OI VIETNAM 33
MY NAME IS LE THỊ THU TRANG.
I am 33 years old, married with two
children, a shopkeeper in Hanoi, and I
am also a medium, a thanh dong.
I became a thanh dong when I was
25 years old, at the time I got married.
Before that time, I had severe insomnia
and whenever I managed to sleep I was
always dreaming of Ong Hoang Muoi
(the Tenth Prince of the Pantheon of
the Mother Goddess religion). In these
dreams, he always asked me to wear
yellow clothes. I was vaguely familiar
with Hau Dong but wasn’t interested
in it. So I started to research this belief,
and after a year of studying it, I was
paired with Ong Hoang Muoi. This
pairing didn’t happen in a temple or
pagoda, but at home. I took it more
seriously and visited temples more
frequently, and on a regular basis.
This caused a rift between me and
my husband Dao Ngọc Doanh, and we
separated for a while.
In 2013, my husband took me to a
large temple where a Hau Dong was
being performed, and while watching it
I became entranced, and my whole body
started to sway. I was possessed by my
husband’s great great great grandmother,
and entered my mind and body, ordering
me to accept my being paired with Ong
Hoang Muoi.
My teacher-master is Nguyen Van
Ba who lives in Phuc Lai, Bac Ninh
Province, instructed me to return to
my husband and his family to settle
down, and enact my destiny alongside
them, and that they would be welcome
me back. He told me to go to Tam Phu
temple in Gia Binh, Bac Ninh and that it
would be the right one for me.
Since I became a thanh dong, I sleep
much better and have no nightmares or
disturbing dreams like in the past. I am
always surprised whenever I am about
to start a Hau Dong, I get a vision—or
a dream—of Ong Hoang Muoi falling
to Earth, and giving me the necessary
instructions.
After a difficult time, I now have the
strong support of my husband and his
family for my thanh dong work. I am
jubilant about this. He and his family
help me to prepare for ceremonies. As I
have no special temple, I meet the spirits
in many temples and we have to travel
to many locations to choose one. It then
takes 2-3 months in advance preparation
to have a good ceremony. The expenses
can vary from one ceremony to the other.
It depends on the number of guests, the
temple and the distance from Hanoi.
I don’t have a specific temple, but I
always meet Ong Hoang Muoi at Tam
Phu temple where I am paired. I only
perform two ceremonies every year or
whenever he advises me to have one.
During a ceremony, I am still aware of
all happening around me. I also listen tochau van songs to make it easy for the
spirits to come in my body.
I know many people think Hau
Dong is superstition, but worshipping
the Mother Goddess is a religion, and
not superstition. Thanh Mau gave
birth to the whole universe, so it’s not
superstition. When I am performing a
ceremony, I feel that my whole family is
getting its benefit.
Female mediums find it much more
difficult than men to become thanh
dong. The process is more challenging,
and women have more duties at home.
My husband and I have to work to
support our family, and it’s not easy to be
a medium and work at the same time.
Costumes are very important to
me, and I ordered 22 sets from tailors
working in Thuong Tin village. They are
expensive, but I take good care of them
and keep them in a special box.
I noticed that Hau Dong has become
more popular among the young people,
especially those born in 1990-91.
However, their interest is just superficial,
and they like it because of the fashion,
the styling and the music. To get involved
in it, they would have to spend a lot of
time, effort and money and they don’t
want to do that. Only those who get can
dong, the divine calling to become a
medium, can get the necessary support
from their families, community and
friends. Otherwise, it is impossible.