->Water->Wood

Ngũ hành tương sinh

It is for that reason one finds only the presence of the 5 elements in the Yin (Âm) represented by the rice cake in the form of a square ( Bánh chưng ). It is not the case of the cake in the shape of a circle that  the Yang (Dương) symbolizes, this latter tending  to carry the « motionless » character  (tĩnh). It is probably the reason which explains until today why the theory  of Yin-Yang and 5 elements does not know a giant leap in its evolution and that its applications continue to carry the mystical and confused character in the public opinion because of the error introduced into the definition of Yin-Yang by the Chinese.

One is accustomed to saying « Mẹ tròn, con vuôn » in Vietnamese to wish the mother and her child a good health at the time of birth. This expression is used as a phrase of courtesy if it is not known that it was bequeathed by our ancestors with an aim of holding our attention on the creative character of the Universe. From this latter were born Yin and Yang which are not only in opposition but also in interaction and correlation. The complementarity and the indissociability of these two poles are at the base of the satisfying development of nature. The typically Vietnamese game « Chơi ô ăn quan » also testifies to the perfect operation of the theory of Yin-Yang and 5 elements. The game stops when one does not find any more tokens in the two extreme half-circles corresponding to the two poles Yin and Yang.

 
Ancestor altar

No Vietnamese hides his emotion when he sees on his ancestor altar  the sticky rice cake at the time of the  Tết festival. For him, this dish looking less attractive and not having any succulent taste,  bears a particular significance. It testifies not only to the respect and affection that  the Vietnamese likes to maintain with regard to his ancestors but also the impression of a 5000-year old civilization. This sticky rice cake is the undeniable proof of the perfect  functioning  of Yin and Yang and 5 elements. It is the only intact legacy that the Vietnamese succeeded in receiving on behalf of his ancestors in the swirls of history. It cannot compete with the masterpieces of other civilizations like the Wall of China or pyramids of the Pharaohs built with sweat and blood. It is the living symbol of a civilization which bequeathed to humanity a knowledge of priceless value.  One continues to use it  in a great number of domains of application (astronomy, geomancy, medicine, astrology etc….). Return to Part 1