A spiritual and cultural space has opened at the Vietnamese Women'sMuseum to help people understand more about Mother Goddesses worship, aVietnamese folk belief with a long history which has adapted to socialchanges.

Today this belief is widely practised throughoutVietnam and in Vietnamese communities overseas. The exhibitionfeatures an altar of Mother Goddesses, the related rites and theposition of this belief among Vietnamese people.

Worshipof the Mother Goddesses address the concern of daily life and desiresfor good health and good fortune. Worshippers find great emotionalsupport in their belief and it attracts followers from all parts ofsociety, said Nguyen Thi Bich Van, the museum's director.

Key values of Mother Goddesses worship are introduced through the voicesand experiences of worshippers in Hanoi and northern provinces togive visitors a better understanding of the typical Vietnamese folkbeliefs.

The exhibition is divided into four sections: theMother Goddesses, Pure Heart, Joy and Beauty. Each section correspondsto one of four colours identified with the four palaces of the MotherGoddesses religion: Red as Palace of Heaven , White as Palace ofWater , Yellow as Palace of Earth and Green as Palace ofMountains and Forests. Each Mother Goddess controls one palace withsupport from many gods and heroes.

Visitors are sure to beimpressed with the exhibition's portrayal of the “hau dong”(mediumship) ritual involving the sophisticated mixture of colourssymbolising the Four Palaces , “chau van” (spiritual singing) andthe sacred principles involved in arranging the altars, offerings,costumes and jewellery.

A moving aspect of the exhibitwill offer visitors a glimpse of a recreated sacred space paying tributeto the Mother Goddesses, who worshipers believe protect and supportthem in overcoming difficulties and misfortunes. Pure Heart is expressedthrough the respect and belief of the people. They follow MotherGoddesses, do good things, remember their ancestors, and seek goodhealth and prosperity.

"It's expected that through theexhibition, people will understand the cultural value of the MotherGoddesses belief," said Dr Nguyen Van Huy, former director of theVietnam Museum of Ethnology.

Laurel Kendall, a researcherfrom the US who helped organise the exhibition, said the hau dongritual was a type of performing art in which the medium wears beautifulcostumes and jewellery, dances and tells stories of the gods and heroesthrough “chau van” music.

"The Beauty subject of the exhibition reflects the beautiful performances found in Mother Goddesses worship," she said.

"Each god has his/her own story and appearance so the medium changescostumes and movements flexibly. That performance becomes a beautifulvisual art to attract the audience."

The interactionbetween the medium, spectators and musicians in the ritual spacegenerates an accelerating sense of joy until the ecstatic participantsare able to forget all the sorrow of their daily life.

This sense of joy grows when spectators receive “loc” (god's spiritualand material favour), including the fruit and flowers used to worship,which is distributed to spectators when the ritual is over.

The Vietnamese Women's Union began research for this temporaryexhibit in 2009 with sponsorship from the Ford Foundation and the Centrefor Research, Support and Development of Culture.

Kendallhas attended many “hau dong” rituals and learnt much more about theMother Goddesses belief in Vietnam . She expects that the exhibitionwill help both Vietnamese and foreign people understand the belief'svalues through presentation in Vietnamese, French and English. A filmscreening typical “hau dong” performances is being shown adjacent to theshowroom.

The exhibition is on-going at the Vietnamese Women's Museum, 36 Ly Thuong Kiet Street , Hanoi. /.