Trung Lap communal house.

In Vietnamese people’s belief, Ha Ba is the protective deity of rivers. He is like Tho Cong (Earth God), who guards the land. There is an old saying “land has Tho Cong, river has Ha Ba). Few people in Bac Giang learnt about Ha Ba worshipping. Therefore, the River God worshipping at Trung Lap communal house in Thai Dao commune becomes unique among the province’s relic sites.

The Trung Lap communal house relic site (aka Gom communal house) used to belong to Trung Lap commune, Phuong Nhon district. Its Vac and Gom villages were located in a lowland area, which houses the crossing section receiving water to flow into the Luc Nam river.

There are vestiges of a canal in the field in front of the communal house. As local people go fishing in the rivers as their livelihoods every day, the worshipping of the deity managing the river is meant to protect them. Under the feudal dynasties, the Gods worshipped in the communal house were conferred with titles, as it occurred for the Ha Ba in Trung Lap communal house in the sixth year of the Thieu Tri dynasty on November 15, 1846; the third and 33rd year of Tu Duc Dynasty (1850 and 1870); the second year of Dong Khanh dynasty (1887); the third year of the Duy Tan dynasty (1909); the ninth year of the Khai Dinh dynasty (1924).

The architecture, documents and relic items in the communal house suggested that Trung Lap communal house was first built in the Le Trung Hung dynasty in the 18th century and has been upgraded several times. It comprises two front buildings and a back house. The communal house has a strong structure, featuring curly knife-shaped roofs and the traditional carving art of Vietnamese people.

The title conferred to Ha Ba God

The front building has three compartments and two lean-tos, which have been upgraded, yet, kept their ancient design. The back house has one compartment and two lean-tos with four original curly knife-shaped roofs.

In Trung Lap communal house, there are a number of ancient items, such as an incense-burner, a palanquin, and wooden worshipping objects bearing historical, cultural and scientific values. The building hosts local cultural activities and festivals. The village’s annual festival takes place on the 10th day of the first lunar month, featuring palanquin rituals and folk games. During the festival, villagers gather around the Mat water well (or Mother breast well) to bring water to the communal house for the ritual. The communal house was recognized as a provincial historical site in 2017.

Dong Ngoc Duong