Knanh Ha Festival

On our arrival in Hanoi on 26 May 2018, we were in time for the Ball Mud Wrestling (Khanh Ha) competition in a Vietnamese village, Van Ha, Bac Giang Province.
The khanh Ha Festival held every two years in this village.
Against one another, the two eight-unmarried man teams attempting to score a “goal “ by carrying a 20 kg wooden ball to the opponent’s muddy pitch.
The festival celebrates victory of two brothers who defeated group of demons in mud ball game in a marsh. The game has attracted hundreds of spectator to enjoy the excitement . Senior villagers organize the game on the ground in front of the gods’ temple. The game was once held during the rainy season in the abundant mud puddles. It is also a time for locals to pray for good weather and bumper crops, and thus considered a tradition of the wet rice culture.