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The custom of worshiping historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in 1416 in Thanh Hoa - 6


Meaning. These are the historical, social and cultural conditions that contributed to the emergence and birth of this worship custom.

In addition, we also refer to and apply some other theories to clarify the contents related to the thesis topic such as the research theory on the genre of legends in the research works of author Tran Thi An [2] and the genre bases to analyze legends - chains, legends of a historical nature in the Lam Son legend group currently circulating locally with content related to the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath in 1416. Here, "through legends, the storyteller wants to connect nature with historical characters and events and through that to express the spiritual need to honor history, reminding the next generation of pride in national traditions" [2, p. 54]. At the same time, the legends are closely linked to the system of ritual practices of the Lung Nhai oath characters in Thanh Hoa, showing us the dense historical character and local community character in the performance of historical legends. This is also evidence explaining why some non-Thanh Hoa local characters in the list of participants in the oath-taking ceremony such as Nguyen Trai, Bui Quoc Hung, and Luu Nhan Chu were not highly sanctified or worshiped as main deities at the relics, but only a few people were consorted with the title, as in the case of the meritorious mandarin Nguyen Trai.

Thus, the theoretical foundation that we apply to clarify the research problem in the thesis is the structural-functional theory of foreign scholars and the arguments on the sanctification of historical figures into worshiped figures; the research theory on the genre of legends and its relationship to the spread of religious practices; the socio-cultural premises for the emergence and shaping of the worship of historical figures have been summarized and proven by domestic researchers. We consider this to be the appropriate path and approach to learn and correctly perceive the worship of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in Thanh Hoa.


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1.3. Overview of the research area

In Thanh Hoa, the traces of the Lam Son uprising are concentrated in many areas in the province, of which the most popular and dense are in the mountainous areas of the West of Thanh Hoa province and around the Lam Son land, the homeland of Le Thai To. Because these are the places that bear the marks of activities in the early stages, the period of resistance, hardships of the Lam Son insurgents in Thanh Hoa. According to historical documents, in the 10 years of the uprising against the invading Ming army, nearly two-thirds of the time the Lam Son insurgents operated in the mountainous areas of the West of Thanh Hoa province and the area around Lam Son today. That shows that the material traces of this uprising are highly concentrated, mainly in the areas where the battles, retreats, resistances, and attacks of the Lam Son insurgents took place in Thanh Hoa.

The custom of worshiping historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in 1416 in Thanh Hoa - 6

Based on the recording of ritual practices related to commemoration, honor and worship of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in areas and regions affected by the Lam Son uprising in Thanh Hoa today. The researcher focused on 11 districts: Tho Xuan, Ngoc Lac, Thuong Xuan, Lang Chanh, Ba Thuoc, Vinh Loc, Dong Son, Hoang Hoa, Thanh Hoa City, Nong Cong, Tinh Gia. These are areas directly related to the events of the Lam Son uprising in Thanh Hoa and some places that are considered the hometowns and clans of the figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath.

The core area of ​​the research area is identified as the area now belonging to the districts of Ngoc Lac, Lang Chanh, Ba Thuoc, Thuong Xuan and Tho Xuan. With the focal point being the Lam Son area, where the famous Lam Kinh relic is located. This is also the hometown of King Le Thai To and many other figures on the list of participants in the Lung Nhai oath such as Nguyen Than, Le Van An, Le Van Linh... In these areas, it is possible to see a system of cultural heritage related to historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath such as legends, myths, festivals, rituals, customs, practices, relics associated with the theme of the Lam Son uprising, with the national hero Le Loi and the figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath. These are the signs


