SELECTED POEMS (EARLY NINETEENTH CENTURY)
Ho Xuan Huong (fl. early nineteenth century) is one of a small number of pre-twentieth-century Vietnamese female authors whose works have survived. Ho Xuan Huong’s poetry is noted for its biting criticisms of elements of Vietnamese society from concubinage to Buddhism. Her poems, including “Ode to the Fan,” are often filled with sexual innuendos, barely skirting Confucian taboos regarding the open discussion of sex. Very little concrete information about her life has been preserved; most of what we know about Ho Xuan Huong comes from her poems themselves. Indeed, there is considerable uncertainty about when she lived, although the current consensus is that she most likely wrote in the early nineteenth century and not the late eighteenth, as has sometimes been argued. Because so little is known about her life, Ho Xuan Huong has been the subject of much speculation regarding her family origins and possible relationships with various scholars, including the noted literatus Pham Dinh Ho. The following three poems exemplify the nature and themes of her work, revealing a strong critical voice unafraid to engage in sexual banter.
ON BEING A CONCUBINE
One wife gets quilts, the other wife must freeze.
To share a husband—damn it, what a fate!
I’d settle for just ten, nay, just five times.
But fancy, it’s not even twice a month!
I take it all for rice: some musty rice.
I labor as a maid: a wageless maid.
Had I but known I should end up like this,
I would have sooner stayed the way I was.
ODE TO THE FAN
One hole can fit just any number in.
But fate’s glued me to you since days long past.
Stretch out three corners—creased remains the skin.
Close up both sides—some jutting flesh still shows.
I cool the hero’s face when winds die down.
I cap the gentleman’s head as rains descend.
While coddling him, I’ll ask the man in bed:
“Are you pleased yet with my flip-flap inside?”
Are you eighteen or only seventeen?
Let me love you, kept always in my hand.
Slender or thick, you stretch three corners out.
Narrow or broad, you stick one rivet in.
You cool me all the better when in heat.
I fondle you at night, love you by day.
A wild persimmon lends your cheeks pink charm.
Lords cherish, kings adore this single thing.
No Chinaman nor one of us is he:
a head without one hair, an unhemmed frock.
Under his nose lie three or five rice cakes;
behind his back lurk six or seven nuns.
Now he claps cymbals, now he clangs the gong;
he hees, he haws, he hee-haws all the time.
Keeping that up, he’ll rise to be top bonze:
he’ll mount the lotus throne and sit in state.
[Huynh Sanh Thong, Anthology of Vietnamese Poems, 214, 217–18, 220]
Minh Mang, the strongest of the Nguyen monarchs, ruled from 1820 to 1840, his reign marking the high point of Confucian influence on Vietnamese governance and political philosophy. This influence contained a strong element of state-sponsored paternalism, which is nowhere better demonstrated than in Minh Mang’s edict “Ten Moral Precepts.” Issued in 1834, shortly after his centralization of power in Hue, the edict was an attempt to impose social order and proper behavior on his subjects throughout the realm. This practice was in keeping with Chinese precedent, exemplified in similar precepts issued by the Ming dynasty’s Hungwu emperor (r. 1368–1398) and the Qing dynasty’s Kangxi emperor (r. 1661–1722). In a general sense, however, the edict reflects the Vietnamese state’s long-standing involvement in dictating morality and behavior, a role whose apogee may have been in the fifteenth-century Le Code, which criminalized a wide range of moral misdeeds.27 Minh Mang’s moral precepts and explications of their importance were widely disseminated throughout the kingdom. Village leaders were to ensure that they were publicly recited each year. Popular attitudes toward this practice can be summed up in the village saying “To go to the theater, what joy! A swimming contest is a poor second. A procession? We might go and have a look. And even a burial passes the time if there is nothing better. But to go and listen to the ten precepts—one must have lost all sense and reason!”28
The emperor sent an order to the Ministry of Rites that stated: The stability of the country is bound up with the hearts of the people, and the beauty of their customs is connected to their education. Recently, groups of good-for-nothings have been goading one another into depraved practices and have been seducing people into drinking and gambling. The number of dull and stupid “little people” is great because of this poison that deludes them. They become thieves and bandits because they do not know what is proper. Every time we think of the people’s affairs we are not pleased, and we cannot help but speak of educating them. We think about the chaos that the people have endured and that their hearts must have become somewhat aware of this. We must instruct them in this matter, which will be easy because of our strength. Only the Ministry of Rites can set forth the important ideas contained in the Qing country’s “Sagely Edict to Broadly Teach,” each of whose admonitions is clear. We must devote ourselves to understanding the meanings of these ideas in a serious and refined manner, and not in a superficial and merely decorative manner. And we must provide guidance to the foolish men and foolish women who do not know this. Then we can reverse the disdainful and return to the pure, and the customs will once again be virtuous. This has long been the country’s highest objective, and to achieve this I have composed ten moral precepts:
1. Be sincere in all that you do.
2. Maintain an upright heart.
3. Hold fast to your proper profession.
4. Always practice frugality.
5. Keep to virtuous customs.
6. Educate your children.
7. Respect the correct [Confucian] teachings.
8. Guard against licentiousness and evil.
9. Prudently adhere to the rules and laws.
10. Be generous in doing good.
The emperor ordered that this be made public in the people’s native villages.
[MMCY (1972), 3:chap. 13, 24a–24b; trans. George Dutton]
TALES FROM A JOURNEY TO THE NORTHERN REGION (1876)
Truong Vinh Ky (1837–1898) was a noted polymath and polyglot (he spoke fifteen Asian and European languages) who had been trained in missionary schools in both Vietnam and other parts of Southeast Asia. Shortly after the French conquest of Cochinchina in the early 1860s, he began to work with the French naval administration in Saigon as an instructor in the newly established schools for colonial officials. In 1876, Ky traveled from Saigon to Hanoi on a fact-finding tour, from which this report is derived. The text is reminiscent of the geographical gazetteers written by scholars during the early Nguyen years, which also included details about geography, distances, customs, and noted historical sites. This report is a useful bookend to Le Quy Don’s account of his visit from the north to the Nguyen realms in the south a century earlier,29 and it also can be compared with Trinh Hoai Duc’s survey of southern Vietnamese customs a half century earlier.30 The following excerpt looks at issues of gender relations, sartorial habits, feasting rituals, and festival games in the region around Hanoi. It is an evocative description of everyday life among ordinary people: how they lived, how they dressed, and how they enjoyed themselves.
Customs
Among the four social classes, each has its particular occupation, with peasants constituting the majority. The city is the place where artisans and merchants congregate, and there are Chinese who intermingle with them. Men and boys usually sit in shops and cafés, leisurely drinking tea or alcohol, while women and girls are the ones who carry out the working of the land.
The clothing of the men is also quite ordinary; it is a kind of short tunic that hangs to their knees, and on their heads they usually wear a conical “horse hat” or a black kerchief.
Women wear a tunic around which they tie a piece of cloth as a carrying belt. They wear a red bodice whose buttons are not fastened, leaving one shoulder flap unattached. On their heads, they wear a three-tasseled palm-leaf hat, nearly the size of a winnowing basket. This [hat] has a cord attached on both sides, and the two straps are pulled tight under the chin. The cord is wound through their braided hair, which is then wound around their heads. (There is one hamlet called Ke-loi in which women tie their hair in a bun.) On the lower half of their body, they wear a skirt and on their feet, lacquered slippers. Their complexions are smooth as silk and fair, and their cheeks are rosy. Their skin has a bit of color, they have the pink heels of beautiful girls, and they are somewhat plump. Their teeth are dyed with a black lacquer.
The custom of leaving their tunic belts untied comes from the cold winter weather. Women with young children who wish to nurse them would otherwise have to undo many layers, which would be quite awkward, and so they wear their tunics in this fashion. And as for the waist belt, it is also worn because of the cold. Seeing women dressed this way, girls have naturally imitated them. Thus, regardless of the season, they dress in this fashion, and it has become the accepted custom.
