|
 Le Mat Village
belongs to the Viet Hung Commune, Gia Lam District, Hanoi.
The Le Mat Village Festival is held annually on the 23rd
of the third month of the lunar calendar.
In the early morning of the 23rd
day of the third month, representatives of the 13 camps at
the west of the Ancient Capital of Thang Long carry 13
trays of food over their heads from capital to the Le Mat
Village. At the beginning
of the festival, water and carp processions are staged and
brought to the Thanh Communal House. This ritual reminds
the present generation of the heroic man's accomplishments
of exploiting and bringing about agriculture to the
village. A snake act is then performed in the yard of the
communal house. The snake (made of bamboo taped with
cloth) symbolizes the water-monster species that has been
bitten by a youth's power and will.
The music of this act is an octet and
the sound of the drummer's double rhythm is haunting. The
Le Mat Village Festival provides the chance for children
in the village, and the others who have reclaimed this
ancient wasteland in the city, to meet and retell the
history of the establishment of the village. The challenge
and difficulty that was encountered in the establishment
of the village is expressed in the sincere homage of the
ancestors of the village.
In addition to the ceremony, the Le Mat
people have a special talent for catching snakes. While
attending the Le Mat Village Festival, guests can be
offered a cup of snake wine with 3 or 5 snakes inside.
|
