The worship of Mother Goddess Lieu Hanh in Phu Giay through Han Nom documents

exploiting the source of the royal decree to reinforce this assertion. So is there or is there not a motif of the Mother's conduct, which originated from a real person who died a sacred death, and was later mythologized to carry miraculous elements. And, is this a trend of "deification" of humans alongside the trend of anthropomorphizing gods in traditional Vietnamese beliefs? These are small questions that the researcher also raised and tried to find answers to in this thesis?

In his Master's thesis in Han Nom, Hanoi National University, with the topic of the text of the New Genealogy and its relationship with the legends , successfully defended in 2011, Le Tung Lam took great pains to review the history of research and translation of the New Genealogy, including the story of Van Cat Goddess. Through that, a number of issues of the text and the transmission of this text were clarified. By collecting documents according to the research orientation, the author initially compiled 29 legend texts related to Van Cat Goddess. After analyzing the text, the author summarized the image and conduct of the Holy Mother Lieu Hanh through the New Genealogy and the legends from the following perspectives: title, name in heaven, secular name and birth, divine name, date of birth and date of death, hometown, parents, siblings, husband and children... and made a rather interesting comment:

Doan Thi Diem collected many folk tales to write Van Cat Than Nu following the motif of a talented man and a beautiful woman. The story had a strong influence, and when it penetrated into all the countryside, it was changed to suit the new conditions. And, to unify the divine power and pray for the country's long-term fortune, the court issued an edict and built a temple to bring it to international status. Accordingly, the influence of the Mother Goddess worship grew stronger and stronger... [37].

However, it is regrettable that when examining the text of Van Cat Than Nu Luc and referring to previous translations, the "traditional" interpretation unintentionally distorts the historical truth that has not yet been revealed, so in the interpretations about the birthplace of Mau Lieu Hanh, it is still considered to be in An Thai village/village, Van Cat commune, while in the sentence structure "An Thai Van Cat Thien Ban chi danh huong...", about the land relationship between Van Cat and An Thai at the time of the Van Cat Than Nu Luc in the Truyen Ky Tan Pha carved in the 10th year of Gia Long (1811), Van Cat is a village of An Thai commune. Meanwhile, many related legends published by the author himself in the appendix describe

Maybe you are interested!

Yes, at that time, Van Cat village belonged to An Thai commune. And, the fact that some documents recorded that in the 4th year of Gia Long (1805), An Thai commune was renamed Tien Huong commune was also implicitly acknowledged, but in reality, this was a historical story at the end of Thieu Tri dynasty - the beginning of Tu Duc dynasty. Regarding this issue, the researcher would like to clarify in chapter 3 when referring to the historical changes in the Ke Giay area.

Another significant contribution of this thesis is that the author has published many different translations of the story of Van Cat Than Nu , including Noi Dao Trang and the legends: AE.A2/86, AE.A2/48, recording Mau Lieu Hanh's birth from the Ly Dynasty... [37].

Perhaps, the author with the greatest contribution in laying the foundation for exploring and understanding the Mother Goddess Worship (the author of this work calls it Mother Goddess Religion) in Vietnam through Han Nom sources is Master Dinh Thi Le Huyen, with her Master's thesis in Han Nom titled Mother Goddess Religion from Han Nom sources , University of Social Sciences and Humanities, successfully defended in 2007.

This is a work that contributes to the aspect of collecting, guiding Han Nom documents and researching different versions of documents related to the Mother Goddess worship on a national scale. Through the survey of documents, the author has compiled (although only through the bibliography) 85 Han Nom document items related to the Mother Goddess worship in general through the Summary Bibliography, along with basic information about the document name, symbol, year, author, content language (summary) and notes. Particularly for the group of sacred relics, the author has also compiled 31 document units, with basic information about the document name, symbol, deity's descendant, year and author, place name where the sacred relics are stored and notes about the number of pages and characters shown on the document. Notably, this work has published a list of 220 declarations of divine records - divine decrees of village officials declared in 1938, currently kept at the Institute of Social Science Information, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, with general information on registration numbers, places of divine records and decrees, deity titles, quantity, and symbol numbers [36].

Through the synthesis of text analysis and classification of texts by type, the author has made some noteworthy comments on cultural history, specifically:

- In terms of time, the process of documenting the legend of the Mother Goddess in our country began during the Le Trung Hung period, under King Le Anh Tong (1571 - 1573), and was continued through the following dynasties.

- It is noteworthy that besides recording in Chinese characters, the birth and development of Nom writing has contributed to making it easier to propagate and popularize the Mother Goddess worship.

- Variation in Han Nom texts on Mother Goddess worship is an inevitable consequence of inconsistent interpretation (some parts are unclear, some are clear).

- The Han Nom source of documents on Mother Goddess worship directly reflects many aspects of Mother Goddess worship life... [36].

