The KITCHEN GOD’s Petition
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HUNG NGUYEN MANH1
If the Kitchen God’s Tết Day is a chinese cultural feature, that somewhat influences the other countries in the area, then, the Kitchen God’s petition is a typically cultural product of Vietnam.
The Kitchen God’s Petition is a type of folklore, using the lampoonery style and used for lampooning and reflecting the social insecurities that have occurred in the year that has just gone by.
The Kitchen God’s Petition is often published on the first page of Spring issues since the (latinized) national language began to be developed. The Petition which the Kitchen God used to “report” to the people, before flying back to Heaven, often describes and expresses the everlasting tragic social situations.
Is it true that the psychological reaction to a society, filled with injustices, constitutes the basic material of the petition, and there is only the lampoonery style, so easy to understand, that could be used for spreading the information to the broad masses?
The Kitchen not only appears through the image of a presenter, presenting a petition to the celestial court, but has been also cartooned on magazines to contribute to his reflecting concretely the angular situation of “this world”.
Contributing to the search for the historical source of this type of folkloric literature, we hereafter try to quote the poem entitled: “See the Kitchen God off” by author Nguyễn Văn Huề (1)
Author Nguyễn Văn Huề is a teacher living at Cố Đô village (Kiều Mộc district i.e the old Hoài Đức district) toward the beginning of this century. He was the First Laureate in the “Hương” (provincial academic examination) examination in the year of the Cat (Quý Mão – 1903), and got a pass in the D.E.P.S.I (Superior degree in elementary education) in the year of the Dog, then he went back to his home village to teach school.
Being an upright man with a wide knowledge and being a good poet, he was well loved and respected by his fellow-villagers.
For that reason, every year when Tết approaches, many people used to come to see him and ask him to write parallel sentences for them to display in front of their houses. One year, on the 23rd day of the last lunar month – i.e. the day people see the Kitchen God off – some people came to ask him for parallel sentences, and there was among those people the district chief – a mandarin well-known for his greediness and ignorance. Author Huề made offerings to the Kitchen God, then respectfully declaimed loudly the following poem:
“You’re going to be in attendance on the Jade Emperor tonight.
Please, for the world’s sake, report the following matters.
Why are dogs allowed to bite poor people.
How come beautiful women are handled roughly?
While debased people show their outrageous make-up,
And shameless thick-skinned chaps dress themselves up in mandarinal attire …
Well, such are ways of the world!
Please don’t report too exaggeratedly in front of the heavenly court.”
NOTE:
1 Associate Professor HUNG NGUYEN MANH, Doctor in Phylosophy of History.
2 According to NGUYỄN ĐÌNH KHANG – Poem to “See the Kitchen God off” – Railway General Department’s Magazine – Spring of the year of the Buffalo (Đinh Sửu) 1997 – P. 16.
BAN TU THU
01 /2020
NOTE:
◊ Source: Vietnamese Lunar New Year – Major Festival – Asso. Prof. HUNG NGUYEN MANH, Doctor of Phylosophy in History.
◊ Bold text and sepia images has been set by Ban Tu Thu – thanhdiavietnamhoc.com
SEE ALSO:
◊ From Sketches in early 20th century to traditional rituals and festival.
◊ Signification of the term “Tết”
◊ Lunar New Year Festival
◊ Concerns of PROVIDENT PEOPLE – Concerns for KITCHEN and CAKES
◊ Concerns of PROVIDENT PEOPLE – Concerns for MARKETING – Section 1
◊ Concerns of PROVIDENT PEOPLE – Concerns for MARKETING – Section 2
◊ Concerns of PROVIDENT PEOPLE – Concerns for Dept payment
◊ In SOUTHERN PART of the COUNTRY: a HOST of PARALLEL CONCERNS
◊ The tray of Five fruits
◊ The Arrival of New Year
◊ SPRING SCROLLS – Section 1
◊ The Cult of The Deities of the Kitchen – Section 1
◊ The Cult of The Deities of the Kitchen – Section 2
◊ The Cult of The Deities of the Kitchen – Section 3
◊ Vietnam Lunar New Year – vi-VersiGoo
◊ etc.