Today’s A Journey
through Aesthetic Realms
will be presented in
Aulacese (Vietnamese),
with subtitles in Arabic,
Chinese, English,
French, German,
Hungarian, Indonesian,
Japanese, Korean,
Persian, Portuguese,
Russian, Thai,
and Spanish.
Where are you from,
lovely seller of Gon mats?
Do you have more
of them or not?
How many springs
have you seen, young lady?
Are you married with
children, and how many?
I’m from West Lake,
selling Gon mats.
Why do you ask
if I have more or not?
I’m almost
sixteen moons in age.
I have no husband;
how can I have any children?
You’re indeed
a celestial fairy
sharing with me night
and day the joy of poetry.
No, I’m not a fairy,
just an earthling.
Let us tie a love bond
between two poets.
What beauty have I
that enchants you so?
Your charm enthralls
the gentlemen.
I love your gaze
of passion.
Your every word is
imbued with poetry.
I’m from West Lake,
selling Gon mats.
Why do you ask
if I have more or not?
I’m almost
sixteen moons in age.
I have no husband;
how can I have any children?
You’re indeed
a celestial fairy
sharing with me night
and day the joy of poetry.
No, I’m not a fairy,
just an earthling.
Let us tie a love bond
between two poets.
What beauty have I
that enchants you so?
Your charm enthralls
the gentlemen.
I love your gaze
of passion.
Your every word is
imbued with poetry.
I love your gaze
of passion.
Your every word is
imbued with poetry.
You’ve just enjoyed
the song
“Asking the Gon Mat Seller,”
adapted from a poem
by His Excellency
Nguyễn Trãi,
a high-ranking mandarin
of Later Lê Dynasty
in the 15th century.
His Excellency
Nguyễn Trãi was
outstanding in many
fields such as literature,
diplomacy, and music.
He was also renowned
as a man of virtue.
“Asking the Gon Mat Seller”
was set to music
by composers
Dương Tiếng Thu and
Diễm Nhi, with vocals
by Thùy Trang
and Chế Phong.
Âu Lạc,
a beautiful country
situated in Southeast Asia,
with her longstanding
traditional culture,
has formed and
developed in all areas,
from literature, art,
religion, to costume
and cuisine.
In addition, graced
by Mother Nature,
Âu Lạc has favorable
conditions to create
many well-loved
local specialties.
Indeed, at a public lecture
in the United States
in March 1991,
Supreme Master Ching Hai
especially praised
the rich natural resources
of Âu Lạc.
Âu Lạc is among
the most enriched nations
in this world:
there are mines of gold,
silver, uranium, lead,
zinc, and tin.
Âu Lạc has everything.
There are morals, piety,
harmony, and
four thousands years
of civilization.
It is one of the most
ancient countries
in the world.
Our land has always had
abundant foods and fruits.
I remember when
I was a student there,
there was a great
variety of fruits
when I went to Bình Dương
and Long Thành.
And rice!
Aulacese indigenous rice,
called Tám Thơm,
is the most famous
in Southeast Asia
and in the world.
There are also other
products, dried or fresh,
that are most popular
in the world.
We are deeply grateful to
Supreme Master Ching Hai
for her
treasured words
and boundless grace
for the nation and people
of peace-loving Âu Lạc.
Since time immemorial,
the Aulacese sedge mat
has been closely
connected to people’s lives
as an intimate friend
from the cradle.
The sedge mat exists
in every Aulacese family,
from the countryside
to the city,
from thatched huts of
rural folks to palaces
of the noble class.
Today, all three regions
of Âu Lạc have famous
sedge mat making villages,
such as Nga Sơn village
in the north,
Bàn Thạch village
in the central,
and Định Yên village
in the south.
Although sedge mats are
called by different names
according to the local culture,
the main raw material
to make them
is still the sedge.
In today’s program,
we’re pleased
to introduce to you
the sedge mat of Âu Lạc.
The basic raw material to
make a mat is the sedge,
which is also called
the rush.
It is a triangular stemmed
grass that can reach
2 meters in height
and grows naturally
in marshland or alluvial-
rich fields alongside rivers.
We now invite you
to visit Vũng Liêm
in Vĩnh Long province,
a district specializing
in sedge cultivation
since long ago, with
a few hundred hectares
in farming area at times.
Vũng Liêm is
one of the main suppliers
of sedges for
the southwestern region,
as it produces high
quality sedges which
are flexible and durable.
After being harvested,
sedges are often split
on-site and then sun-dried.
After enough
sun exposure,
the sedge shrinks in size
and is greenish white.
The sedge splitting machines
we have just seen
were made by
Mr. Đỗ Văn Minh and
are currently used widely
in the country.
Are you officially
the person who
invented this machine?
