Rice blowing festival for Thi Cam competition

Rice blowing festival for Thi Cam competition Thi Cam Festival rice blowing festival (Xuan Phuong commune, Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi city) on January 8th every year to commemorate the merits of Tutelary God Phan Tay Nhac, the 18th Hung King, and the three princesses who had the merit of suppressing the enemy and taking care of the lives of the people. Legend has it that General Phan Tay Nhac was assigned to lead the army to fight the enemy. When he passed through Huong Canh village (Thi Cam village), he organized an exam to select people who were good at logistics to serve the army. Returning victorious, the general stayed in this land, teaching the people how to grow rice and weave cloth. After his death, he was worshiped by the people as the village's Tutelary God. On January 8, he chose to hold a rice-blowing festival. Before the festival, the community and the Communal Relics Management Board meet and assign tasks to each person holding the main role such as: Mr. Tu Dinh, the celebrant, 4 rice-blowing competition teams representing the 4 zodiacs... Previously, participants in the rice-blossoming competition team had to be unmarried, now, they only need to be healthy people with no family troubles. Items prepared for the festival include: copper pots, bowls, good quality rice, pestles, stone mortars, copper pots, fire tools, fuel (gang, straw, cork)... Copper pots and bowls are kept in the harem, only to be brought out for use when there is a festival. Straw is a type of sticky rice straw, used for pounding and cooking rice. It is braided into a roll to use as a pillow to pound the rice to prevent the mortar from dislodging. It is placed on the mouth of the mortar to prevent the rice from shooting out. Tangled straw and rolled straw for cooking rice. Wood and bamboo are split, dried and used to make fires. Fire-making tools are made from bamboo sticks, old bamboo, a handful of straw and some sawdust. When practicing making fire, the user takes 2 sticks and clamps them on tinder, uses 2 bamboo sticks to hold both ends firmly and 2 people tug so that the sticks rub against the bamboo sticks many times, creating friction to ignite the sawdust and straw. Besides the rice cooking contest, during the festival, villagers also organize many folk games such as cockfighting, tug of war, duck neck throwing, Chinese chess, pot smashing... In the Thi Cam Competition Rice Blowing Festival, people practice together to demonstrate democracy, solidarity, and personal responsibility to the community in common village activities. Participating in festival practices not only helps people be happy and healthy, satisfy their spiritual needs, but also binds people together to form and strengthen a unified community, build a life together, and maintain local customs and traditions. The festival also attracts a large number of people and tourists from all over to attend the festival, contributing to strengthening the connection between human communities. The Thi Cam communal house rice-blowing festival reflects the characteristics of wet rice farming residents in the Northern Delta, praying for a full, happy and peaceful new year; is an opportunity for people to return to their roots and remember their ancestors who have contributed to defending the country and building the village; transmitting religious practices, educating generations about love of homeland and love of labor. The practice of association contributes to empowering the people, expressing their belief in the presence and protection of the Tutelary God; reflect their spiritual worldview and beliefs; reflects the religious activities of the people of Thi Cam village in the past. The Rice Blowing Competition contributes to preserving and nurturing traditional cultural values, imbuing the local cultural identity.