Here, let me clarify that the process of documenting the legend of the Mother Goddess in our country began during the Later Le Dynasty, under King Le Anh Tong (1571 - 1573), and was continued through the following dynasties. In fact, it was an official "documentation" carried out by the court to "adjust" some content that the court considered absurd. In addition to the positive and convenient aspects for managing the gods, this work was also a direct intervention in the diversity of folk culture, gradually turning the legends of the gods into/following a common motif as we still see today.

Besides, there are also some other works such as: Research on the writing of the Buddhist scriptures of the late 19th and early 20th centuries - Doctoral thesis in Han Nom by Tran Quang Huy [32], National Nom literature in the writing of the Buddhist scriptures of the early 20th century, Master's thesis in Han Nom by Tran Quang Huy [33], Saint Tran through the writing of the Buddhist scriptures, Master's thesis by Nguyen Thi Hien [24]... and many other works, such as those of authors Nguyen Minh San, [50, pp. 210 - 219], Chu Xuan Giao [50, pp. 237 - 276], Bui Van Tam [50, pp. 315 - 319], Nguyen Duy Hinh [50, pp. 346 - 358]...

Reviewing some research results of previous works, it can be seen that each study, with its own method, approach, theory, and explanation, will produce a "relatively unique" result but certainly not have "old problems". Temporarily combining the pieces, it will certainly create a multi-colored picture of the worship of Mother Lieu Hanh from history to the present, but there are still points that are both vague and clear. The above research achievements, especially the basic research and collection of documents, are important premises for graduate students to absorb, inherit, and develop this topic. Accordingly, it can be seen that from the collection and research of Han Nom textual studies in

In the current conditions, the historical, geographical and cultural issues of the Ke Giay area surrounding the worship of Mother Lieu Hanh need to be reinterpreted to clarify further. On this basis, combined with the exploitation of the value of Han Nom documents from a cultural perspective, specific issues, such as the name of Ke Giay, Giay prefecture, the worshiped deities, the temple and the space for practicing beliefs, related cultural and religious practices, the role of the communities of cultural creators, the status of the main temple and a number of other issues... surrounding the worship of Mother Lieu Hanh in Giay prefecture need to be interpreted and analyzed to clarify further...

1.2. Theoretical and practical basis

1.2.1. Theoretical basis

Inheriting the research results of predecessors, some research achievements that have been reviewed will be selected and absorbed by graduate students, including general theories from a geographical and cultural perspective, the mother principle in Vietnamese culture by Professor Tran Quoc Vuong; the principle of interpreting folk phonetics in studying place names by Professor Cao Xuan Hao; general theories on the development steps and forms of Mother Goddess worship in the Mother Goddess worship beliefs of Vietnamese people by Professor Ngo Duc Thinh...

The thesis uses two main approaches, namely textual studies and cultural studies. In addition, interdisciplinary approaches including history, linguistics, religious studies, etc. will be used in specific analyses.

Regarding textual studies, according to Han Nom experts, the textual theory of Russia (former Soviet Union), a country with ancient Russian textual studies, is very suitable for applying to the study of Han Nom textual studies. Currently, the Institute of Han Nom Studies is still preserving the translation of Likhatsop's textual studies, coded DT.108, which has certain reference value for those studying Han Nom textual studies.

In terms of terminology, Russian textology is “Textologhi” (French transliteration is “Textologi”). In Western Europe there is no equivalent term, it is often called textual criticism (“Critique de textes”). In China, textology has been around since the Qing Dynasty.

very developed, often identified by the term "Ben Ban Learning" (版本學).

In Vietnam, scholar Le Quy Don was also very interested in researching and criticizing texts. For example, when criticizing the Lam Son Thuc Luc text, he said

that this text was copied with many wrong words, not widely searched for copies but only arbitrarily modified, added, and removed, losing the authenticity of the original.

There are many fake books in China, and there are also fake books in Vietnam. For example: There have been many analytical opinions about the book Linh Nam Dat Su by Tran Nhat Duat, however, in our country, the field of textual studies has not been shaped to become the science of "Pseudo-Pseudoscience" like in China. "According to the Great Encyclopedia of the Soviet Union, textual studies is a branch of philology, studying written works, literary works and folk literature with the aim of critically examining, identifying and organizing texts for further research, explanation and publication" [cited in 17, p.271].

From this definition, it can be determined that Han Nom textual studies undertake the following basic tasks: "Appraising, analyzing and correcting Han Nom texts. Researching the history of development and transmission of texts to restore the original appearance when the authors of the texts created them" [17, p. 271].

From this theory, it can be affirmed that textual research is one of the indispensable operations when approaching and exploiting Han Nom texts. Within the scope of processing Han Nom documents directly related to the topic. Particularly in the case of Van Cat Than Nu Truyen in Truyen Ky Tan Pha, there are many textual problems, but fortunately, they have been analyzed and explored by a number of bibliographers. The researcher basically relied on the conclusion of scholar Tran Van Giap to choose the Van Cat Than Nu Truyen version collected in Truyen Ky Tan Pha [223], engraved by Lac Thien Duong in the 10th year of Gia Long (1811) as a base for research, comparison, and contrast to learn about the conduct of Mau Lieu Hanh and some issues related to textual research as an example of applying the theory...

