A worship house of Thanh Khe District’s fisheries sector in Da Nang is dedicated to the fishermen who died or went missing at sea.  This venue is indeed vivid evidence of the traditional spiritual culture in Vietnamese coastal areas.

Fisheries-related artifacts on display at the worship house

The house was originally built near a local beach in 1893 when a destructive tropical storm left a total of 1,500 fishermen from the fishing villages of Thanh Khe and Ha Khe dead or missing at sea.  Apart from human losses, the incident also caused huge property damage to the two villages. 

Then, in 1911, the house was rebuilt in an alley on Tran Cao Van Street, Thanh Khe Dong Ward, with its construction cost funded from local generous donors.

In addition to the victims of the 1893 tragedy, the worship house commemorates the deceased during devastating blows at sea since then, especially the powerful tropical storm Chanchu in 2006.

Most notably, on display in the house are valuable artifacts honouring the traditional Vietnamese fisheries sector over the historical periods.  Included are fishing nets and the models of wooden boats and coracles, and especially a precious wooden statuette of a fisherman holding a piece of fishing net and freshly-caught fish in his hands.

Every year, on the 23^rd day of the 3^rd lunar month, the Thanh Khe coastal villagers together conduct a large-scale ritual at the house to pray for wandering souls of the homeless.

Prior to their fishing trips to the national territory waters, local fishermen always come to the house to pray for their peaceful offshore fishing trips, with bumper catches.  If their dreams come true, they will make offerings to the house as an act of paying their gratitude.

Thanks to its great spiritual values, the worship house was officially recognised as national-level relic site in 2011.

In particular, the district hosts the annual ‘Cau Ngu’ (Fish Worshipping) Festival from the 16^th to the 18^th day of the 1^st lunar month.  The large-scale event features the traditional whale worshipping ceremony and games like the twirling basket, swing, tug-of-war, net-weaving competitions, and special dancing and singing performances including Bai choi (singing while acting as playing cards). 

The festival aims to enhance solidarity among fishermen to help them overcome difficulties in their work and honour their ancestors.

Becoming increasingly concerned about the dangers at sea, many of the district’s fishermen have already changed their livelihoods.  However, marine cultural values have remained deep in their minds.

Besides the worship house mentioned above, the district is also home to the Thanh Khe Communal House and the district’s Whale Fishing Temple, all of which preserve and honour the rich history of the city’s marine cultural values in the current context of local rapid urbanisation. 

These venues are spiritual places where communal meetings, cultural exchange activities, and solemn traditional rituals for local inhabitants are usually organised.