On feast and festival days, or when venerating spirits or their ancestors, [the people] hold feasts, host games, engage in singing and theatrical performances, and seek assistance to divine the future or ask favors of spirits. The matter of mourning is taken very seriously and is carried out in very formal and ostentatious fashion. Thus the Chinese have a saying: “Be born in Guangdong, die in Hanoi, and grow up in Korea.”
Geisha
When there are village feasts, social gatherings, weddings, prayers for peace, or death anniversaries, singing girls are usually hired. Singing girls are women of a sweet and pleasant disposition who are trained in the arts of singing and chanting. They are commonly referred to as co dao. When there is a festival, they are usually brought in to sing, typically in the ca-tru style, to act out The Tale of Kieu, to chant sung verse, to recite phu poems, or to tell stories. When they sing, they sometimes sit and sometimes stand, using their hands to beat the rhythm on a piece of wood. They sing both high notes and low ones in ways that resonate most beautifully and delicately upon the ear. Sitting to one side is a musician plucking on an instrument called a don day, and there is a person beating time on a small tom-tom. At times, the singing girls also stand up to act, dance, or sing. When the guests are there, the host has the singing girls pour the wine. At such times, they lift the [wine] bowls in both hands while chanting verses about passion or lovers to urge the guests to drink….
There is a common expression, “girls in the second month, boys in the eighth month,” which refers to the fact that it is usually in the second month that villages hold a festival at which girls vie in a beauty contest, while in the eighth month there is a feast at which boys compete in displaying their talents.
In the eighth month, the custom is to hold a feast in the village communal house, at which villagers sacrifice to the spirits and pray for peace. They compete with one another in readying the feast, which is first offered to the spirits, after which the food is eaten by the people sitting together in the communal hall. The food for the feast is arrayed on stacked trays, which are arranged in several layers. They use sugarcane with the bark removed and replaced by red paper wrapped around it to separate the displayed trays of food. On top of this are placed the figures of a phoenix, a dragon, a unicorn, and a turtle, which stand arrayed on either side. The villagers wait until the evening before they divide the food among themselves. At such events, they usually listen to singing girls; watch fighting with staffs (including boxing and martial arts), wrestling, marionettes, water puppets, and rope climbing; or play card games and human chess. There are also contests in rice cooking, cotton weaving, eel catching, and statue carving. Prizes are awarded to the winners of each of these competitions.
In the cooking contest, contestants must boil the rice, with the winner being the one whose rice is first ready to be eaten and also who is best at keeping the rice from burning or overcooking. The contestants are provided with a small amount of kindling and crushed sugarcane or some thatch, which they must light and then hold the pot over the fire until the rice is cooked.
For the weaving contest, a platform is constructed in the middle of a pond, and looms are placed on it. The weaving girls go out and climb onto the platform, where they sit down to weave. At the signal to begin, they thrust their shuttles back and forth through the warp as fast as they can. Anyone who misses the flying shuttle and drops it into the pond is eliminated.
The eel-catching contest features one boy and one girl, each of whom uses one arm to embrace the other around the neck. They then stick their free arms into a deep jar into which an eel has been released, and the first to catch the eel is awarded the prize.
For the sculpture-carving contest, a beautiful and charming singing girl who is wearing a sheer silk dress and shiny satin trousers sits on a platform erected in the middle of a pond. The boys competing in the contest put on loincloths made of paper and then pretend to be sculpting the sitting girl. Each time a contestant is no longer able to contain his passion, his penis rises in an erection, shredding his loincloth and eliminating him from the contest. When this happens, he dives headfirst into the pond to hide his shame. These are just a few words of summary about customs [in Tonkin], so that you might know about them.
[Truong Vinh Ky, Voyage au Tonking en 1876, 14–16; trans. George Dutton]
COMMEMORATION OF THE DEFEAT OF THE TAY SON (1802)
In 1802, Nguyen Anh finally succeeded in his long-running campaign to defeat the Tay Son. Aided by the premature deaths of the two most powerful Tay Son leaders and the succession of a young son to the Quang Trung emperor’s throne, Nguyen Anh gradually extended his territorial control from his southern base in Gia Dinh. After the young Tay Son emperor was captured, the newly named Gia Long emperor had him torn limb from limb by elephants. Not satisfied with this vengeance, he ordered the exhumation of the deceased Tay Son rulers’ bones and their desecration by his troops. The following commemorative poem was issued publicly shortly after these events. It is a brief summary of the Tay Son conflict, with an emphasis on the alleged cruelty of the Tay Son rebels and the contrasting humanity and virtue of the Nguyen leader. The genre of official commemorative poetry is significant, and there are numerous surviving examples, particularly from the Le dynasty. Le Thai To and Nguyen Trai’s famous fifteenth-century declaration on the defeat of the Ming (Binh Ngo dai cao) is perhaps the most notable example, containing both a description of events and a commentary on the responses of the righteous Vietnamese armies.31 This prose translation does not attempt to capture the poetic feel of the original but focuses on its essential meaning.
Thanks to the nine preceding generations [going back to Nguyen Hoang (r. 1558–1613)], we were unified against our enemy; this is the fundamental principle of the Spring and Autumn Annals.
Pitying the myriad people, we attacked despots, the mark of a ruler’s great benevolence.
Early difficulties nourished our profound sorrow.
We used our imperial edicts to set forth and make clear the great commands.
Thus it was in our country.
Ha Trung nourished excellence; Mieu Ngoai produced auspiciousness. (This was seen and recorded by Emperor Le Trang Tong.)32
The great achievements of the first Viet rulers established the vast foundation, while benevolence and generosity have been transmitted along a single artery.
Through the succession of sagely rulers who had gloriously made outstanding achievements, we enjoyed a great peace for two hundred years.
But during this undertaking, we met with disaster, leading rebellious men to cause chaos.
They seized and occupied our citadels and hamlets;
They poisoned and tormented our people.
From Hue and Nhac onward, from Nguyen Trat33 backward, they created evil, which extended far beyond a single day.
From Thuan [Hoa] and Quang [Nam] southward and from the Linh River northward, disaster and calamity spread everywhere.
I gnashed my teeth at the country’s enemies, heartbroken at the sufferings of the people.
I moved about on foot, blown by the wind away from stability, just like Xia Shaokang from the land of You Reng.34
I was cautious and disciplined as I plotted my return, more so even than was Han Guangwu of the land of Bai Shui.35
It was the will of Heaven that I assumed this position, and so I waited patiently for the [right] time.
Then the opportunity to prevail appeared once again, and I led the army to attack on foot in order to restore the state.
In the mau than year [1788], I set out from Siam and, before long, recaptured the city of Gia Dinh.
In the ky vi year [1799], I entered Qui Nhon.
In the fifth month of the tan dau year [1801], I entered and subdued Phu Xuan.
The cruel usurper fled in a panic, going northward alone on horseback.
After that, Mount Hoanh was taken, and I exhausted myself restoring the old boundaries.
Only the isolated forces of the traitorous Dieu remained, still clinging to their old strongholds.36
I decided that to eliminate their evil, I first had to clean out their caves; and to punish the enemy, I first had to repair our halberds.
Only then could our attacking troops overrun and cut off their ramparts,
Only then could we catch and punish the enemy who would be forced out of Ban Thanh.37
They had already fled the fates and hidden in the forests;
We chased after their troops, attacking them toward the north.
Finally, in the fifth month of the nham tuat year [1802], I personally guided the great masses in the ferry across the Linh River.
Riding the winds, the circumstances inspired us, and the task was easily accomplished.
The sun pointing out the way, our triumph was achieved as easily as destroying bamboo.
All the paths of Hoan and Ai [Nghe An and Thanh Hoa] directly witnessed the crumbling mountainsides;
Dieu and Dung were in a hopeless situation, following each other to take refuge in ditches.38
The entire journey resembled thunder and lightning;
Their ranks of citadels were all falling tile and flying ash.