The traces of worship and rituals in the community about the events and characters of the Lam Son uprising in general, and the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath in particular, spread across most of the mountainous districts in the West of Thanh Hoa province such as Ngoc Lac, Lang Chanh, Ba Thuoc, and Thuong Xuan. Author Vuong Anh, when researching the spread and influence of the Lam Son uprising on the lives and customs of the Thai and Muong ethnic groups in the mountainous areas in the West of Thanh Hoa province, stated that the entire districts of Tho Xuan, Thuong Xuan, Ngoc Lac, Lang Chanh, and Ba Thuoc down to the plains and coastal areas in some places of Thanh Hoa province showed the richness of the traces of legends and relics with the theme of honoring the characters and events of the Lam Son uprising, including the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath and these folk tales have created a "Lam Son legend area, popular not only among the Kinh people but also among the Muong people" [6, p. 9]. Districts such as Ba Thuoc, Lang Chanh, Thuong Xuan, Ngoc Lac, are considered to be closely associated with the Lam Son uprising in the first phase. The Lung Nhai oath ceremony took place in Me village, Ngoc Phung commune, Thuong Xuan district and today, the Lung Nhai oath ceremony memorial has been restored here to commemorate the event of Le Loi and 18 characters who swore to destroy the enemy and save the country. Ngoc Lac district is the hometown of the meritorious mandarin Le Lai, who had the merit of exchanging his robe to save the king in the 1419 event and became an immortal symbol of loyalty. In Le Lai's hometown, there are two famous relics: Tep temple worshiping Trung Tuc Vuong and Lai temple worshiping King Le Thai To in Minh Son commune, Ngoc Lac district. Going up to Ba Thuoc and Lang Chanh districts, the traces of worshiping the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath ceremony here are mainly associated with the death anniversary of King Le Thai To such as the temple worshiping Le Loi in Nang Cat village, Tri Nang commune; Tien Pua Temple (also known as King Temple) in Giao Thien Commune (Lang Chanh District). And especially the Cam Muong Festival held on August 22 every year by the Thai Muong Ky people in the Van Nho and Ky Tan districts of Ba Thuoc District. It can be said that the religious activities of worshiping the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath here are mainly associated with the lives of the Thai and Muong ethnic groups.


From the Lam Son center, the area of ​​worship and commemoration of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath also spread to some midland, plain and coastal areas in Thanh Hoa. Located on the banks of the Ma River, Kim Boi commune, Vinh Ninh district (now Vinh Hoa commune, Vinh Loc district) was the hometown of meritorious mandarin Trinh Kha, today there are still relics worshiping him locally. This is the area adjacent to Tay Do citadel during the Lam Son uprising and as the crow flies, it is also close to Le Loi's headquarters in Lam Son.

Some plain areas of the province such as Dong Son, Nong Cong, Thanh Hoa City also have many important relics worshiping historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath, typically the Thai Mieu of the Later Le Dynasty; the relics worshiping Le Loi and the Dam Le dukes (the main line of King Le Thai To changed to the Dam family name) in Thanh Hoa City. These were originally lands granted to meritorious mandarins and righteous men of the previous Le Dynasty and later this place was also the hometown of the queens of the Later Le Dynasty. Events such as the relocation of Hoang Duc Palace in Thang Long to Kieu Dai village (now Bo Ve ward) in Thanh Hoa City to worship the kings and queens of the Le Dynasty after Lam Kinh was destroyed were mentioned in historical documents, further proving the position of the "foreign relatives" land of the dynasty towards the figures of the previous dynasty, including Thai To Cao Hoang De Le Loi.

In Nong Cong district, where there are many relics worshiping historical figures of the Lam Son uprising in general such as Dinh Liet and Do Bi, there are also relics worshiping historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath, typically Vo Uy and Le Hiem. In fact, this is the land of the Le dynasty for the meritorious mandarins after the conferment of ranks and rewards by King Le Thai To after his accession to the throne. Documents such as Lam Son Thuc Luc show that Le Hiem and Vo Uy were originally from Muong, Le Hiem was originally from Ngoc Chau village, Lam Son commune, now Kien Tho commune, Ngoc Lac district, Thanh Hoa province. Vo Uy was from Thu Menh village, Lam Son commune, a meritorious mandarin who died in the Lam Son uprising. Later, his descendants were highly respected by Le Thanh Tong and were granted a very large fief in Ngoc Uyen village, Tan Phuc commune, Nong Cong district. By the time of Le Trung Hung, the Vo Uy family had become


