EE00002659

Then ritual is a long-standing, indispensable cultural and religious activity of the Tay ethnic people, Ha Giang province; is a type of religious epic of the Tày people here, mainly practiced by Then men and women, associated with the ability to find “khoăn” (spirit), capable of leading ghosts to Mường Heaven. Then must have "fate" and be a member of the family with a tradition of Then making. The rituals describe the journey of Master Then (Mr. Then and Mrs. Then) from Mường Earth to Mường Heaven, through the gates to offer offerings and pray for the best things for the people to have good health and a long life. live a prosperous, happy life. Mường Heaven is the residence of gods, with supernatural powers, not everyone has enough ability to reach Mường Heaven. In Mường Earth, only Then masters have special abilities and can go to Mường Heaven. Therefore, Master Then is the character connecting the upper world (the gods) with the human world. Depending on the purpose, Master Then will set up an offering tray and recite prayers in front of the altar of Then, ancestors, or different local gods. In the process of performing Then rituals, Then masters often use props such as lute, squirrel bunches, squirrel fruit, tokens, chain gods, amulets, fish traps, yin and yang cards, drums, gongs, scrapers, spikes, bamboo sticks, etc. Classified according to the form of expression, there are Then quạt and Then tính, in which Then quạt was born earlier. Classified by content, there are Then Ky Yen and Then Festival. Each Then line, each Then region has different regulations on practices and melodies to convey the story content at each Then journey. The main rituals Then performed included offerings to cure illnesses, relieve droughts, pray for good harvests, and remove flowers. Ha Giang currently has about 60 offerings. In particular, Then Cấp Sắc is considered a cultural feature of the Tày people, Ha Giang.

EE00002675

Then is "Heaven", "Fairy", or "Sky". Then is understood as folk performance/performance art; is a profession for those who engage in worship activities, related to beliefs and spirituality, and is a type of sacred ritual, religious and spiritual activity. Then rituals are religious and cultural activities of the Tày - Nùng people performed by Then masters, to meet the spiritual cultural needs and partly the artistic needs of the people. Then is a mandatory ritual in ceremonies such as cấp sắc, praying for harvest, going to the fields, celebrating life, new rice, relieving drought, praying for peace, going to a new house, ending mourning, giving thanks, etc. In the form of performance, people divide Then rituals into two types: Then lute and Then fan; or according to the content: Then Ky Yen and Then Festival. The Then ceremony usually takes place in 1 day; In some ceremonies such as thanksgiving and honor ceremonies, the time to perform the Then ritual can last for many days. The Then singing ceremony begins the journey to invite the Jade Emperor and Then masters who have returned to their ancestors to come and perform the "Lẩu then" ceremony with offerings, wine offerings, ghost exorcism offerings, and drought relief offerings. praying for peace and then gradually developing more rituals to worship ancestors, birthday offerings, offerings to pray for peace, offerings to new houses, etc. Then music is a long performance with religious colors, narrating the journey. Master Then presented to Mường Trời to ask Then to fulfill the homeowner's wishes. In those rituals, the music of the zither, the lute, and the bell is always a constant element with many melodies and melodies appropriate to each part of the ritual.

EE00000013

Then a ritual practice indispensable in Tày, Nùng and Thái ethnic groups' spiritual life, reflects concepts about human beings, natural world and the universe (the Earth realm, the 3-layer Heaven realm). Then ceremonies describe a journey in which Then Master (Male/Female) controls ghost soldiers travelling from the Earth realm to the Heaven realm, the residing place of the gods, to offer worshipping items and show their praying requests for peace, bad luck relief, illness treatment, good crops, new house inauguration, initiation/title-conferring ritual (cấp sắc), blessings and happy new year. Then Masters start the journey by singing and plucking the tính lute (two or three-string lute). Depending on worshipping purposes, Then Masters will arrange worshipping trays to pray different native Gods, among whom Ngoc Hoang is the highest God. Then Masters often use a summoning tablet, a seal, a demon-expelling sword, a yin and yang rod, a bell, a fan and items such as pork, chicken, wine, rice, fruits and votive papers to perform Then ceremonies in the believer’s house, outdoor or at Then altar of the Master’s house. While practising, Then Master wears ceremonial dress, sings the language of his ethnic group and plays the tính lute, shakes the chùm xóc nhạc (rattle-bells), waves a fan. In some ceremonies, a female dancing group will accompany. Then rituals performances express Tày, Nùng and Thái’s cultural identities, from customs to musical instruments, dance and music. Then is always transmitted orally while its rituals are being conducted, reflecting the succession between generations.