All the false and rebellious [ranks] were captured;
The guilty ones had now been taken.
The forces of darkness had been swept away, and all the lands under Heaven had been cleaned up.
The six creatures with their songs of triumphant return fill the roads while the mountains and rivers add their colors.
For this we truly relied on the assistance of exalted Heaven and on the nine temples,39 which are unified in their sacrality; the generals, too, contributed, and the three armies also used their strength to achieve this result.
[Phan Thuc Truc, Quoc su di bien, 91–97; trans. George Dutton]
SUMMARY RECORD OF AN OVERSEAS JOURNEY (1833)
Summary Record of an Overseas Journey describes a voyage to Singapore and Batavia (present-day Jakarta, Indonesia) that the noted scholar Phan Huy Chu made in 1833 on behalf of the Nguyen court. It recounts the course of the journey and its various ports of call, as well as observations of European culture and social structure in the Dutch East Indies. In the following excerpts, Phan Huy Chu compares European calendar systems with those of Vietnam and China and comments on the structures and forms of Dutch military and judicial systems. Collecting information about Europeans was one of the Minh Mang court’s objectives, which it did through such voyages and discussions with arriving European traders. What is striking is that this information seems to have hardly altered Vietnamese awareness of the threat posed by European colonial ambitions or resulted in any substantive policy responses. By the time strong arguments for reform were being made in the 1860s,40 the court’s position was already extremely precarious.
The Westerners’ method for calculating calendars:
The system of the Great West does not use reign names, and it does not record the years in which the kings of those countries came to the throne. Every time they record something, at the end of the document they record only that it was, for example, the Hoa Lan [Dutch] year of 1833, along with the day and the month. This is the method used by the Western barbarians and the Dutch. All the documents translated by the local Chinese residents into Chinese also are written in this manner. Perhaps this records the year that the Dutch people first established their country. Now if we use this to calculate backward eighteen hundred years, it is roughly around the beginning of the Han dynasty in China. And in our country of Viet, it would be approximately during the era of [King] An Duong. By the Chinese system of reckoning, who knows how many dynasties have existed in its history, and Holland has thus existed as a country for this length of time. The laws and regulations of all the powerful foreign countries must have originated in Holland. For this reason, all the records of time periods are like this, so we do not have any idea of their beginnings.
The regulation of the Westerners’ weeks:
The custom of the Westerners is that once every seven days, they all gather together to go out for pleasure, to eat and drink, and they call this “going to banquets.” On the afternoon of that day, the government offices halt their work, and the markets are closed. The idea behind this is similar to the ancient custom of resting and bathing once every ten days. But the custom among the Westerners is to go to attend banquets in order to enjoy themselves. Speaking of their customs, when they eat food, they do not use chopsticks but rather use a spoon. And when they drink water, they all like it sweetened and cold. The meat that they eat for their meals fills the tables, and most of them use their hands to tear it up. They pour their wine into tankards, which makes it appear as though they are drinking with their noses. The forms of their banquets are very much different from those found in China.
The military system:
The military regulations of the Dutch are very strict, correct, and systematic. All the soldiers wear long shirts made of a bluish-black wool; they wear a blue cotton sash and a copper insignia. At their back is tied a red velvet sash embroidered with flowers. They wear cotton trousers and leather shoes. The style of their clothing is extremely detailed. Their military weapons are both guns and swords, each of which is very sharp. Their banners are distinctive, and their length does not exceed six thuoc [nearly eight feet]. Broadly speaking, they look like Qing-court soldiers, except that they do not carry bows and arrows. When they go out to drill, one general holds the banner of command, and he gives orders and shouts out commands in a loud voice, which all the troops must follow very precisely: about face, step together, advance, and then all stop together. The military regulations and military deployment give the impression of being very strict. The number of Dutch soldiers does not exceed one thousand men, and the Javanese troops, who are used only as laborers do not appear to equal this number.
I do not know in any detail the stipulations and patterns of the Westerners’ judicial regulations, so I can speak only about those that I have witnessed at first hand. Minor violators are punished by being beaten with a cane. First the person is tied to a wooden shelf, then once his punishment is determined, he is immediately struck a certain number of times with the cane and then released. Major violators are shackled with iron chains tied around the waist as well as both legs, and they are forced to perform manual labor. They often are seen constructing ramparts. An official wearing a tunic and red hat supervises several dozen shackled prisoners. They are forced to carry the soil to bank up the ramparts. Although they are not subjected to caning, they compete with one another in their efforts. Along the roads are people who carry various goods, sometimes seven or eight of them and occasionally more than ten, and among them is only one soldier, who holds a stick to urge them on. They converse directly with one another as they travel, and generally speaking, there is no need to restrain them. According to the regulations for arresting criminals, only a cord is used to tie up the ringleaders, on whom a rattan cane is used freely. Even though there may be several dozen [criminals], none attempts to escape. I have heard that [the Dutch] legal codes are very strict. Thus those who charge excessive interest rates or abuse their authority are punished. Some overseas Chinese residents say that the legal institutions of the country of Batavia [location of present-day Jakarta] are well established and their precedents are firmly fixed. The laws have no biases, and those who act as judges make impartial decisions. The scales of justice are balanced. Consequently, it is very easy to control the people.
[Phan Huy Chu, Hai trinh chi luoc, 153–54, 161–63; trans. George Dutton]
A RECORD OF MILITARY SYSTEMS (1821)
This introduction to the military affairs section of the Categorized Records of the Institutions of Successive Dynasties provides a brief history of the ways in which Vietnamese courts organized and deployed their soldiers. The introduction also is a prelude to a more detailed examination of the problems encountered by the declining Le rulers, in which uncontrolled units of soldiers terrorized civilian authorities, contributing to the collapse of the dynasty. As such, the text is a warning to the new Nguyen regime about the need to tightly supervise the military. This warning is directed at a regime that came to power through military means and that maintained the military’s strong role in state building in the aftermath of the Tay Son wars.
Heaven issued the five elements, among which one cannot ignore military matters. Under “systems,” the Classic of Changes states that “one must repair weaponry,” whereas the Classic of Documents states that “one must put in order military affairs,” and they both state that the arts of preparing the kingdom cannot be neglected. In earlier times, soldiers were taken from the peasantry and used in times of danger. Since the Qin and Han dynasties, soldiers and peasants have been distinguished from each other, and the military systems were structured differently from earlier times. The main problems were suppressing rebellions and preventing treachery, although each generation had military policies specific to its era. We have no evidence of the early military systems in our kingdom of Viet. From the time of the ten circuits of the Dinh and earlier Le dynasties when they founded [the country], we can discern only the general outlines, but we know much more about the Ly and Tran dynasties’ establishment of military nomenclature. The Ly had ten specialized military units, and the Tran had troop quotas for all the [provincial] capitals. The imperial city had permanent military specialist units, as well as detachments of intimidating troops. [The Tran] maintained the earlier practices for troops established outside the imperial city, so during peacetime the soldiers returned to farming their fields, and when necessary, they were summoned according to the registers. This made it possible to keep a fixed number of soldiers at a reasonable cost while maintaining [an offensive posture] toward their enemies. The [Tran] succeeded in pacifying the Cham and destroying the Song armies (Ly Thai Tong pacified the Cham, while [Ly] Nhan Tong destroyed the Song army), and they were able twice to attack and defeat the Yuan [Mongol] troops. (Both times it was Tran Nhan Tong who destroyed the Yuan troops.) Thus, the armed forces of two generations brought strength and prosperity.
Then came the time when the Le rose up in Thanh Hoa [against the Ming], and for the ten specialized units they relied completely on their own troops. Thus, the circumstances of their establishment of a new dynasty were different from those of earlier generations. They used only local troops from the regions of Nghe An, Tan Binh, and Thuan Hoa. After they had pacified the Ngo [Ming], they began to use troops from the five circuits throughout the country. During the Restoration [1592], they used only ordinary soldiers from the three prefectures in Thanh Hoa and the twelve districts in Nghe An. Only after the Mac had been eliminated did they begin to use the unified troops from the four military regions. Because these two regions [Thanh Hoa and Nghe An] were where the dynasty originated and with whose troops it had endured hardships and suffering, the dynasty drew [these soldiers] close as their “talons and teeth” and treated them as their close confidants, giving them preference over the unified soldiers; this was, of course, quite natural under these circumstances.