I just re-invented it.
In the past, it was made
with the four immobile
rotation axes.
But now, I re-invented it
to make these four axes
be able to expand and
retract to accommodate
the sedges: expanding
for bigger-sized sedges
and retracting
for smaller ones.
So they look nicer
than before.
In the southwestern region,
dry sedges ready
for making mats are often
bought from merchants
who transport sedges
from sedge growing areas
such as Vũng Liêm.
The making of
a beautiful mat from
these dry sedges must
go through the 3 stages:
dyeing sedges,
preparing the loom,
and mat weaving.
Dry sedges bought or
harvested from the fields
will be split into strips,
then sun-dried
for about 3 days.
The sun-dried strips
shrink in size and have
a nice greenish white hue.
Now, we begin to dye
the sedge strips.
Often,
the 3 main colors are red,
yellow and green.
Usually we dye yellow first.
When the water boils well,
we put in the dye, then
the bundles of sedges,
and turn them
every 5 minutes
for even coloring.
Remove them afterwards.
You may add red dye
to continue the process.
Next, boil another pot
to dye green.
Sometimes to change color,
we can dye purple
in addition. After dyeing,
dry the sedges outside.
Next, we tightly twist
and install the “trân”
onto the loom.
“Trân” is a kind of
tree bark.
After being immersed
in water and sun-dried,
it’s torn into long strings
and coiled up
into big skeins.
Trân strings are then
attached to the loom.
The loom consists of
a weaving shaft
and holder shafts.
The weaving shaft is
made from 2 wood bars
connected together
by the weaver teeth
made from dry bamboo.
A hole is bored
in each tooth, and
the trân string is secured
through these holes.
The person making
the weaving shaft
is also an artist, because
whether the sedge mat
is completed beautifully
or not depends mostly
on this shaft.
If this shaft is not
skillfully made,
the sedge strips won’t
stay tightly together.
Now we begin
to weave the mat.
The worker secures
the trân strings over
the weaver shaft
and around
the two holder shafts,
which are set far
apart for mat weaving.
It takes 2 people
to weave a mat.
The worker at the lower
end is the sedge inserter.
This person’s job is
to hold a small stick,
called “the inserter,”
and when the worker
at the upper end
turns the weaving shaft,
either up or down,
the sedge inserter
just wraps a sedge onto
the inserter and inserts it
in-between the trân strings.
The worker at the upper end
will weave the sedges in,
one after another.
After weaving
each sedge strip,
the worker must knot it
with the outermost
trân string, so that
the sedge won’t loosen.
After finishing one mat,
the worker uses a sickle
to trim the unused sedges
at both ends.
Skill and precision
in every stage are
the necessary factors in
making a beautiful mat.
The following steps
are needed to make
a beautiful mat.
First, the split sedges
must be sun-dried thoroughly.
Second, in dyeing sedges,
the dyes must be
in correct proportions
in order for the mat
colors to shine brightly.
Dyed sedges must be
sun-dried just right.
If there’s too much sun,
it will be brittle,
and if too little sun,
it’s prone to get moldy.
Third, in inserting sedges,
workers must skillfully
integrate the colors to
produce a beautiful mat.
Fourth, workers must
weave evenly and avoid
breaking the sedges
or leaving gaps,
so that the mat looks nice
and lasts long.
When dyeing,
we must make sure
that the water boils well
for the color to be bright
and beautiful.
Before weaving,
we must make sure
the sedges are dry enough.
Otherwise, it’ll get moldy
or lose color in a few days;
then the mat will lose
its brightness.
Although nowadays
there are bamboo
and plastic mats,
consumers are still
fond of sedge mats.
Let’s find out
the advantages of
sedge mats through
information shared
by the professionals.
According to common
folks’ experience,
using the sedge mat
gives people
a comfortable feeling.
One advantage of
the sedge mat is that it’s
good for our circulation.
First, when using
the sedge mat,
our perspiration is easily
absorbed, so we don’t get
bodily aches and
our body feels better.
Second, it’s light, easy
to wash, and easy to dry.
Sedge mats
are biodegradable,
so they don’t pollute
the environment.
Sedge mats disintegrate
easily and leave
nothing dangerous
to our environment.
After it disintegrates,
it only adds more
nutrition to the soil.
It adds nitrogen,
phosphorous,
and calcium, all good
for the environment.
The sedge mat has
a special characteristic;
it keeps you cool
in the summer and
warm in the winter.
Therefore, consumers
like it because they won’t
have to change
to another mat
when the season changes.
The sedge mat is very
familiar to the Aulacese.
Since birth, a baby
is supported by the
sedge mat in his sleep.
