Agriculture always plays an important role in Vietnam’s national economy. All Kings of the past dynasties attached great importance to promoting agricultural production.
Le Tich Dien (Ploughing Ceremonial Festival) was held in the capital every spring. The King ploughed a piece of field to pray to Shennong for good weather and a bumper harvest.
According to legend, the Ploughing Ceremonial Festival originates from China. Shennong, also called Yan Emperor, was the god who invented farming in the mythology of ancient China. He taught people how to cultivate crops and to establish markets for trading. So they called him Shennong, which means the god of farming.
In Vietnam, the first Le Tich Dien was held in 987 AD, during the reign of King Le Dai Hanh in the then capital of Hoa Lu. The king, himself acted as master of the ceremony and went down to the field to plough. After the king ploughed three furrows, all mandarins followed him to the field. Each of them ploughed five, seven or nine furrows depending on their grades.
Kings of the following dynasties all maintained this practice and Le Tich Dien became an important ceremonial festival of the royal court.
Le Tich Dien was held throughout the Ly, Tran and Le dynasties to promote agricultural production. In 1484, King Le Thanh Tong built a Dan Tien Nong in HOang Mai village on the outskirts of Thang Long capital. The king went there every spring to pray for Shennong and ploughed the field. Thanks to this agricultural promotion policy, Vietnam’s economy in this period developed vigorously and people became more prosperous.
The Nguyen dynasty (1802-1945) considered Le Tich Dien one of the three most important ceremonies. King Minh Mang who was known as the King of Farmers held Le Tich Dien in a stately manner.
The Tich Dien compound was built within the imperial city of Hue in front of Phu Xuan village’s communal house (which now belongs to Tay Loc ward) on an area of about 6 ha.
After the Tich Dien ceremony in the imperial city, people from all parts of the country held the Le Xuong Dong or Ploughing the Field ceremony.
Le Tich Dien was the most important ceremony of the year during the feudal times. It was also an opportunity for kings, mandarins and lords to undertand the hard work of farmers.
Nowaday, the Tich Dien compound in Hue no longer exists. However, many villages in Thua Thien- Hue still hold the ploughing ceremony every year to mark the ancient Tich Dien ceremonial festival.
Particularly in 2009 and 2010, with the support from the Government, Tich Dien was held in Doi Son, Duy Tien district, Ha Nam province where the first ceremony was held by King Le Dai Hanh in 987AD. It was attended by State President Nguyen Minh Triet and other officials of ministries and state agencies.
Le Tich Dien or Ploughing Ceremonial Festival was a traditional farming practice that has greatly impacted on agricultural production in Vietnam.
(VOV)