But these troops came to rely on coercion and began to disregard the laws. They had been supported for a long time, which gave birth to arrogance. Starting in the middle of the Restoration era, the troops became difficult to control, to the point of killing officials and stealing their possessions. They did not change their old habits, became arrogant toward the emperor, and could not be removed. Then, near the end of the Canh Hung period [1740–1786], they helped Prince Doan [Trinh Khai] take power. Claiming credit for this, [the troops] became even more arrogant, disregarded all laws and regulations, defied everyone, and intimidated [even] government officials. (During that period the soldiers arrogantly abused power, and entreaties had no impact on them. They would urge one another to destroy the home of any great official or ordinary person who was unsympathetic to them and chase him away, and none of the officials in the court knew how to restrain them.) The officials were united in despairing of this. (The soldiers spoke very clearly of wishing to kill the [Trinh] lord’s nephew, and the principal concubine had to go out to cry and ask to be able to pay them off. Only then was [this problem] resolved.)41 Finally, [the lack of control over the soldiers] caused the court to fall into decline, all while its foreign enemies were becoming stronger. [Consequently,] when the southern troops arrived, the gates of the capital could not be defended.42
In my investigation of the Le Restoration, I found that [the Le dynasty] relied on the strength of the two regions’ soldiers but that the source of its collapse also lay in the arrogant soldiers of the three prefectures. Thus, the Le relied on these troops to establish the dynasty, but in the end, these troops caused their collapse. This [outcome] can clearly be taken as an object lesson regarding previous successes and failures. Thus, if one is skillful in holding the reins, one can use even poor and corrupt people, but if one loses control, they will immediately break away, leading to either success or failure. Thus, one cannot not have a system for supervising soldiers.
[Phan Huy Chu, LTHCLC, 8:1a–3a; trans. George Dutton]
DEBATING FRENCH DEMANDS (1862)
The following excerpt from The Veritable Records of Dai Nam (1811–) is a memorial presented by court officials to the Tu Duc emperor (r. 1848–1883). In it, the officials describe France’s demands and what the Vietnamese response should be. They weigh France’s various stipulations for a proposed treaty and assess the impact of accepting each one. The court officials’ general sense is that the Vietnamese ruler should give in to French demands, which they believe will have only a relatively modest impact on Vietnamese sovereignty. The tone of the memorial indicates that this was the thinking of the group known as the “peace faction,” which advocated a strategy of appeasing French demands with a view toward reversing them in the long run. This strategy contrasted with that of the “war faction,” which argued unsuccessfully for rejecting the French demands, even at the risk of renewed warfare. The emperor’s response to this memorial was quite assertive, insisting that many of the clauses were unacceptable and dangerous to Vietnamese pride and security. Ultimately, however, the court was forced to concede to nearly all the French demands, paving the way for France’s subsequent annexation of the six southernmost Vietnamese provinces in 1863.
The discussion of peace has been going on for three or four years and still has not been definitively settled. Now [the French] ships have brought us a letter proposing a peace treaty, and although we have not discussed either their demands or their objectives, the main issues are not different from the fourteen demands that the [French] made last year. They are requesting that we give Western ships freedom of transportation and shipping on all the rivers west and south of the citadel of Gia Dinh; they are asking us to pardon all the people taken prisoner while we were fighting one another; they are stipulating that we not erect forts or ramparts or station guard troops on the Bien Hoa and Sai Gon rivers. These three stipulations are not matters of real concern for your officials, and they were considered for inclusion in the earlier treaty. But there still are eleven more stipulations.
One clause grants permission to [French people] to teach and preach [during] public travel. With respect to the two characters—“public travel”—this means in essence that all [these French people] are followers of the Way [Christians], that they be permitted to preach freely, and that any person who wants to follow and study that religion will be permitted to do so freely. In this case, these people could do as they wished, and we would be unable to draw up regulations to stop them. We had thought about this clause earlier. The people of our country who already are followers of the Way would be permitted to gather together freely, and those who wish to abandon the Way and no longer wish to follow it also could not be prevented from doing so.
Another clause states that people from the West who violate the law will be sent to Western officials to be adjudicated; this clause also is reasonable. Likewise, if people of our country who visit the areas where Western people engage in commerce and violate their laws, it would be only fair that they be sent back to our officials to be tried by our laws.
One clause stipulates that Western people should be free to travel anywhere in our country but that they must continue to obey our laws. We have already thought about this clause, too. People from that country [France] already have places where they engage in commerce. If they have any other matters that they need to discuss or have resolved, local officials can address and settle these matters. [French people’s] traveling to other places also is not a problem, but we do not want any disorderly free movement.
Another clause stipulates that Western trading vessels be permitted to enter any port they wish and that Western officials may be stationed anywhere they like. We also thought about this clause earlier: our country already has established places for conducting commerce and has made arrangements to enable ships to come and go conveniently to those places. [But] all the other ports should remain closed to them.
Another clause stipulates that we must pay damages, in cash, for the lives of the two or three Western people who were killed. This clause was one that we thought about earlier: we need not be stingy about making this small reparations payment, but the invoice they sent us did not specify the amount of the damages. Thus, we must clarify this oversight so the matter can be rectified and resolved.
Another clause stipulates that we may no longer force the country of Cambodia to pay tribute. This, too, was a clause to which we had previously given some thought: Cambodia is a dependency of our country. Whether or not it sends tribute, the French originally did not have the power to interfere, and so there is really no need to consider this. If the [French] insist on these six clauses, I suggest that we follow what we have decided and reply to them. But if those people have other requests, we also should consider and act on them.
Earlier, those people [the French] asked us to turn over all the provincial citadels and the lands of Gia Dinh and Dinh Tuong, and requested permission to station troops in Thu Dau Mot in Bien Hoa; [they asked] that the capital cities of the two countries station both troops and senior officials there; [and they asserted that] the amount of silver reparations earlier demanded was 4 million dong. In addition, Spain requested [permission] to establish offices in the district of Do Son in the province of Hai Duong and at the port in the district of Nghieu Phong in order to collect tax revenues for ten years, after which time they would revert to our country. The Western people have repeatedly made these five demands, asking that we accept them.
The group of stubborn officials cannot again escape the insistent requests to separate the territories of Bien Hoa and Vinh Long and turn them over to the French, in the hopes of waiting for the old peace treaty to be accepted. Now I beg you to consider that in Gia Dinh, at the site of the old citadel, those people have already built a fort where they have stationed their troops. I think that we should temporarily allow them one office at Thu Dau Mot in the province of Bien Hoa, and the neighboring territory outside the citadel of the province of Dinh Tuong in the territorial borders on both sides of the river in the two districts of Tan An and Cuu An—and also [permit them] to live there. The territories in other regions, including the whole province of Vinh Long, should be returned to our country to be administered. Furthermore, the port of the capital city is not a place of commerce but a place where that group has built houses. They already have people there managing things, and all the tasks are being carried out adequately, so there is no need to set up a great yamen [government office] to do anything. [But] if they really want this, we should respond by saying that the port of Da Nang is very close to the capital, and their ships still can easily come and go, so they will be permitted to set up one of their offices there. We will ask that the silver indemnity and fine be resolved for us to pay them 1 million to 2 million cash, and no more. Also, the country of Spain, which has been alongside [France] in Gia Dinh for many years now, has strongly requested that they [be permitted] to live on the land at Do Son and to engage in commerce, and has asked to collect taxes for that district’s port for ten years, after which time [tax collection rights] will be returned to our country. I recommend that we accept one of these two stipulations.