Poets also use the image
of the sedge mat to depict
the tender happiness
of a young couple:
“Two mats laid side by
side under the moonlight,
On one, I read books,
as you weave fabrics
on the other.”
There are many more
love tales connected
with the sedge mat that
have been portrayed
in the arts, such as
the silent sorrow of
a mat seller in the
legendary southern
Aulacese nostalgic song
entitled
“Heart of a Mat Seller”
by Mr. Viễn Châu.
We invite you to listen
to the vocals of
Mr. Út Trà Ôn,
who performed brilliantly
in more than
200 Aulacese modern
folk operas and sang
in about 1,000
nostalgic songs.
Much admired by audiences,
he was praised as the
“Number One Singer.”
The Cà Mau mat
is brightly dyed;
I’ve endured much rain
and shine.
This particular mat
I will not sell.
It’s my pillow nightly
as I haven’t found you.
The boat carrying
Cà Mau mats has docked
at the Ngã Bảy canal.
Why hasn’t
the young woman of yore
come to greet me?
Your garden gate has
been locked since long ago.
As I carry the patterned mats
from my boat
to Rẫy village,
my muddy shirt is dotted
with beads of perspiration.
Your house is quiet,
front and back.
Cold wind chills
the winter evening.
From somewhere comes
the sound of the moon lute,
as if to stir a deep sorrow
in my heart.
You ordered a pair
of two-meter-long mats
to decorate
your bedroom, perhaps.
Today, you already
forgot about me and
wedded your husband.
These mats I wove myself,
selecting every single
sedge and jute fiber.
Now I’m here but you’ve
left for another town.
Standing at the garden of
old, I feel such sadness.
To whom shall I offer
these sedge mats?
Last year when
my boat docked
at the Ngã Bảy River,
you smilingly took me
to your house.
You led me
to your own room
to measure your
sindora-wood bed and
ordered a pair of mats.
You asked me the price;
I gave a low figure to
make your acquaintance.
Five days later, when I
was about to row away,
you stood on the pier
and carefully reminded
the requirements.
Then you turned
and walk away;
your rose-blossom blouse
disappeared behind
the bamboo grove.
You did not know
that I covered my face
with the hat
to hide my tears,
as I didn’t want people
to laugh and call me
a love-struck man.
In the past,
Cà Mau sedge mats have
followed the mat sellers
to all the southern cities.
Gradually,
mat weaving spread far,
and nowadays, many
mat weaving villages
have sprung up in
the southwestern region,
among them,
the most famous is
the mat weaving village
Định Yên in
Đồng Tháp province.
Định Yên village
has existed since 1920,
with approximately
20,000 residents,
of which 80%
are mat weavers.
Just in Định Yên village
alone, 1. 4 million
sedge mats are produced
every year.
Định Yên village
has many mat weaving
facilities, small and large,
both hand-made and
machine-made mat making.
Định Yên village is like
an exclusive world
of sedge mats:
sedge mats appear
everywhere from inside
to outside houses;
people are seen
drying sedges and
dyeing mats everywhere.
The colorful bundles
of sedges are left to dry
in the sun in the front
yard of every house,
with the sedges’ scent
permeating the air
all around.
We now invite you
to visit a weaving facility
in Định Yên village
to find out more about
the machine-weaving
technique.
The professionals
also commented on
the differences between
hand and machine
weaving processes.
Before, when mats
were hand-woven,
we used the loom.
Later we started
to use machines.
The first step is
to process
the raw materials.
We must choose good
sedges and dry them.
After drying,
we shake them flat,
then dip them
into the dyeing liquid.
After dyeing,
we sun-dry them again,
then bring them in
to the weaving machine.
The second step
is machine-weaving.
Machine-weaving
requires a worker to feed
sedges into the machine.
That worker must select
the correct colored sedge,
according to the pattern
or design decided
for a certain mat.
Once a colored
sedge strip is fed into
the machine, the machine
will weave it into the mat.
While the machine
is operating,
it automatically moves
left and right
to position the sedges.
When the mat is about
2 meters,
we stop the machine,
then begin weaving
another mat.
After a mat is woven,
we will have it trimmed
neatly, cleaned,
and sun-dried.
After drying,
we will sew the hem,
then flatten it the mat.
We buy the machines
to increase productivity
and output.
Two hand-weaving workers
only produce about
10 mats a day,
while a machine-weaving
worker can produce
about 40 mats.
Today our village
does both hand
and machine weaving.
There are mainly
two kinds of sedge mats:
plain and patterned.
The plain mat contains
no dyes and has a natural
sedge hue of light green.
The patterned mat
is diverse in color
and designs.
In the past,
to make a patterned mat,
workers had to weave
the colored sedges and
white sedges alternately
to produce
the desired pattern.
