To someone who’s pretty new to Vietnam, understanding its people’s culture can be a puzzle. You can mention everything related to this culture right from food to the way people conduct themselves which can all be said to be a paradox. First and foremost, these people are deeply religious and their beliefs get the better of them and all aspects of their lives. It is however ironic that its government is communist in nature. Don’t be surprised by the fact that young people here are at liberty to choose their own life partners yet in the public mind no two people of the opposite sex are supposed to be mingling at public unless they are in relation to each other.
At some point you might wonder how some aspects of this culture integrate in harmony with the influence of the west. These aspects include things like family values, unquestioned reverence to seniors, placing other people before oneself. The cities in this country, though few, are probably one of the noisiest and most chaotic you may think about in the entire universe, yet its villages compliment this with harmony and dead silence.
The following are the issues, principles and ideas that form the fabric of the country’s cultural influences:
Principle of Honor:
The principle of honor in Vietnam reflects quite clearly to the face of people who haven’t grown in Asian countries. With aspects such as dignity, reputation and prestige you can tell just how much influence goes in their actions. Basically, a person’s deeds here can save or lose his/her face. This doesn’t just stop at Vietnamese cultures but extends to all Asian cultures as well.
Teachings of Confucius, who was an old Chinese sage. Confucius preached approximately 2000 years ago on teachings relating to human behavior and explained the value of virtues such as courtesy, duty, loyalty respect for elderly and the essence of purring others before oneself. It is from these teachings that the nation developed its fabric while its people built their everyday life behaviors. For example, he influenced practices such as greeting/serving the elderly first, not cutting short the elderly when they are talking and so on, all of which are now followed without much thought.
Religion: Even though philosophies of Confucian are a great influence in the lives of the Vietnamese people, there are three main religions followed by the others that command souls here namely: Buddhism, which is a major religion, followed by Christianity and finally Taoism. Many other minor religions follow the list. Ancient temples and statues are distributed across the country as a symbol of religion dominance from the early days. One notable fact is that inspires of religion here, all people converge together to remember and honor their ancestors on every occasion.
Socialism: while the western concepts of life revolve around individualism, here in Vietnam life is shared across the community, which plays a major role in how everything else is conducted. For instance, the individual is given least interest or attention compared how much given importance is stressed to self – sacrifice.
For all the above facts on Vietnamese cultures you truly find Vietnam a beautiful and interesting country to visit at least once in a lifetime. There is so much more you can experience and see with your eyes. Probably you will understand why the number of tourists to Vietnam is growing rapidly each year.
Collectivism: For a person accustomed to the western concepts of individualism, it can be