When the Christians of Bac Ky [the northern region] heard the news that this country [France] was disseminating the religion, they asked the court to honor the earlier concession given to France regarding permission to practice the faith. It is not necessary to discuss all the clauses in this treaty. Again, we earlier thought about and discussed restoring Gia Dinh and Dinh Tuong to our country for supervision and governance, and if they do not listen to us, then we should consider opening an office that follows the customs of Guangdong, which in earlier times were established provisionally and then were restored. If they make any demands about the cost of the redemption purchase, I estimate that 1 million to 2 million cash will be the fixed settlement price. Any subsequent promises will be paid gradually, or this matter can also be completed earlier. If they demand the transfer of all the provinces they have already seized, then we should refuse. While discussing this, we should weigh the pros and cons and debate it in great detail.
[DNTL (2004–2007), 7:768–73; trans. George Dutton]
EDICT OUTLINING PROPRIETY AND RITUAL (1804)
After the Tay Son wars, one of the Nguyen rulers’ primary objectives was restoring order to the Vietnamese state and its people. At one level, this order was a material one of reestablishing government structures, rebuilding infrastructure, and implementing systematic taxation. At another level, however, this project was a sociocultural one of restoring ritual order in both religious and cultural practices. As we have seen in earlier texts, most notably the Le Code, such ideological intervention by Vietnamese rulers was a long-standing practice, so the Nguyen’s project was not new. It was, however, carried out in a particularly forceful style, in large part because of the circumstances under which the dynasty came to power, and the long period of disorder and dislocation that preceded its rule. The following excerpt is from a much longer edict, in which the Gia Long emperor sought to impose order and propriety on a range of ritual practices. Equally important, this excerpt reveals an attempt to impose fiscal restraint on what had become elaborate and extremely expensive ceremonies relating to the spirits. Such state efforts to control expenditures among commoners is another longstanding theme, seen earlier in Trinh Cuong’s 1720 guidelines regarding sumptuary practices.43 Here the new emperor offers a critique of ritual practices, particularly those related to Buddhism and the worship of spirits. His critique also is an indictment of using magic to exploit the gullible. Finally, the edict offers a brief comment on Christianity and its putative effects on its adherents. This decree therefore is a useful glimpse into existing ritual practices as well as the expectations of the state and hints at the long-running tension between popular practice and the state’s desire to regulate ritual behavior.
Worshipping Spirits and the Buddha
First of all, we must be concerned with matters relating to the people and only afterward turn to matters of the spirits. The Classic [of Documents] notes: “The commonplace ritual offerings to the spirits is what is called a lack of respect.” And the Zuo Commentary states: “Respect the ghosts and spirits but keep them at a distance.”44 It also says: “Worshipping a spirit that is not one’s own is merely an act of flattery.” Surely there is a reason for all these comments on matters relating to ghosts and spirits. Recently, many people were flattering the spirits and venerating them at the temples of the city gods; they constructed heavy doors and complex chambers; they erected tall ridge poles, carved beams, and painted pillars; they used sacrificial utensils and guards of honor ornamented with gold and silver draperies and parasols, banners and flags, and embroidered silk gowns; and they offered prayers of supplication in the spring and prayers of gratitude in the fall. Large singing feasts would last for ten days and nights, and smaller ones for eight or nine days and nights. There were dramatic performances, bawdy songs, and countless rewards and prizes. Eating and drinking were extravagant, and expenditures were incalculable. In addition, there were boat races, puppet shows, and miscellaneous amusements. Some selected and took underage boys and young girls while others played chess or gambled with cards. They called this an event for the spirits, but in reality it was about private human desires. People were forced to make contributions, thereby squandering the possessions of their heirs.
Henceforth, if a spirit has virtue or merit, it may receive sacrifices if a separate petition has been made to the district magistrate, who will then examine the situation and permit it if worthy. If the temples are being rebuilt or newly built, they may have only one interior compartment, three central halls, and two secondary gates, which may not be carved or decorated with vermilion drawings. Local temples may not improperly be called palaces, and the ritual objects and honorific banners may not use red lacquer or light-colored gold. Only dyed and scented silk fabrics are permitted for screens, parasols, banners, and flags, and embroidered cloth may not be used. The annual sacrificial rituals that people attend for banquets and singing may last for only one day and night, and prizes and awards may not be excessive. And when metal drums are used in a commemoration to carry out the ritual, after the commemoration has been completed, [they must not be used again]. All other miscellaneous amusements are forbidden.
With respect to worshipping the Buddha, the Zuo Commentary states: “Engaging in heterodoxy is extremely harmful.” It also states: “When one offends Heaven, there is no recourse to entreaty.” Those who worship the Buddha do so to request blessings and rewards. The Buddhist scriptures state: “If it is fated to be, this is the Buddha’s doing, but if it is not fated by the Buddha, then it will not come to pass.” It also states: “Serving one’s parents will not get you to the other side, even though one gives alms to monks every day. It is of no benefit. Being loyal to the ruler, one may reach this place, even though one does not venerate the Buddha. It will not be a hindrance.” If so, then there is no need for those with merit to entreat the Buddha for deliverance. [But] what can the Buddha do for those without merit?
We should examine and consider the various ancestors who achieved Buddhahood, like Mu Lian, who, despite this, was unable to help his mother,45 or those who esteemed Buddhism as [Emperor] Xiaoyan [r. 502–549] did [but] who could not use it to preserve his body.46 Never mind the disloyal and unfilial people who do not know that their king is the Buddha of the present time, and who have carelessly abandoned their father and mother whom the Buddha brought into being, and pray to a remote and formless Buddha, all to seek some future good fortune, which has not come. How can this be logical?
Recently, someone who venerated the Buddhist scriptures erected a very tall Buddhist pagoda with numerous imposing stories, and he strove to make it as grand and as beautiful as possible. He also cast a bell, sculpted richly decorated statues, and provided meals to the monks. He cleaned their altars, and on the three origination days,47 he organized Buddhist assemblies at which offerings were made to the Buddha and the monks were fed, and the expenses for all this were such that not all could be recorded. But in doing all this to obtain good fortune, he merely exploited himself, as well as his heirs. Henceforth, the restoration of any Buddhist temples in disrepair, the new construction of Buddhist temples, as well as the casting of bells and statues and the setting up of altars for religious assemblies, all will be banned. [In addition,] the local village leader must make a list of the full names and places of origin of temple monks who are truly learned and then must submit [this list] to the provincial officials so that they might know their number.
Again, the fates of peoples’ lives are fixed: disasters cannot be avoided, and good fortune cannot be actively sought. Praying and confessing faults to solve and eliminate problems are utterly without benefit. In ancient times, this obscene wizardry was among the things that Gao Xin clearly put forth so as to make sacrifices and thus delude the people. Accordingly, the emperor ordered that [these wizards] be killed. All this was done to eliminate delusions and repudiate heresy and to return people’s customs to uprightness. Ximen Bao [fifth century B.C.E.] hurled the witch [into the river]. Di Renjie [630–700] destroyed the heterodox temples.48 There is agreement about what is good. Now the custom of worshipping ghosts has become deeply entrenched, and our people are unable to remain calm and abide by their fate. They frequently ask for amulets and incantations and curry favor with witches and wizards. They set up altars and beat bells and gongs, and they bend with the blowing wind, passing down their established customs and their petty, foolish superstitions. Some people have embraced black magic, feign trustworthiness, act mysteriously, and create confusion for those who listen and hear. They groundlessly rely on amulets when drawing up contracts and violate laws and regulations in order to earn a living. They claim to be able to alter their fate and to revive the dead, and they regard illnesses in families as strange marvelous commodities. Some mediums even go into a trance and claim falsely to speak for a spirit. They urge people to fast to the point of death and prevent doctors from being summoned until recovery is impossible. Furthermore, they use votive figures made of paper and horses made of straw, build gates and burn votive houses, and employ all sorts of superstitious amulets and drugs, even those that cause wives to despise their husbands, and husbands to fall madly in love with their secondary wives. They already have used these arts to disturb the people and, again, knock on doors offering cures and appear in droves to practice deception. This is truly a great harm to the people’s lives.
