In order to thoroughly implement COVID-19 prevention and control measures, the Vietnamese Embassy in Canada held a virtual ceremony to commemorate Hung Kings - the legendary ancestors of Vietnam – for Vietnamese people living across Canada on April 17.

Ambassador Pham Cao Phong offers incense in commemoration of Hung Kings at Vietnam House in Canada. Photo: Vietnamese Embassy in Canada

Every year, activities worshipping Lac Long Quan and Au Co take place ahead of the death anniversary of the Hung Kings, believed to be the very first founders of Vietnam, on the 10th day of the third lunar month.

This year, due to the pandemic, the worship ceremony was held online and synchronously held in Ottawa, Vancounver, Toronto, Montreal and Saskatchewan, reported VNA.

After offered incense in commemoration of Hung Kings at Vietnam House in in the Canadian capital Ottawa, Vietnamese Ambassador to Canada Pham Cao Phong then highlighted the origin and significance of Hung Kings worship.

The Vietnamese community in Canada expressed their wish that Vietnamese culture will spread more broadly, so that the world will know Vietnam as not only the resilient people in the struggles for national liberation, but also the people of intelligence, kindness and solidarity.

The event was synchronously held in Ottawa, Vancounver, Toronto, Montreal and Saskatchewan.

The Hung Kings are commemorated each year on the 10th day of the third lunar month, which falls on April 21 this year, as an occasion for the nation to express gratitude to the ancestors.

Legend has it that Lac Long Quan (real name Sung Lam, son of Kinh Duong Vuong and Than Long Nu) married Au Co (the fairy daughter of De Lai). Au Co then went on to give birth to a pouch filled with one hundred eggs, which soon hatched into a hundred sons. However, soon thereafter, Lac Long Quan and Au Co separated. Lac Long Quan went to the coast with 50 of the children, while Au Co went to the highlands with the rest.

Their eldest son was made king, who named the country Van Lang and set up the capital in Phong Chau (modern-day Viet Tri city in Phu Tho province), beginning the 18 generations of the Hung Kings.

The kings chose Nghia Linh Mountain, the highest in the region, to perform rituals devoted to rice and sun deities to pray for healthy crops.

To honour their great contributions, a complex of temples dedicated to them was built on Nghia Linh Mountain, and the 10th day of the third lunar month serves as the national commemorative anniversary for the kings.

The worship of the Hung Kings, closely related to the ancestral worship traditions of most Vietnamese families, was recognised as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2012./.

Hannah Nguyen