The Transformed Process in the Cult of Ông Bổn of Vietnamese - Chinese in the South of Vietnam

Abstract

In the process of settling in Vietnam, the Chinese community has shown the diversity, creativity, flexibility and transformation when they settled in the new land. In the religious domain, they mostly worship Guan Gong (Quan Công), Matsu (Thiên Hậu), etc. There were shrines to worship Ông Bổn in places where the Chinese settled such as Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam in particular. The cult of Ông Bổn marked their immigration in the new land. In the process of expanding, there was a transformation from natural god to personal god and finally to natural god in the cult of Ông Bổn that met the Chinese religious needs in the context of industrialization, especially in Hồ Chí Minh City. The cult of Ông Bổn helped to confirm that the Chinese considered their settlements as their homeland. It also proved the trend of transferring from immigrants to become Vietnamese citizens.