From now on, when people become ill, they must consult only medical doctors to be cured, and they should be careful to protect their health in daily life; they should not believe anything they hear from magicians who pray and offer nonsensical sacrifices at the various doors to [Buddhist] enlightenment. Sorcerers and sorceresses also are not permitted to worship and make offerings or to use burning incense to ward off evil spirits or prayers to ward off misfortune. Those who break with the old customs must be severely punished. In addition, “the way of Ye-Su” [Christianity] is a religion from distant lands that has been brought into our country by foreigners. It speaks of a hell full of devils and a heavenly paradise full of spirits, and it seeks to persuade the masses to run about as though they were mad and to convince them of this superstition without their realizing it. Henceforth, all the people in villages and hamlets with Christian churches that are in disrepair must report this information to the provincial officials to request permission to repair them, and the construction of new churches is completely prohibited. Everyone should repent their previous faults and hold carefully to these teachings. If village customs persist in violating the laws of the state and people become aware of this, the village chief must intervene and circulate this information around the prefecture. If the violator’s crime is severe, he must perform corvée labor, and if it is minor, he must be beaten with the rod or cane in order to reduce the costs to the people and to teach [him more appropriate behavior].
[DNTL (1961–), 1:645–46; DNTL (2004–2007), 5:583–87; trans. George Dutton, with Joshua Herr]
TEMPLE OF THE GENERAL OF THE SOUTHERN SEAS (1820)
In addition to the practice of Buddhism and the veneration of ancestors, the Vietnamese worshipped a wide range of more local spirits and deities. Departed Spirits of the Viet Realm (1329), a collection of cultic tales by Ly Te Xuyen,49 already made clear the importance of such figures to the popular belief systems, and even though over time, Buddhism and Confucianism became dominant institutionally, the Vietnamese people’s belief in spirits remained very strong. The veneration of spirits was typically quite localized, tied to particular places, regionally specific historical figures, or even animals. The following excerpt from Trinh Hoai Duc’s Gia Dinh Citadel Records describes the veneration of the Whale Spirit, a deity held in high regard by fishermen along the central and southern coasts of Vietnam where whales were often seen. The Whale Spirit was regarded as benevolent, protecting fisherman as they carried out their often perilous profession. Trinh Hoai Duc also looks at the importance of the correct ritual treatment of whales and the benefits that they might bring. This cult of the Whale Spirit continues to thrive among Vietnamese in the same region, as reflected in regular rituals and the construction or renovation of numerous commemorative temples dedicated to “Sir Fish.”
The spirit of the Temple of the General of the Southern Seas is that of a whale. It has a hollow flipper and its head is round and smooth, and at the tip of its head is a hole from which water spouts like rain. It has the lips of an elephant and the tail of a shrimp, and it is more than two or three truong [twenty-four to thirty-six feet] in length. It frequently jumps on the surface of the ocean. When fishermen lower their nets to catch fish, they usually call out to this spirit, and then it chases throngs of fish into their nets, and the people are very thankful. In rare instances, this fish finds its way into their nets. When this happens, the fishermen open one side of the net and call to the whale, and it then swims to the opening of the net and escapes back into the sea. When ships are endangered by waves and winds, this fish is often seen coming to support the ship until the waters are calm again. If a ship founders, and water pours into it, this fish will ferry the passengers to the shore; the protection of the Whale Spirit is thus very clear. Only our southern country, from the Linh River down to Ha Tien, has a supernatural spirit of this type; in other seas they do not have anything like this. This is because in the southern regions, the mountains and seas produce sacred vapors, which secretly provide assistance to our people. We have already conferred on [the Whale Spirit] the title Southern Seas Troop General Jade Unicorn Venerated Spirit, which has been recorded in the ritual records. If one of these fish is attacked by another, cruel fish and is wounded and dies, it will float on the surface of the sea. The people along the seacoast then contribute money to purchase a coffin shroud as well as articles for preparing a burial. They choose a man from the clan of fishermen to serve as the chief mourner. He selects a place to bury [the whale], and then the [fishermen] build a temple at that site. In places that have such whale graves, the people enjoy very good fortune; places without such graves still erect temples at which the whales are venerated. These can be found all along the coast.
[Trinh Hoai Duc, GDTTC, 510 (31b–32a); trans. George Dutton]
COMMENTS REGARDING CHRISTIANITY (1839)
Since the earliest years of the Catholic mission in Vietnam, the Vietnamese state was suspicious of both the Christian doctrine and those who preached it. While because of their scientific skills, Jesuits were sometimes tolerated, Vietnamese rulers remained uneasy about the social implications of the Catholic message, which threatened the idealized Confucian hierarchy supported by the state. Catholic missionaries, most notably Bishop Pigneau de Béhaine, supported the Nguyen during their eighteenth-century struggle with the Tay Son, and the first Nguyen emperor acknowledged this debt by tolerating European clerics and their converts. But this tolerance waned under the more orthodox Minh Mang emperor, who suspected Catholics of contributing to political factionalism, both at the court and in the southern Gia Dinh region. Moreover, attempts to deport the missionaries repeatedly failed as they returned in defiance of imperial edicts. This excerpt from The Veritable Records of Dai Nam is a discussion that reveals the emperor’s views of the religion’s impact and his challenge to two officials’ claims that their own Christianity was a result of filial adherence to their fathers’ and grandfathers’ practices. Minh Mang counters their claims with classical references and the observation that blind adherence to one’s father’s actions, regardless of the inherent qualities of those actions, does not constitute filial piety.
The soldiers Pham Viet Huy and Bui Duc The from Nam Dinh Province came to the capital to make the following appeal: For generations, their grandfathers and fathers had accepted the “Ye-Su Dao” [Christian faith], but last year they trampled on the cross. This was an action forced on them by provincial officials and did not come from their hearts. The soldiers begged permission to remain faithful to this religion, to perfect their actions of filial piety. If they had to die, they said, they would not regret it. This was a case reported by a judicial office.
The emperor considered this very strange and stated: “These men have been lured into this state of illusion by the vicious religion for a long time, and they have not repented. Previously, when this case came up at the provincial level, each official in every ministry said they should be killed. But I could not bear to condemn them hastily according to the laws, and in each case I sought to understand and find evidence of their awakening to the truth. Then the province reported that they had sincerely abandoned the religion, and so we immediately released them and again rewarded them. Now they have continued in their stubborn dimness and have dared to come to the capital to appeal while abandoning their military posts. These men are creating chaos among the people; how can we tolerate their living in this world?”
The emperor ordered the royal guards to take them to the seashore, to cut them in half with a big ax and then to throw them into the sea. He also ordered that Dinh Dat, who had been involved in the same case but who had stayed in the province, be questioned again. [Dinh] Dat also persisted in refusing to abandon the religion, so was beheaded. The governor-general of the province, Trinh Quang Khanh, was punished with a one-level reduction in rank because he had reported [this transgression] only vaguely. In addition, the emperor secretly ordered the organization of investigative units to visit and find out whether the soldiers and people who had followed the false teaching of “Ye-Su” and had already expressed their intention to abandon the religion had in fact turned from evil to uprightness, or whether they had acted reluctantly and not yet truly given it up. The units had to verify whether those people who had not come to the capital of the province but had reported by themselves because they feared the law and had actually come to repent, or whether they still secretly flocked together for religious teaching and study. In the event that their behaviors were still the same as in the past and had not changed, then the units were to report secretly and truthfully and were not to hide or distort reality.
The emperor spoke with the minister of justice, saying: “Christianity came from the West. In the beginning it did not attract more than one or two dull persons, but eventually reached the point of gathering a great many followers, who then plotted rebellion. The former case showed this very clearly.50 But I think the persons who follow this religion will eventually find that it is false and a great illusion. If you think about the story of the Cross and Jesus Christ, it is surely without foundation. This talk of Heaven and holy water is also nonsense, as is this matter of removing the eyes of corpses with the excuse of praying for their souls. In the name of virginity, they seduce the wives of other men. It is not enough for them to stop at disrupting harmony and harming our customs.
