Channeling: A medium dances to the melody of chau van singing to honour Mother Goddesses. Mediums are a special practice of the Mother Goddess religions of Southeast Asia, according to a recent workshop in the northern province of Nam Dinh. — VNS Photo Viet Thanh

NAM DINH (VNS)— The Mother Goddesses religion plays an important role in the spiritual life of Vietnamese people and others in some areas in Southeast Asia, according to participants at a recent workshop in the northern province of Nam Dinh.

The two-day workshop, which ended on Sunday, drew together about 300 scholars, researchers and cultural workers as well as representatives from communities practising the religion.

All the speakers shared the same opinion that the religion was a popular belief in all ethnic communities in Viet Nam and others in wet-rice cultivation areas in the region.

The religion pays particular respect to the creative and productive power of the Divine Mother in nature, similar to the Earth Mother in Stone-Age Western religion. It uses the figure of the Mother in a myriad forms to pray for luck and protection and parallels a main feature of Vietnamese life – appreciation of the the value and the role of women in the family and community life.

Professor Ngo Duc Thinh, director of Viet Nam Belief Culture Research and Preservation Centre in Ha Noi, noted that the religion had become a national development in Viet Nam in recent centuries.

The belief considers the natural world and humans as a unified and identical entity, he said, in which the Mother of human beings is also "Mother of Nature".

Mother worship can appear in many forms. There are Rain Mother, Cloud Mother, Thunder Mother, Lightning Mother, and mothers of the five basic elements – Metal, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth.

Thinh said there were also nature controllers such as the Heavenly Mother controlling the skies, the Earth Mother controlling all the land, the Water Mother controlling rivers, streams and the seas – and the Mountain Mother who looks after the mountains and forests.

The symbolic Mother can protect people and bring good fortune. This is expressed at many festivals and in legends and customs.

The Mother also includes earthly figures such as Mother Au Co, the legendary Mountain Fairy whose children were the progenitors of the Vietnamese people. Her husband was the Dragon King Lac Long Quan.

This helps explain why the religion is so nationalistic. Not only does it honour Au Co, but it also takes in the historic Trung sisters who fought the Chinese invaders on elephant back in AD 43 and defeated them.

It also includes national heroine Lady Trieu who defeated the northern invaders in 248. It is this association with the primaeval Mother Goddess and historic or legendary female heroines and outstanding characters that has helped give the Vietnamese their strong brand of nationalism and individual brand of spirituality.

It is a spirituality that exists in its own temples beside the introduced religions of Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism.

Thinh said that unlike other beliefs, the Mother worshipping religion did not dwell on guiding people in the world after death, but tended to focus on the real world in which people were living in – and their needs for health, wealth and prosperity.

"It is an active way of thinking, similar to realistic ideology of Vietnamese people," he said.

Duong Van Kha, an official from the Government's Religious Department, said the religion needed to be preserved and developed to maintain positive Vietnamese cultural values.

However, he said it was necessary to prevent some opportunists from exploiting the religion for personal profit and harming national development and political stability.

Kha said that the religion existed throughout the nation, yet local authorities often paid little attention to it. He claimed this had occasionally resulted in disorder and even chaos at local festivals.

At the workshop, many speakers raised concerns about the local art of chau van, a kind of spiritual ritual combining folk singing, dancing – and hau dong (mediumship) involving women mediums going into public trances.

Chau van is popular in northern Viet Nam but Nam Dinh Province is considered its birthplace. Some people consider the practices superstitious.

"I don't think so," said Le Thi Minh Ly, an official from the culture ministry. "We should follow the example of South Korea, where similar cults have been monitored to limit any negative practices and to enhance people's awareness of the deeper meanings of the religion. This would enable us to seek UNESCO recognition of the art as intangible cultural heritage."

Pham Cao Phong, general secretary of Viet Nam National Commission for UNESCO, said the UN cultural agency's strict requirements on a clear and scientific documentation of the practice and custom would have to be satisfied.

This should include old versions of songs and clear distinction between old and transformed versions of the rituals.

Phong said serious research on the Mother Goddess religion would positively affect the art of chau van, providing that researchers were able to prove that features of the religion in Viet Nam were different to those that had evolved in neighbouring countries.

According to statistics from the culture ministry, Nam Dinh possesses 287 temples and vestiges relating to the Mother Goddess religion. It is estimated that there are about 600 artistes practising the rituals in the province, including 246 mediums, 245 cung van (chau van singers) and 162 musical instrumentalists.

The art form was created during the Tran dynasty (1225-1400) and has became popular at festivals and rituals. It is performed at temples and pagodas as people believe it is the best way to connect to the Mother Goddesses. — VNS