Wife of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Tran Nguyet Thu, accompanied wife of the Lao PM, Naly Sisoulith and wife of the Thai PM, Naraporn Chan-o-chan to visit the museum while their spouses are busy on the final day of the GMS-6 Summit and the 10th Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam (CLV-10) Development Triangle Summit.
The ladies were introduced about the history of the museum and told about great stories of Vietnamese women in wartime as well as in peacetime. They also learnt about the life of local women through exhibitions of roles of women in family, women in history, and women’s costumes of various ethnic minority groups.
The Thai and Lao ladies expressed their respect for the good virtues of Vietnamese women and their contribution throughout the country’s history. They also raised many questions about the uniqueness of Vietnamese women in different regions.
After their tour around the museum, the ladies enjoyed a performance of “chau van”, the ritual music and singing, part of the practices related to the Viet beliefs in the Mother Goddesses of Three Realms which was inscribed on the Representative List of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016.
The worshipping of the Mother Goddesses contributes to the appreciation of women and their roles in society. The Mother Goddesses include Lieu Hanh (a nymph who descended to earth, lived as a human and became a Buddhist nun) referred to as the Mother of the World, and other spirits considered legendary heroes.
The traditional practice involves daily worship and participation in ceremonies, rituals like the spirit possession ritual and festivals such as Phu Day that take place at temples dedicated to the Mother Goddesses. These activities associated with the practice help to maintain part of the community’s history, cultural heritage and identity with some aspects incorporating traditional costumes, music and dance.