Furthermore, the ignorant and foolish are seduced into wrongdoing, and from time to time groups of disloyal and unfilial people also fall into the religion. They practice and study it for a long time, so that they are already deeply contaminated by it and form noisy groups who follow the evil way. In the end, ordinary villagers cannot escape believing what they hear and pay no attention to these fundamental laws. Previously, we strictly established regulations banning [this religion]; we burned its books, destroyed its residences, and chased people away so that they no longer could gather together. In turn, we promulgated edicts with the desire to make my people turn back to the good and keep their distance from such crimes. Several times we exposed the legal cases regarding Christianity. We killed stubborn [adherents] and released those who repented. Both central and local subjects heard and saw all this together. These Nam Dinh soldiers, Pham Viet Huy and Bui Duc The, willingly rebelled, so our laws can hardly be lenient toward them, and we already have executed them. Even the one phrase they cited, “We do not change what [our] grandfathers and fathers did in order that we might be called pious,” is truly despicable, so these men deserved to be killed. It is difficult to believe that the hearts of people could have fallen and been deceived to this extent.
You again must send an edict to the officials in provinces near the capital so they will clearly understand that any soldier or commoner under their jurisdiction who foolishly adopts Christianity as his family religion, but then abandons it by stepping on the cross in a government office, must truly be repentant and cannot secretly violate the law by once again following this vicious religion. All those who have not previously abandoned the religion must now appear at the provincial capital to confess the truth, and they will be ordered to step repeatedly on the cross, and you must carefully observe them. If they act out of real sincerity, then you should immediately release them. But if the family has already been ensnared, so that the vicious thinking cannot be erased, and if anyone defends himself using the sentence “Not changing from the actions of one’s grandfather and father is being filial,” you should enlighten him regarding the great teaching, which states that of the hundred behaviors, none is greater than being unfilial. But this “being filial” is as follows: “The beginning of filiality is not daring to harm any piece of hair and skin because you received them from your parents, and the end of filiality is to honor your parents by establishing yourself and spreading your name in the world.” How can a person state that to be filial is not to change from the actions of one’s grandfathers and fathers? Confucius said being filial is not changing the teaching of your parents for three years. Zhu Xi said that if it is a genuine teaching, then you need not change it during your whole life, but if it is a false teaching, then why would you wait three years to change it? Thus, if one’s grandfather or father has acted incorrectly, then one’s children and grandchildren must change their behavior immediately. What is right is already clear. If you do not ask whether or not the matter is right, would this mean that if your grandfather and father lived by robbery and theft so that it led to their being punished by death, their children and grandchildren should also follow in this path and not change it?
In truth, both the knowledge of good nature and that of instinct are common throughout humankind. Not to regard one’s own father as father but, rather, to regard the Westerner as one’s father; not to regard one’s own grandfather as grandfather but to regard Western religion as one’s ancestor; not to know how to pay respect to the bright souls and also not to perform ceremonies for one’s ancestors, how can we call this acting in a filial manner? If your grandfathers or fathers are still alive, and you realize that they are heading in the wrong direction, you should take pains to change them. If your grandfathers and fathers were living in the late Le period, or during the [time of the] false Tay Son court, when education was in decline and governance was neither calm nor prosperous, they could not be shown the grand teachings, despite the regulations banning Christianity, and consequently they became badly deceived for their entire lives.
Now the court is at peace, and the laws have been brightly polished. Virtuous people should be praised, and wicked people must be punished. No one under Heaven cannot be made cultivated. They know that their grandfathers and fathers have already died, so why do they not want to avoid the disaster of being completely destroyed by covering up previous misdeeds based on lamented changes by their children and grandchildren? Anyone who is a child and grandchild in a time of great peace must console the souls of his grandfather and father by eradicating deep-rooted bad habits.
[DNTL (1961–), 12:96–98; DNTL (2004–2007), 5:501–3; trans. Choi Byung Wook]
The Unification Records of Dai Nam (1811–) is a comprehensive official gazetteer of the unified Vietnamese realm. Compiled and elaborated by scholars over the nineteenth century, it surveys the major features and personages from each of the provinces. Organized by province—with subheadings for matters from climate and topography to tax receipts, markets, dikes, and bridges—the text is an invaluable description of the Nguyen realm. It preserves a significant amount of local knowledge, albeit refracted through the lens of the central government and its administration. This excerpt is a description of the physical features and history of the Thien Mu pagoda. Among its prominent artifacts was a large bell, long an important feature of Buddhist pagodas, as attested earlier by the commemorative inscription in 1109 of a bell dedicated to the Thien Phuc temple near Hanoi. The Thien Mu pagoda was constructed in the early seventeenth century by the Nguyen progenitor Nguyen Hoang (r. 1558–1613) on a hill outside his new capital at Phu Xuan. It was a significant marker of the Nguyen rulers’ interest in Buddhism, but as this excerpt makes clear, the pagoda and its dramatic setting are an admixture of Buddhist beliefs, local spirits, and supernatural events. The reinvigorated Buddhism of the Nguyen realms proved an important spiritual and eventually political force. In the nineteenth century, Confucian-oriented Nguyen rulers actively sought to restrict the power of Buddhist institutions, while in the twentieth century, Buddhists forcefully challenged the pro-Catholic regimes of South Vietnam.
Thien Mu pagoda is situated outside the walls of the capital to the west on a hill in An Ninh village. A Buddhist pagoda has been there from ancient times, and it was rebuilt during the fourteenth year of Gia Long [1815], with the middle becoming the grand hall. Behind this on the left- and right-hand sides are two cooks’ houses. Also behind it are the palaces of the Maitreya and Guanyin [Quan Am] buddhas. Behind those palaces on the right-hand side is a building for storing the scriptures, and in front of the Grand Majestic Palace from west to east are the palaces of the Ten Kings.51 Each has his own palace, and in front of each one is a “home of thunder,” and directly in front of these in the middle are ceremonial gates. Above each gate are towers. The one on the left is a bell tower, and the one on the right is a drum tower. Outside the gate and to the left is a hexagonal pavilion for a stele, and on the right is a large hexagonal bell tower, surrounded on four sides by a brick wall in which there are eight gates of varying sizes. In the third year of the Thieu Tri reign [1843], the emperor wrote the poetry [collection] Twenty Scenic Views of the Divine Capital, and one of the poems is entitled “Sound of the Thien Mu Bells,” which was engraved on a bronze placard. In the fifth year of this reign [1845], a stone pagoda was built directly in front of the ceremonial gates, to the height of five truong, three thuoc, and two thon [sixty-four feet]. It was named the Pagoda of Compassion and Benevolence, but later the name was changed to the Pagoda of the Treasure of Fortuitous Destiny. The tower has seven levels, and each one venerates the Sakyamuni buddha of the golden body. In front of the pagoda is a pavilion for burning incense and praying, on whose top is fixed a wheel of the law, which constantly spins in the breeze. To each side of the pagoda are two stele pavilions; to the front to the left and right of it on three sides stands a railing near a gate made of two stone pillars carved with flowers and that sits close to the bank of the Huong River.
We now move humbly to its history under the present dynasty.
In the tan suu year [1601], the forty-fourth year of our Great Ancestor Emperor [Nguyen Hoang], the king’s procession came to Ha Khe, and the king saw a hill rising up from the plain like a dragon’s head looking backward; the Truong River was flowing in front of it, and Lake Binh lay behind it. It was an extremely beautiful view, and when he took the occasion to ask local people about it, they answered that this hill was very sacred. There is an old story that one night someone encountered an old woman sitting on the hilltop dressed in a red tunic and a green dress, who said: “A true leader should come here and erect a pagoda to collect all the ethereal forces to keep the royal line stable.” After saying that, she disappeared. This is why it was called Thien Mu [Heavenly Mother] Mountain. Because of the ethereal forces at the mountaintop, they built the pagoda there, which is the Thien Mu pagoda.