a powerful family not only in the Nong Cong area but also in the entire Thanh Hoa province with its estates extending to Yen Dinh, Vinh Loc, Hoang Hoa, Nga Son, Hau Loc and many other places in the province. With a system of temples, tombs, communal houses, and village halls related to the worship of Vo Uy and Le Hiem, concentrated in Tan Phuc commune, Nong Cong district. It can be said that this is one of the administrative areas with the highest density of relics worshiping the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath in Thanh Hoa province.

Hoang Hoa and Nong Cong districts are also localities that still bear traces of worshiping the meritorious mandarin Le Lai in many communes in the area such as Hoang Hai, Hoang Tien (Hoang Hoa), Trung Y (Nong Cong), and worshiping the Lung Nhai oath-taking figure Le Lieu in Hoang Son commune (Hoang Hoa). This was originally the land where Le Lai's rather famous grandson, who later became a meritorious mandarin of the early Le dynasty, Le Niem, built his career. Under the reign of Le Thanh Tong, the Le Lai clan in Hoang Hai commune became a powerful clan, having great influence on the northeastern coastal region of Thanh Hoa province. The meritorious mandarin Le Lieu's hometown was also determined not to be in Hoang Hoa but to be from what is now Xuan Thang commune, Tho Xuan district. He also sacrificed himself early in the Lam Son uprising period. Although his name was on the list of participants in the Lung Nhai oath-taking in 1416, there are very few documents recording his activities in the Lam Son uprising. Based on the family genealogy established in 1883 under King Tu Duc and kept at the church in Ban Dinh village, Hoang Son commune, Hoang Hoa district, it shows that at least by the Nguyen Dynasty, Le Lieu's descendants were present and settled in the Hoang Hoa area today.

Located in the south of the province, Quan Noi village, Hai Hoa commune (Tinh Gia) is the hometown of the descendants of the two founding heroes of the early Le dynasty, the two Lung Nhai heroes Le Truong Loi and Le Truong Chien. Like Vo Uy, Truong Loi and Truong Chien were originally from Thu Menh village, Kha Lam road (now Xuan Thien commune, Tho Xuan district). Participating in the uprising with Le Loi very early, official historical documents describe Truong Loi as being close to the king like a family member, assigned to plow and produce in the Le Loi family. After the Lam Son uprising, the descendants of the two men were


The Le Dynasty granted land and land reclamation and settlement in Hai Hoa commune, Tinh Gia district today.

Thus, it can be said that the traces of worship of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath are evenly distributed in localities throughout Thanh Hoa province, from the western mountainous region of the province down to the plains and some coastal districts such as Hoang Hoa, Tinh Gia. These traces of worship are highly concentrated in Lam Son land, the former headquarters of Lam Son army. Regarding the hometowns of the figures, although documents have confirmed the actual origins of the figures based on the investigation and grading of historical information. However, in the thesis topic, the researcher mainly focuses on research in the areas where religious practices related to the figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in Thanh Hoa have been recorded, which is the scope of 11 districts presented above.

Summary

With the aim of establishing a theoretical foundation as a basis for research, in chapter 1, the researcher focused on issues of overview of the research situation, theoretical basis and overview of the research area.

Based on the systematization of documents, the overall recognition and evaluation of published works, records of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath from the historical and cultural perspective, the researcher realized that: although there have been many books discussing the Lung Nhai oath and historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath from many perspectives, discussing the beliefs and worship of the figures participating in this historical oath is completely new. Previous studies have not yet systematically and comprehensively reflected the worship of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in Thanh Hoa, especially the development of this worship in Thanh Hoa, which is the place where the Lam Son uprising started as well as the place where the Lung Nhai oath took place in history. These have inspired the researcher to choose and identify the issues in the thesis content that the researcher needs and will focus on solving, thereby contributing valuable information in terms of scientific and practical cognition.


