E-Books →Hero and Deity Tran Hung Dao and the Resurgence of Popular Religion in Vietnam (Mekong Press)

Hero and Deity: Tran Hung Dao and the Resurgence of Popular Religion in Vietnam (Mekong Press) By Pham Quynh Phuong
2009 | 227 Pages | ISBN: 974303157X | PDF | 4 MB
"Hero and Deity" is an eloquent and fascinating journey into the world of the worshippers and the cult of Tran Hung Dao. The legendary fourteenth-century hero and saviour of Vietnam has evolved as a key symbol of the nation as well as an efficacious deity in its spiritual pantheon. Today he is a ubiquitous, multivalent symbol of the contradictions of contemporary Vietnamese society. Intertwined with this rich ethnography is a work of self-interrogation and engagement with the author's complex and changing 'home', and with the diverse women and men - intellectuals, Communist Party cadres, and market sellers alike - whose lives are centered to a significant degree around the cult of Saint Tran and other deities. The book is a contribution to the ethnography of Vietnam, cultural studies, and Asian studies and also an original and stimulating introduction to contemporary Vietnamese society. Pham Quynh Phuong is a researcher at the Institute of Cultural Studies, Vietnamese Academy of Social Sciences.