In at ti [1665], the seventeenth year of Emperor Thai Tong, the pagoda was renovated.52
In canh dan [1710], the nineteenth year of Emperor Hien Tong, the large bell was cast.53
In giap ngo [1714], the twenty-third year, the altar halls were renovated. The eight [sic] altar halls, stretching from the entrance to the monastery, are
The Heavenly King’s Palace
The Jade Emperor’s Palace
The Majestic Treasure Palace
The Hall for Expounding the Dharma
The Tower for Storing Scriptures
The Palace of the Ten Kings
The Hall of Water and Clouds
The Hall of Knowing the Taste
The Palace of Great Grief
The Palace of the Grand Master
Also behind the pagoda are many monks’ cottages and meditation chambers and “brother and master” gardens belonging to the abbot.
In at mui [1715], the twenty-fourth year, the king personally engraved a stone that was erected in front of the pagoda. And on the riverbank, a fishing pavilion was erected where the lord often came for pleasure. Later this pavilion was destroyed by fire in a battle, but the remnants are still there. At the beginning of the Gia Long era, Cao Duc Sieu of the Board of Rites could still remember where it had been. Its large bell and inscribed stone have survived.
The Recent Records of Trieu Chau says that the pagoda is in Ha Khe village in Huong Tra county, that it lies beneath the peak of the mountain above and rests along the river flowing below. It rises three thousand feet above the vulgar world but is within feet of the pools of Heaven. Once a visitor went for a walk, climbed nearly to the top, and unconsciously his heart became pure and all his vulgar thoughts evaporated. It is truly a place fit for an abbot.
In the sixteenth year of Thanh Thai [1905], many gales caused great devastation. In the nineteenth year [1908], the Palace of Maitreya and the ten palaces and three buildings around it were moved and rebuilt, and the incense prayer pavilion was moved and reconstructed on the foundations of the old Palace of Maitreya.
[Dai Nam nhat thong chi, chap. 1, 51a–52b; trans. Catherine Churchman]
1. See “Treaty of Versailles Between Nguyen Anh and King Louis XVI” (chap. 4).
2. Viet Thuong is a term for the Vietnamese territories, derived from the name of a southern people who presented tribute to the Zhou dynasty court. It was appropriated by Vietnamese historians to refer to the pre–Han dynasty Vietnamese realm and is used in the Short Record of Annan and later texts.
3. Both Viet Thuong and Trung Nguyen described ancient or mythical realms associated with Vietnamese and Chinese territories, respectively.
4. This parenthetical note is in the original text.
5. Trinh Thanh To is the temple name of Lord Trinh Tung (r. 1570–1623).
6. Valley of the Sun (Yanggu), from the Classic of History (Shang shu), is a geographical reference to the cardinal point where the sun sets and rises.
7. Su Shih (Su Dongpo [1037–1101]) was a Song dynasty scholar and poet.
8. The “three riches” are Heaven, Earth, and people.
9. See Khanh Duc Emperor, “Edict Prohibiting Foreigners from Taking Up Residence Without Restrictions” (chap. 4).
10. See Le Quy Don, “Introduction to The Complete Anthology of Vietnamese Literature” (chap. 4).
11. See Trinh Can, “Edict to the Peoples of Quang Nam” (chap. 4).
12. See Tonkin Free School, “A Civilization of New Learning” (chap. 6).
13. Phat Lam (Fu Lin) has been the subject of much scholarly speculation but has not been definitively identified. It may have been Byzantium.
14. The parenthetical phrase is in the original text.
15. That is, the one ruler recognized by the lords in both the northern and southern realms of the country.
16. Mac Dang Dung (r. 1527–1541) was the founder of the Mac dynasty.
17. See Pham Dinh Ho, “On Marriage” (chap. 4).
18. See “Debate over Music and Ritual” (chap. 3).
19. The Family Rituals of Wen Gong was written by Zhu Xi during the Song period.
20. Nguyen The Tong is the posthumous name of Nguyen Phuc Khoat (r. 1738–1765).
21. “Ornamental and substantive” comes from the Analects. Here, it suggests that these changes were not merely superficial.
22. The parenthetical phrases are in the original text.
23. This practice was derived from the Classic of Rites (Liji).
24. Thanh Minh (C: Qing ming) is the traditional Tomb-Sweeping Day.
25. A tray containing various objects is presented to the child, and the first object picked up is seen to symbolize his or her future career or financial prospects.
26. The parenthetical phrase is in the original text.
27. For more on the Le Code, see chapter 3.
28. This version of the edict contains only the outline of the precepts. The full text of the lengthy edict, in The Veritable Records of Dai Nam, includes extensive commentary on each of the precepts and the reasoning behind it.
29. See Le Quy Don, “Wealth of the Nguyen Realm” (chap. 4).
30. See Trinh Hoai Duc, “Customs of Gia Dinh” (this chap.).
31. See Le Thai To and Nguyen Trai, “Great Proclamation on the Defeat of the Ming” (chap. 3).
32. Ha Trung was the home prefecture and Mieu Ngoai, the natal village, of the Nguyen clan, from which they emerged to help restore the Le dynasty.
33. Nguyen Trat was another name for Nguyen Quang Toan, the son and successor of the Quang Trung emperor.
34. This refers to the exile of the restorer and future emperor of the Xia dynasty, Xia Shaokang, in the third millennium B.C.E.
35. This refers to the exile of the future emperor Han Guangwu, who restored the Han dynasty after the Wang Mang uprising in the first century C.E.
36. This refers to the noted female Tay Son general Bui Thi Xuan, the wife of General Tran Quang Dieu.
37. This refers to the Tay Son’s long-standing imperial center at Cha Ban (the former Cham capital of Vijaya).
38. Tran Quang Dieu and Dung were noted Tay Son generals.
39. This refers to the nine generations of Nguyen lords in the south.
40. See “Debating French Demands” (this chap.).
41. The two parenthetical comments are in the original text.
42. When the Tay Son armies reached Thang Long in the summer of 1786.
43. See Trinh Cuong, “Edict Regarding Local Customs” (chap. 4).
44. In fact, this quotation is from the Analects.
45. Mu Lian was a devout Buddhist practitioner who journeyed into the lowest levels of the Buddhist hell in order to rescue his mother. This tale sought to reconcile Confucian notions of filial piety with Buddhist belief and doctrinal systems.
46. Xiaoyan, an emperor of the Liang dynasty, was a devoted Buddhist who died at the end of a civil war after a lengthy siege of his palace.
47. The “three origination days” are the fifteenth day of the first, seventh, and tenth lunar months.
48. Ximen Bao, an official in the Warring States period (Wei dynasty), was known for his clear and appropriate judicial decisions; Di Renjie, an official in the Tang dynasty, was noted for his honesty and uprightness.
49. See Zeng Gun, “The Spirit Cao Lo” and “The Mountain Spirit,” and Zhao Cheng, “An Indigenous King” (all in chap. 1), and Ly Thuong Kiet, “The Southern Land”; “The Spirit of To Lich”; “Lady God of the Earth”; “The Spirit of Phu Dong”; and Ly Te Xuyen, “The Cult of Phung Hung,” “The Trung Sisters,” and “The Ideal Official” (all in chap. 2).
50. This refers to the Le Van Khoi revolt of 1833, which was supported by Vietnamese Christians. See Minh Mang Emperor, “Edict to the Literati and Commoners of the Six Provinces of Southern Vietnam” (this chap.).
51. The Ten Kings are the rulers of the Buddhist underworld who pass judgment on the dead.
52. Emperor Thai Tong is the posthumous title given to the Nguyen lord Nguyen Phuc Tan (r. 1648–1687).
53. Emperor Hien Tong is the posthumous title given to the Nguyen lord Nguyen Phuc Chu (r. 1691–1725).