Regarding the cultural approach, evolutionism and ecological anthropology in the second half of the 20th century is a theory that will be applied by the researcher to explain the formation process of the Tam Phu and Tu Phu pantheon as a working hypothesis.

Accordingly:

Ecological anthropology is concerned with the relationship between humans and the ecological environment. The natural environment includes not only plants and

animals necessary for human existence, but also rivers, lakes, climate as well as technology and other material means created by humans to use the material facilities in the environment. The basis of each culture is tools, machines, techniques, practices. Through science and technology, each culture interacts with its material environment to have food, fuel, and other forms of fuel use. Technology and culture help human communities fight against wild animals, diseases, extreme climates, etc. [44, p. 545].

Through this approach we can see:

New connections between the natural environment, technology, economics, social organization, settlement patterns, population distribution, and history. Population concentration and settlement patterns form part of the basis of Steward's analysis of paternal hunting bands and the evolution of the Pueblo Indians in the United States. He argues that population growth may have resulted from ecological stress that increased kinship organizations in Pueblo Indian areas. Population growth rates are also key to explaining the growth and disintegration of ancient states and empires [44, p. 547]…

And,

Social evolution is distinguished from biological evolution in that biological evolution involves change, competition, and selection. While social evolution exhibits similarities such as diversity, adaptation, maintenance, regeneration, and orientation. There are similarities in the whole evolutionary process but differences in content. Social evolution occurs through the conscious and unconscious of humans, based on the language and culture that humans have. Biological evolution is genetic and does not involve human consciousness [44, p. 548].

- Anthropology explains:

Interpretive anthropology takes a special approach, that is, it studies

The study of individual cases can yield profound and meaningful insights. In studying a single case in a particular society, interpretive anthropology does not consider how people behave, nor does it delve into the meanings of human actions and attitudes. Interpretivism holds that the material and social world of humans can best be understood by understanding how the people living in that society interpret themselves and understand their institutions and practices. The task of the anthropologist is to decode the interpretations of indigenous people.

Clifford Geertz was an explanatory anthropologist, but not the founder of the anthropological approach. He argued that anthropology could not be a science like physics, with laws and generalizations based on empirical and empirical data. Anthropology must be based on the concrete reality of a society, but the meaning must be understood by the people living in that society, not the subjective judgments of the researcher based on the data. For Geertz, anthropology must be based on humanistic principles, description, poetics, literature, myth, symbolism, and other characteristics of humans that distinguish them from other living beings.

Geertz's view of the importance of the individual case is not entirely new, as Boas, Malinowski, and Radcliffe-Brown had already studied a single culture in depth to illustrate the functions of institutions in human societies. Their anti-ethnocentric and pro-integration stance, their tendency to understand other cultures from the perspective of the natives, was a strong point in the anthropology of these early scholars.

Geertz's approach to understanding meaning is based on the relative interpretations of indigenous people. The core of Geertz's research is to link the processes of self-knowledge, self-awareness, and self-understanding of indigenous people with the researcher's understanding of culture.

theirs. His last book Local Knowledge deals with the particular, the concrete, the individual case, indigenous knowledge and the integration of indigenous knowledge with the researcher's understanding. Geertz's conception of anthropology can be called humanistic or explanatory, in the sense that he aims to explain cultural problems while preserving the individual specificity and complexity of human attitudes towards their cultural forms.

Traditional anthropological thinking holds that if researchers want to understand the cultures of other peoples, they must assume the role of the indigenous peoples. Malinowski argues that only by studying the reality, directly observing the cultural phenomena of indigenous peoples can one understand the meaning of their cultural elements. Geertz advocates the concept of “native interpretation” as the path to understanding a people’s culture in cultural anthropology. In this approach, the explanations gathered include versions of texts, speech, actions compared with other corresponding forms, or a set of indigenous perceptions compared with their other perceptions. Then, the perceptions and knowledge of the person being studied are combined with the indigenous perceptions of their own culture. By gathering explanations of texts, actions, symbols, social forms, and phenomena by moving from the specific to the general and vice versa, the understanding and meaning of a culture will gradually emerge. This research method is also known as “deep description”. While describing, the researcher must change back and forth from one concept to another, from one level to another, and finally lead to a deep understanding of a specific culture [44, pp. 555 - 557].

In this thesis, interpretive anthropology will be applied as a special approach, that is, it considers a number of single cultural phenomena but through which it can provide deep and meaningful insights.

- Women's religious beliefs and gender roles:

The worship of Mother Goddess Lieu Hanh in Phu Giay through Han Nom documents - 4

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