Two authors from Gia Lai were among those honored. Poet Nguyễn Thanh Mừng, from Quy Nhơn Ward, won second prize for a collection comprising “Câu thần chú tình yêu” (Love Spell), “Những thế võ trong hạt lúa Tây Sơn” (Martial Arts Moves in Tây Sơn Rice Grains) and “Mắt Chiêm Thành” (Eyes of Champa).
Poet Nhiên Đăng, who lives in Trần Quốc Toàn and is originally from Tuy Phước Bắc, received fourth prize for his poem “Hạt ánh sáng” (Grain of Light).
Following the awards, the two poets spoke about the inspiration behind their work, their journeys in bringing rice from the fields into poetry and their hopes of promoting the enduring values of Vietnam’s wet rice culture.
POET NGUYỄN THANH MỪNG: Every land has its own cultural pulse
* Your award-winning collection draws deeply on history, culture and memories of your homeland, particularly through images of Tây Sơn and Champa. What led you to take this approach?
- I have always believed that every land has its own cultural pulse. In our homeland, every mountain shadow and bend in the river carries traces of the past. Even in something as simple as a grain of rice or a sweet potato, I seek symbols of resilience and gentleness, while also sensing the spirit of a warrior.
Rice grains from the lands shaped by Champa and Tây Sơn cultures have accompanied the nation through history. In my poetry, they carry echoes of citadels, war elephants and the banners of ordinary people, taking on the movements of martial arts in defense of the country and its people.
In contrast to the cold sharpness of the sword, the realm of literature reveals a more hidden dimension of Quang Trung’s genius, one that can be explored through poetic language.
In any era, poetry requires the discovery of a fresh theme and the shaping of emotion into a distinctive poetic structure, or “tứ.” Once that structure is found, the verses can flow naturally.
* In your poetry, has the rice grain come to represent more than an agricultural product?
- When I write poetry, I do not look at straw or rice grains through the eyes of a consumer. I approach them as someone reflecting on their deeper meaning.
I believe all things possess a soul and their own virtues. In moments of stillness, I listen for the expression of heritage and see an equality between royal power and the first sprout of rice.
In this land, viewed through the consciousness of culture and history, the rice grain awakens many ideas in my writing.
* What was the “seed” from which this collection grew?
- Perhaps it was the result of many years of fieldwork. I have always been fascinated by the meeting point between literature and martial arts, and between history and everyday life.
I met martial arts masters, families and communities with deep traditions and listened to their stories. Gradually, I came to recognize layers of cultural sediment in the fields themselves and within each grain of rice.
I enjoy searching for the modern within the classical and for stillness within the storm. Those experiences have shaped the structure of my poetry and helped me see both the simplicity and the grandeur of the rice grain from my homeland.
* How can poetry help promote the value of Vietnamese rice today?
- I believe rice is truly elevated when it is accompanied by culture. If it is measured only by weight, it remains simply an agricultural product. But when poetry, history and culture come together to tell its story, every bowl of rice and every cake can become a form of “living heritage”.
I hope visitors come to a place not only to enjoy its food but also to appreciate its history and understand that every grain of rice carries the shadow of ancestors and memories of the homeland.
Poetry can serve as an invisible bridge, helping these values endure in people’s hearts.
POET NHIÊN ĐĂNG: Giving voice to our roots
* Your poem “Hạt ánh sáng” (Grain of Light) evokes a childhood landscape of straw, fields, frogs and kitchen smoke. Why did you choose such everyday details to build a larger symbol around rice?
- I wrote the poem as though I were a child far from home who suddenly remembered the earthy smell of straw during the harvest and the image of my mother sitting beside the fire.
For me, these things are not merely material from which to construct a symbol. They are part of who I am.
People may describe rice as a great cultural symbol, but to me it represents an entire lifetime. I simply try to write as truthfully as possible about what raised me. When I return to those simple details, I feel that I am touching my roots - the place without which I could not have become who I am today.
* The closing line of your poem, “they sowed grains of light, in the language of straw”, leaves a powerful impression. What does it mean to you?
- Imagine a pitch-dark house on a stormy night, or a meager family meal. What sustained us through those times? It was the quiet sacrifice of our parents.
My parents spent their entire lives working so that we could receive an education and have a future. The “grains of light” represent kindness, a love of learning and the integrity that my parents patiently planted within us.
Calling them “grains of light in the language of straw” is my way of reminding myself that, no matter how high or how far I may go, the light in my life was first kindled in those poor but warm family hearths.
* What does this award mean to you, and what do you hope your work can contribute to promoting the values of rice culture, Vietnamese people and rural life among today’s readers?
- This award affirms that my concerns about rice and my roots have value. It is a sincere source of encouragement and gives me greater motivation to continue writing.
I do not expect my work to achieve anything grand. I simply hope that those who read it will cherish their parents more and appreciate the bowl of rice before them.
If I can contribute even a small voice to the effort to preserve the values of our homeland, that is already a source of happiness for me.