The thesis clarifies the concepts of beliefs, worship customs, historical figures, and the worship customs of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath. It identifies this worship custom as a part of the cultural life of the local community, which has arisen, existed and developed through historical periods with the main content being to express the honor of historical figures of the Lam Son uprising in general and historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in particular.

Based on the stance of structural-functional theorists, applied in the thesis topic, the thesis approaches the worship of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in Thanh Hoa as a "cultural phenomenon of a comprehensive nature" with the elements of cultural heritage and the worship system that have been practiced regularly and sustainably. Between the elements such as institutions, rituals, and customs that undertake different functions but have mutual influence and influence on each other, creating the phenomenon of worshiping historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in Thanh Hoa. At the same time, from the approach to the arguments of the sanctification of historical figures of domestic researchers, it helps the PhD student clearly perceive the role and influence of the figures in the cultural life of the community as well as the attitudes and behaviors of the state and the community towards the worship custom.

In Thanh Hoa, the honoring and worshiping of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath has become a cultural tradition and has entered the religious life of the people for a long time. After more than 600 years, the heroic and tragic echoes of the Lam Son uprising associated with the historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in 1416 still remain in the memories and feelings of the local people in Thanh Hoa. And it has left behind a system of relics, festivals, rituals, performances and rich customs and practices, many of which have themes related to the honoring of the figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath. Therefore, the researcher studies the areas that were once the operating areas of the Lam Son uprising in Thanh Hoa and the hometowns and families of these historical figures to clarify the basis of formation and characteristics of religious activities associated with the worship of historical figures participating in the Lung Nhai oath in Thanh Hoa.


Chapter 2

HISTORICAL FIGURE PARTICIPANTS IN THE LUNG NHAI VALLEY OATH IN 1416

2.1. Portraits of characters through literature

From historical sources, we can see that the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath were real historical figures and heroes fighting against the Ming invaders in the 15th century. These characters participated in the Lam Son uprising with Le Loi from the beginning in the Lung Nhai oath event in 1416, which was recorded in historical books. They all had clear names and backgrounds, even the date of arrival in Lam Son, the date of participation in the oath, the order in the oath ceremony, their achievements and the date of death were all mentioned quite specifically. In terms of hometown, of the 19 characters participating in the oath, 16 were definitely from Thanh Hoa, only 3 came from other places to join the uprising, namely Nguyen Trai, Bui Quoc Hung and Luu Nhan Chu [144, p. 267].

After the Lam Son uprising, some characters even became pillars of the court, participating in political activities throughout the reigns of the Le So kings such as Le Van An, Le Van Linh, Trinh Kha, Nguyen Than, Nguyen Trai, Bui Quoc Hung, Luu Nhan Chu... Throughout more than 10 years of "tasting honey and lying on thorns" with Le Loi raising the flag of uprising, the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath were awarded ranks and rewards by the Le So court, most of whom were named among those who were awarded the meritorious mandarin rank in the 2nd year of Thuan Thien (1429) and even the implementation of "policy for meritorious people" for the Lam Son uprising characters in general, and the characters participating in the Lung Nhai oath in particular, was carried out in many stages. Official history recorded that there were 3 stages of awarding ranks and rewards in February 1428, March 1428 and May 1429, respectively. In the first phase (February 1428), it was also clearly stated that "ranks were given to soldiers in the cavalry because of their diligence and hard work during the days in Lung Nhai" [142, p. 234]. The characters who sacrificed before the Lam Son uprising won victory such as Le Lai, Le Lieu, Le Nanh, Dinh Lan, Vo Uy or the cases of injustice due to being framed such as Nguyen Trai, Luu Nhan Chu, Trinh Kha... were all corrected, posthumously awarded, and returned by the later kings of the Le So dynasty.

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