But today’s market
demands that workers
provide higher quantities,
and therefore the pattern
printing process emerged.
Let’s visit a facility
in Nga Sơn village,
northern Âu Lạc to find
out about the techniques
of mat printing.
Actually, this is like
a form of virtual painting.
Painting on a mat
requires
a pre-designed model.
As in any family-kept
profession, everyone
has his or her
own special method
in the techniques of
printing and steaming.
Whether the color comes
out nice or not depends
on an individual’s skill.
After printing,
we put the mat into
a steam furnace
to make the color bright
and shiny; then the mat
will look beautiful
and the color
doesn’t come out
when we wash the mat
and when we lie on it.
Both the printing
and steaming stages
must be correctly timed.
Even just a little too soon
or too late is not good.
From printing
to steaming, the timing
must be precise.
So it also depends
on experience.
Not any printing
will necessarily
come out looking good.
Aside from
Nga Sơn mat village,
there is Hới village
which is also an ancient
mat village in Âu Lạc.
Hới village
has the Gon mats, which
are beautiful, durable,
and well-loved.
Âu Lạc’s literary history
still chronicles a tale
about a Gon mat seller,
named Nguyễn Thị Lộ,
in the 15th century.
Legend has it that
His Excellency
Nguyễn Trãi,
a high-ranking official
and a gifted poet,
one day during his stroll
at West Lake met
a lovely mat seller.
Light-hearted in nature,
His Excellency
Nguyễn Trãi recited
a few verses to her in jest:
“Where are you from,
lovely seller of Gon mats?
Do you have more
of them or not?
How many springs have
you seen, young lady?
Are you married with
children, and how many?”
The mat seller responded
by reciting verses
without any hesitation:
“I’m from West Lake,
selling Gon mats.
Why do you ask
if I have more or not?
I’m almost
sixteen moons in age.
I have no husband;
how can I have any children?”
The fluent,
poetic response of
the charming mat seller
made the high-ranking
mandarin Nguyễn Trãi
not only feel
for her beauty but also
admire her talent,
and so he wed
Miss Nguyễn Thị Lộ.
These timeless verses
were set to music
which we enjoyed
in the opening song
of this program.
Sedge mats have
since long become
an indispensible
convenience
in the Aulacese life.
In the last few decades,
Âu Lạc’s sedge mats
have been exported
and greatly enjoyed
by many countries.
After finishing a mat,
we trim both ends
and sun-dry it.
After drying,
we clean it again and
then sew the borders.
After making the borders,
we put it through
the machine to straighten
the sedges, so that the
mat doesn’t get warped.
After that we polish it
and remove the tiny hairs.
Then we put the sedge mat
into a paper
or plastic bag,
and pack the mats into
bundles of 10 mats each.
By that time,
the sedge mats are ready
for export, that is when
you export them yourself.
As for exports that go
through big companies
in Sài Gòn city,
then we only roll the mats
in bundles of 10
and transport
to those companies,
and they will pack, label,
and export from there.
The sedge mats here
have been exported
to South Korea,
Formosa (Taiwan),
as well as Cambodia.
The sedge mats here
mainly go to markets
in China.
And now, we’re
expanding to Japan,
Korea, Russia,
and Thailand as well.
Whether it is hand
or machine weaving,
the mat making business
has helped many families
maintain a stable income.
This mat making industry
has created a lot of
employment opportunities.
Just in Định Yên and
Định An villages alone,
there are about 15 to 16
thousands families
that participate
in mat making.
It doesn’t bring
high profits,
but never losses either.
This handicraft helps
the farmers to have work
during post-harvest time,
and it also creates jobs
for the youngsters.
For example, in this region,
the students go to school
in the morning,
and they can help their
families in their free time.
From 10 years old up,
one can participate in
this mat making business.
Life with this job
is very stable.
The income is also good.
If you work hard, you can
always earn money,
more or less.
This job is very easy
to make a living.
My family has been
in this business
for over 20 years.
Our income is enough
to cover the expenditures
of our children’s studies
at universities.
I have three children
who are now studying
at universities in Hà Nội.
The Âu Lạc’s sedge mat
is very versatile,
affordable,
and quite comfortable
for our bodies.
Sedge mats easily
disintegrate when you
can’t use them anymore.
Nowadays, with
technological advances,
the sedge mat
has become
more sophisticated,
meeting the needs
for convenience and
aesthetics as well as
the world’s increasingly
higher environmental
awareness.
Thank you for watching
our program today
on the sedge mat,
a specialty product
of Âu Lạc (Vietnam).
Please tune in
to Supreme Master
Television for more
on Aulacese specialties
in future broadcasts.
Coming up next
is Vegetarianism:
The Noble Way of Living,
after Noteworthy News.
Farewell for now.