Ao dai Show has been so far considered one of the principal programs of Hue Festival
One day in early June, many elderly people and descendants of Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat were very surprised at and impressed with the news that Mr. Phan Ngoc Tho, Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, would visit Truong Thai Tomb on the following day.
Very early on that day, in ao dai and turban, they waited at the tomb to welcome the special guests. To their surprise, the head of the province, together with other heads of relevant offices, came very early too.
Seeing the desolate sight and the bumpy road to the tomb, the chairman suggested that there should be soon a plan to embellish the area. In the immediate future, the road should be cleared and the environment should be cleaned. He also advised to complete the script for a ceremony to pay tribute to Military Lord, known as the one who started the Vietnamese ao dai. He suggested examining the surrounding area serving as a belt protecting the tomb, and planting pine trees or other domestic trees to improve the landscape.
Just more than one week later, the Hue Monuments Conservation Center and the People's Committee of Huong Tra Town launched a campaign to clear and clean up the road to the tomb, making it convenient for visitors. Action is better than words.
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Truong Thai Tomb is the tomb of Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat, the 8th of the 9 Nguyen Lords. It is located on La Khe Mountain, Huong Tho Commune, Huong Tra Town.
Military Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat (1714-1765) was the one who helped enlarge the country toward the south. The territory of Vietnam was fully shaped in his times. He also enacted many reforms in organization, administration, costume, etc., with his ambition of "establishing a country" for the Inner Realm.
The fact that Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat had people imitate the costume of Cham people and the changshan of the Chinese to make the five-tunic shirt for the Vietnamese made him “accidentally" the person who laid the foundation of the famous Vietnamese ao dai now.
Ao dai Show has been so far considered one of the principal programs of Hue Festival. However, few people know Military Lord and Truong Thai Tomb.
The fact that the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Phan Ngoc Tho visited and surveyed Truong Thai Tomb in person right before Hue Festival 2020 and directed the embellishment of the tomb area and the completion of the script for the pilgrimage to pay tribute to the person who started the Vietnamese ao dai is a cultural action. Ao Dai Show in particular and Hue Festival in general will therefore become familiar and sacred to every Hue person.
Story and photos: HIEN AN