EE00002676

Lạng Sơn is considered one of the cradles of Then. Then rituals are closely associated with spiritual life, so in most religious activities of the Tày and Nùng people, there are rituals such as Then to relieve drought, Then to worship the mother, Then to pray for harvest, Then to stop mourning, Then give honor, Then give thanks, etc. The person who practices the Then ritual is called Then, men are Then Tậc, and women are Mè Then. Then is a person with roots, belonging to the then family, granted identity, and has the ability to go to the divine world and communicate with the gods. Then masters must have props to practice, helping them connect with the gods, and convey wishes and aspirations to the gods, such as exorcism swords, seals, lutes, bells, fans, etc. Then ceremonies include music and singing. Master Then uses musical instruments and sings to connect with the gods. Then rituals are held in many different spaces such as in the homes of believers, in front of Master Then's Then altar, outdoors... The space to practice Then rituals depends on the nature of the Then ceremony. The time of the Then ritual also depends on the nature of the Then, some types must be performed at night (Kỳ yên), and most Then rituals are held during the day; Some types are done in one day, some are done in many days (then grant the identity, then give thanks).

EE00002608

Then Ritual is a long-standing form of cultural and religious activity of the Tày Cao Bang people. Then are songs and dances of the ritual folk song genre, used in rituals to cure illness, relieve drought, pray for good harvests, new rice ceremonies, granting ceremonies, etc., performed by Then practitioners. During the Then ritual, Then masters use props such as lutes, squirrel beams, squirrel balls, tokens, chain gods, amulet strings, fish snares, yin and yang cards, drums, gongs, and scrapers. tarpaulins, spikes, slats, etc. Classify Then according to the form of expression, including fan Then and linear Then. Fan Then was born before nature Then. The fan Then melody is slow and long, while the linear Then has a fast and intense melody. The fan then has no musical accompaniment, but the linear then has lute, squirrel, and musical fruit accompaniment. Classify Then according to content, there are peaceful then and festive then. The peaceful Then period includes making Then, praying for peace, and wishing. Peaceful Then includes sections: earth gong, phat pang, earth spirit, grave, kitchen king, ancestors, bridging, flower praying, midwife, drought relief, council, three jewels, king, kham hai. Then festival is practiced on the occasions of praying for a good harvest, entering a new house, granting food, green rice, and Then hot pot. The Then festival includes stages: disinfection, mosaic sea, singing four seasons, "tuc bach" or "phu thu" fan, Pụt Luông (lord of agricultural gods), magic house, council, three jewels, Tam Quang market, father king,etc. In Then rituals, Then the Sắc is the most unique performance, in which Then masters express their best through dancing, acting, trance, etc. , especially then dances with delicate artistic qualities.

EE00002654

“Kin” means to eat; “Pang” means ceremony, the person attending the ceremony; “Then” refers to the gods in Mường Trời. Kin Pang Then is a festival to celebrate adopted children of the White Thai people. The ceremony is organized by Then workers to meet adopted children to give thanks and celebrate Then's fate. The ritual takes place in early spring (from before the full moon in January to before the full moon in March every year), and is held once every 3 years. Mr. Then himself chose a specific day for his adopted children to know and attend. The day of the Kin Pang Then ceremony must be before the full moon day of the first lunar month. The pang tree is the center of ceremonies and is elaborately decorated. The Then altar and offering tray include many items. On the evening of the first day, Master Then prepared the pan cai offering tray to worship Then, including sticky rice, paddy, betel and areca, wine, eggs, steamed sticky rice, salt, white cloth, cotton thread, silver bracelet, incense, lamp, money, water, flowers, etc. Master Then wears traditional costumes to worship at the Then altar. Báo Khỏa plays the piano, Sao Chay assists him and shakes the bell. After performing the purification and blessing ceremony, Mr. Then asked the patriarch for permission to perform the ceremony. Master Then went to Then village to invite Then to come down and play, celebrate the adopted children's ceremony, and bless the adopted children with good health, prosperous business, and good harvests. After offering offerings to Then, Master Then, Sao Chay, Báo Khỏa, and their adopted children became monks. The next morning, the Then family slaughtered chickens, and pigs, and prepared sticky rice for the offering ceremony. One offering tray is placed at the ancestral worship place (clọ hóng) and one offering tray is placed at the Then altar (hỉnh một). In case Then's parents are still alive, they must ask Then's father to make offerings to their ancestors at the Clọ hóng pavilion. After worshiping the ancestors, Master Then made offerings to each adopted child. The adopted child's offerings include chicken, wine, sticky rice, Chung cake, and 1 piece of white cloth, arranged on separate trays. During the worshiping ceremony, Mr. Then worshiped while resting, drinking wine, drinking water, smoking, and singing back and forth with Báo Khỏa and Sao Chay. After offering offerings to the adopted children, Master Then and Sao Chay performed folk games and had fun with the adopted children.