Unique zither
On the Lunar New Year's Eve of Binh Thin year (1736), by Dong Ho lagoon, Ha Tien town, Governor Mac Thien Tich (Mac Cuu's son, who made great contributions to the construction and development of Ha Tien land) opened the Tao dan Chieu Anh Cac (TDCAC) - a poetry forum with historical and literary value in Vietnam. According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Manh Nhi, it is the 2nd tao dan of the nation after more than 2 centuries since the Tao dan Association founded by King Le Thanh Tong (1442-1497) in the winter of 1495, but TDCAC is not only an appearance to maintain or affirm and promote the unique form of poetry and poetry activities of the nation..., but also to reach for many other values. Not stopping at organizing sea bathing, the activities of this poetry commune also integrate education, training talents, especially ordinary people, developing culture... and beyond.
According to Dr. Huynh Cong Tin - former Deputy Head of the Faculty of Literature (Can Tho University), before the 18th century, the literary civilization of the Southern region of the Fatherland (also known as Dang Trong) was still just embryonic, but the appearance of TDCAC has opened up the literary circuit for poetry activities and poems, leaving deep imprints for life. Prominent is the birth of 2 poetry communes: "Binh Duong poetry commune" and "Bach Mai poetry commune" with a series of authors and works such as "Gia Dinh tam gia thi": Trinh Hoai Duc, Ngo Nhon Tinh, Le Quang Dinh (Binh Duong poetry commune). Especially in Bach Mai poetry commune, there is Mr. Nguyen Dinh Chieu - author of famous poetry tales: Luc Van Tien, Duong Tu - Ha Mau, Ngu tieu y tac van tay... who was recognized by UNESCO as a great poet and cultural figure of mankind in 2021. According to researchers, CAC is also unique in that: As the only poetry
Although it only existed for more than 30 years (1736-1771) due to Ha Tien's chaos, TDCAC still managed to build its own position as a literary monument. Besides writing in Han script, there is also writing in Nom script. The policy of writing in Nom script in the context of Han script maintaining a prosperous position is something not many Vietnamese people do. Yet, even though he only carries half of Vietnamese blood, Mac Thien Tich not only does it but also does it in large quantities and with very high quality.
Trinh Hoai Duc, in an article for reprinting the book Minh dot di ngu in 1821, said that he had seen 6 sets of books published by CAC, such as: Ha Tien thap canh; Minh dot di ngu; Ha Tien bay vat thi tinh... However, due to many historical reasons, most of this work was lost, only Ha Tien thap canh and Minh dot di ngu remained... But this is more than enough for posterity to admire.
Ha Tien Thap Vinh has up to 320 poems "Duong Luat", praising 10 beautiful scenes in Ha Tien land, including 10 poems sung and 320 poems painted (including Nguyen Cu Trinh's). A scene with over 30 poems and poetry praising is already rare, even more rare when this is poetry "Duong Luat" painted according to poems sung. Thanks to that, the landmarks "Kim Du Lan Dao", "Binh San Diep Thuy", "Thach Dong Thon Van", "Nam Pho Trong Ba"... enter poetry. This is not only a discovery of beautiful scenery but also a creative way for the beauty scenery in Ha Tien to be like a cultural milestone affirming national sovereignty in remote border areas...
Prevent the fierce water from waving; Protect the healthy people from leaning backwards" (Kim Du Lan Dao). The direction of creation towards the topic of everyday life, TDCAC, led by Mac Thien Tich, not only refreshes itself compared to most contemporary and previous creations, but also turns each poem into a picture of geo-spirit - culture. All converge into a declaration about the cultural vitality of the Vietnamese nation in the border. Therefore, during his lifetime, Le Quy Don - an extremely meticulous scientist - assessed CAC's work as a literary-historical-geographic dictionary about Ha Tien: "Not only helps us know the mountains and rivers of Ha Tien... but can also replace the history of Ha Tien".
Vietnam's first international forum
TDCAC is also affirmed by many researchers as the first international forum of Vietnam in terms of both personnel and exchange methods. If Tao Dan Festival only gathers 28 members, mainly current-time officials, then CAC has the ability to gather very powerfully.
Due to many historical limitations, the recording of members participating in tao dan of some documents is not uniform. Many documents previously only recorded 32 members, but recently, with the support of information technology... have recorded over 70 members. Despite the data difference, all have a common point that records that CAC gathers the largest number of members among medieval Vietnamese literary tao dan. More uniquely, this number of members coming to tao dan are not only people who are passionate about literature but also because of cultural - educational, ideological institutions, then printing... More especially, true to the title, CAC gathers talented people not only in Ha Tien, but also in the Southern region, even foreigners.
Master Tran Hot Lai - who spent a lot of time researching Ha Tien and the Mac family - after consulting, comparing, and comparing many sources of documents, has summarized 72 members with full names and hometowns. Among them, only 7 are Vietnamese, the rest are Chinese in two provinces: Fujian, Guangdong. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand why researcher Quang Chanh (Ho Chi Minh City University of Education) called TDCAC "Modern Academy". This not only proves the talent and virtue of the commander, but also brings the poetry a diversity of styles and writing styles... thereby building a CAC as majestic as a Vietnamese poetic monument...
Because even poets who have never been to Ha Tien, all those poetry poems all speak of the spirit that Mac Thien Tich entrusted. Even through the poetry collection, many Chinese poets compare and see Ha Tien land as the scene of the buffalo sky and the porch land," Mr. Truong Thanh Hung - former Chairman of the Kien Giang Provincial Literature and Arts Association - emphasized.
Besides, with his "literary diplomacy" ability, Mac Thien Tich also made TDCAC the first national literary poetry commune to exchange internationally. In the title "Ha Tien Thap Vinh", Mac Thien Tich specifically said: "When I brought Ha Tien Thap Canh to my soulmate, teacher Tran (ie Tran Tri Khai - a Chinese merchant - PV) raised the Tao Dan flag, opened an elegant festival. Then teacher Tran returned to Chau Giang and brought it to the poetry village, thanks to his merits, he didn't give it up. When the "Ha Tien Thap Vinh" was finished, he contributed a collection to send to us, and then printed it".
According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Manh Nhi, with the journey from Ha Tien across the sea to China, and then back from China and the return is more dense, Ha Tien Bay plays the role of a "messenger" informing the "poetry village" in China that in Vietnam there are such beautiful scenes, there is a literary organization imbued with the everyday breath of Ha Tien land. That is not only a declaration of cultural vitality, but also a political and cultural message - using poetry and literature to affirm the cultural identity, the territory of the border region of the Fatherland.
