28 08/2019
MY CAREER AS A TRAVEL
photographer is underpinned by a
fascination with ancient religious rituals,
ceremonies and festivals still observed
and practiced around the world, and it
is this core fascination that steers my
image-making, and provides context to
many of the photographic expeditions-
workshops I organize and lead.
It was on such a photo expedition
in northern Vietnam in late 2014 that
I was introduced to a ceremony of
the indigenous religion of Dao Mau.
Hearing chants and music coming from
the small Gia Quoc Cong Vu Van Mat
temple in Bac Ha, but finding no one
who could understand English amongst
the audience, I asked patrons in a nearby
restaurant, and was told it was a Hau
Dong ceremony.
I had heard that term a day earlier
in Sa Pa when religious music drew
me to a small nondescript building
on Fansipan Road. Asking a passerby
what the building was, I was told it was
Den Hang Pho, a temple. I walked in
and met women in long red robes who
were preparing a rehearsal for a Len
Dong (or Hau Dong) ceremony planned
for the following day. I was allowed to
photograph and, despite my being in
the way during their processions, the
women seemed pleased I dropped by. I
did not know it then, but this group of
worshippers are called ban hoi; an ad
hoc “sisterhood” who belong to a Dao
Mau temple.
My imagination went in overdrive
when I later learned Hau Dong
ceremonies involved mediums who
communicate with the spirits of the
Dao Mau pantheon. It was the evening
ceremony in Bac Ha that triggered my
interest in documenting this form of
indigenous worship and adopting it as a
long-term personal photographic project.
Since starting on this personal
project, I’ve attended over three dozenHau Dong ceremonies. Many were
in the capital city of Hanoi and its
suburbs, and others far in the east
and north of the country, such as Hai
Phong, Lang Son, Quang Ninh and
Kiep Bac. Some went on all day (or all
night), while others were only a few
hours long.
The timings of ceremonies are
based on the Vietnamese lunar calendar
and are seldom advertised. The
announcements are by word-of-mouth
communication amongst the community,
friends and neighborhoods. Some are
held in large temple complexes, others
in small out of the way temples and
some in tiny private temples, or even in
rooms. To have access and be welcomed
in ceremonies wherever they are held
(especially in private settings), one must
gain the confidence and trust of the
community, and be accompanied by
someone known to the mediums or the
musicians.Text and Images by Tewfic El-Sawy