What do 'tam linh' and 'du lich tam linh' mean differently from before?
In Vietnamese today, "tam linh" is commonly used to refer to matters of spiritual life, belief in supernatural forces, or activities connected with religion and folk belief. Kind of knowledge: School: Dinh Hong HaiSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsBut according to Dinh Hong Hai (2021), this is a recently adopted word, and its current meaning differs sharply from the definitions recorded in 20th-century dictionaries. He traces the etymology of "tam linh" and "du lich tam linh", then places them in the context of their emergence and existence in contemporary Vietnamese society, from the Doi Moi period to the present.
According to the author, these are two terms that have only recently appeared in Vietnamese society, used to speak of activities at the intersection of religion and folk belief with the economy and tourism. The study uses K. Marx's theory of commodification and Ludwig v. Mises's praxeology to examine related issues in the period from Doi Moi to the present.
Dinh Hong Hai's work (2021) places these two concepts alongside Western terms for comparison: "spirituality" tied to spiritualism, and "pilgrimage" tied to major religions such as Christianity or Islam. Kind of knowledge: School: Dinh Hong HaiSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsIn Vietnam, according to the author, "tam linh" and "du lich tam linh" instead arose from the socialist-oriented market economy together with the tourism boom after Doi Moi.
This means that when people use the word "tam linh" in Vietnamese today, they usually no longer use it with its old dictionary meaning, but as a concept tied to the market and consumption. This is a point to keep in mind when reading any article on this topic.
How does the Hue Festival reconstruct the Nam Giao ceremony?
Oscar Salemink (2007) studied the Hue Festival and showed that court rituals are reconstructed as a heritage product serving tourism. The study is titled "The emperor's new clothes: Re-fashioning ritual in the Hue Festival", published in the Journal of Southeast Asian Studies.
Kind of knowledge: School: SaleminkSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsSalemink (2007) describes the Hue Festival as a periodic cultural event at which court rituals, most notably the Nam Giao ceremony, are restaged and recreated as a heritage product for visitors. The author calls this process "re-fashioning": ritual is reshaped to suit the demands of the tourism market.
What is notable is that this reconstruction is not merely the revival of an ancient ritual, but a deliberate activity aimed at creating a cultural product that attracts visitors. Salemink's study (2007) shows that ritual in this context carries both cultural symbolism and economic value, and the two aspects are not separable.
The Ba Chua Xu shrine at Nui Sam and An Giang tourism
The work of Ho Thi Dao and Nguyen Quoc Binh (2021) discusses the cultural value that the worship of Ba Chua Xu at Nui Sam contributes to An Giang's tourism industry.
Ho Thi Dao and Nguyen Quoc Binh (2021) argue that the worship of Ba Chua Xu at Nui Sam together with the Via Ba festival is both a distinctive cultural product and an indispensable element in the spiritual life of An Giang residents. In the recent period, as tourism developed, authorities, managers and businesses turned that belief into a signature tourism product of the locality.
According to these two authors, the legend of Ba Chua Xu at Nui Sam (An Giang) has existed for many centuries; local residents hold the Lady in utmost reverence, and that reverence is expressed in many forms: building places of worship, arranging statues, making clothing, offering gifts, and especially the ritual of worship and the solemn annual organisation of the Via Ba festival.
As for the festival, the two authors Ho Thi Dao and Nguyen Quoc Binh (2021) list many forms of activity: arts performances linked to four ethnic groups, sports competitions, entertainment, art exhibitions and cooking contests. These activities draw large numbers of visitors, and are held annually.
From the perspective of exploitation, this work asserts that in An Giang, Nui Sam together with the Ba Chua Xu shrine and the Via Ba festival brings together all the elements that make a destination attractive to visitors from everywhere, and is also a valuable cultural tourism resource for the province's tourism industry.
Kind of knowledge: Folk beliefFolk belief. What people believe, avoid or pass on by word of mouth, recorded as a belief, not as a checked fact. The five labelsIn folk belief, local residents believe in the sacredness of Ba Chua Xu, and this belief is expressed through worship rituals and offerings.
Kind of knowledge: School: Ho Thi Dao and Nguyen Quoc BinhSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsHo Thi Dao and Nguyen Quoc Binh (2021) also raise the opposite side: people's belief in Ba Chua Xu was originally just a folk belief, but at times it has been turned into superstition, and that indirectly benefits those who live around the Lady's shrine, those who want to profit from the faith of pilgrims and visitors in the Lady's sacredness.
According to this work as well, tourism is a two-sided phenomenon: on one hand it drives economic, cultural and social development; on the other, it causes degradation of the natural environment and the cultural and social environment, and tourism exploitation easily erodes the cultural identity of each locality and each ethnic group.
Thai Duong Ha fishing village: the cau ngu festival under tourism's impact
Nguyen Thang Long (2020) studied the belief life and festivals of the residents of Thai Duong Ha village, pointing out traditional values and trends of change in the present period.
According to Nguyen Thang Long (2020), Thai Duong Ha is a coastal village with a long history of formation on the old Thuan Hoa land. Situated in a habitat with the sea on one side and lagoons and rice fields on the other, the residents of Thai Duong Ha created diverse cultural features bearing strong elements of sea, lagoon and inland residents.
Kind of knowledge: DocumentedHistorical record. Backed by a document, a date and a source; the note number beside it points to that source. The five labelsThe study points out that in sea-based economic activities with precarious, dangerous and uncertain conditions, a system of belief in supernatural forces formed in their religious life1.
Through Nguyen Thang Long's survey (2020), the practice of beliefs and festivals in Thai Duong Ha today has changed in many ways, from timeframe and scale to ritual ceremonies. Previously, in years that fell due for the "tam nien dao le" cycle, villagers held the cau ngu festival lasting 3 to 5 days; today the festival lasts only 1 to 2 days. Similarly, the custom of worshipping the Whale now retains only the offering on the death anniversary of the whale at the whale shrine; the offerings still follow tradition but have been somewhat simplified.
According to this work as well, life has become more prosperous, and through socialisation, the community organises beliefs and festivals on a larger scale than before. Economic growth is also an advantage, acting as a foundation that helps preserve and restore belief and festival activities not only in Thai Duong Ha village but also in many other localities across the country.
However, the work also points out the downside of economic growth: people are easily caught up in the struggle to make a living, sometimes forgetting spiritual and cultural values and the needs of spiritual life; they are ready to give money instead of directly contributing labour to belief and festival activities.
Discussing urbanisation, according to Nguyen Thang Long (2020), Thai Duong Ha village now plays the role of the core of Thuan An town. The formation and development of Thuan An urban area from 1999 onward is among the key reasons why many cultural values of the residents of Thai Duong Ha fishing village have changed. Located only 12 km from the centre of Hue city, Thuan An town has seen increasingly strong seaside tourism. Thanks to that advantage, a series of resort areas have sprung up, blocking views, narrowing and deforming the relics and spaces of belief life of the residents.
The study also cites data on festival funding: according to material provided by Mr P.B.M., 82 years old, a resident of Thai Duong Ha, the total amount contributed by organisations and individuals at home and abroad to prepare for the festival reached nearly 600 million dong. This figure shows that the scale of the cau ngu festival is growing larger thanks to the support and contributions of a large number of villagers.
Kind of knowledge: Folk beliefFolk belief. What people believe, avoid or pass on by word of mouth, recorded as a belief, not as a checked fact. The five labelsAsked about the deity worshipped in the Thai Duong phu nhan shrine, a 22-year-old resident of Hai Tien residential group answered: "I don't know exactly who is worshipped, I only heard my grandparents say that this shrine worships the Lady".
Nguyen Thang Long (2020) observes that if viewed in terms of development, the forms of belief and festival values in Thai Duong Ha have by no means lost faith, but have only transformed and changed in behaviour. Even so, faced with new challenges, the question is how to keep traditional folk beliefs and festivals from being deformed.
Why the site uses the word 'tam linh' cautiously
As presented, "tam linh" in Vietnamese today is a new word, and its current meaning differs sharply from 20th-century dictionary definitions. When the site uses this word, it is necessary to distinguish two planes clearly: one is the belief and folk faith of practitioners; the other is the tourism product bearing the name "tam linh" created by the market. Kind of knowledge: School: Dinh Hong HaiSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsDinh Hong Hai (2021) shows that "tam linh" and "du lich tam linh" emerged within the market economy and the tourism boom after Doi Moi, and are analysed through theories of religious commodification.
Kind of knowledge: UnprovenNot enough evidence. Someone has claimed it, but no source or study is strong enough to confirm it. The five labelsThere is not yet complete statistical data on the number of spiritual tourism visitors in Vietnam. Existing studies are mainly qualitative, case-specific, with no nationwide survey. This is a gap that needs to be filled in the future.
Table comparing the studies
| Study | Subject | Method | Main result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dinh Hong Hai (2021) | Etymology and new meanings of "tam linh", "du lich tam linh" | Etymological analysis, Marx's commodification theory and Mises's praxeology | Recent coinages, meanings differ from 20th-century dictionaries; emerged in the market economy and post-Doi Moi tourism boom |
| Salemink (2007) | Hue Festival, reconstruction of the Nam Giao ceremony | Case study | Court ritual reconstructed as a heritage product serving tourism |
| Ho Thi Dao and Nguyen Quoc Binh (2021) | Worship of Ba Chua Xu at Nui Sam, An Giang | Case study | Belief exploited as a tourism product; downside is the risk of superstition and over-exploitation |
| Nguyen Thang Long (2020) | Thai Duong Ha fishing village, Thua Thien Hue | Case study | Cau ngu festival changed in time and scale; economy and tourism affect belief life |
Conclusion
This article explains a word the site uses daily, helping readers separate belief from the tourism product bearing its name. According to Dinh Hong Hai (2021), "tam linh" and "du lich tam linh" are new words whose current meanings differ sharply from 20th-century dictionary definitions. Studies of the Hue Festival, the Ba Chua Xu shrine at Nui Sam and the Thai Duong Ha fishing village show that beliefs can be reconstructed and exploited as tourism products, but that does not mean judging whether a belief is efficacious. Where evidence is still lacking is data on spiritual tourism visitor numbers, for which no complete statistics exist yet.
