How to Arrange the Family Altar According to Feng Shui and Customs

How to Arrange the Family Altar Correctly According to Feng Shui and Custom

Introduction to arranging the family altar

Ancestor worship is a long-standing cultural beauty of the Vietnamese people, expressing filial piety and gratitude toward those who have passed away. The family altar is not only a sacred place for descendants to remember their forebears, but also a place that connects the generations within a family. Arranging the altar correctly according to feng shui and custom not only expresses reverence but is also widely believed to bring peace, good fortune and prosperity to the household. This article will guide you through arranging the family altar in a detailed and easy-to-follow way. Note that these are common customs offered for reference, and they may vary depending on the region and the circumstances of each family.

A summary table of the positions and arrangement of ritual objects on the family altar according to custom.

What offerings and ritual objects need to be prepared?

Before you begin, you need to prepare the following offerings and ritual objects in full:

• Incense bowl: Choose a ceramic incense bowl with handles for honouring the ancestors. Avoid incense bowls made of granite.
• Spirit tablet or memorial photograph: Placed in the central position, in the innermost row of the altar.
• Incense burner (bronze censer): Placed in front of the spirit tablet, usually the largest piece in the center.
• Lamp or candle: Two lamps or candles placed on either side, lit whenever rites are performed.
• Flower vase and flower holder: Used for fresh flowers.
• Offering dish: For displaying fruit or offerings.
• Water cups: Usually 3 small cups holding clean water, placed in front of the incense bowl.
• Five-fruit tray: Consists of 5 kinds of fresh fruit with attractive colours and shapes, symbolising the five elements and the household's wishes.
• Fresh flowers: Choose fragrant flowers such as tuberose, lily or chrysanthemum. Avoid flowers with thorns or an overly strong scent.
• Bánh chưng or bánh dày: Especially important during Tết, symbolising Heaven and Earth. Bánh chưng should be placed in pairs.
• Betel and areca: A plate of betel and areca is indispensable in many rites.
• Clean water, rice, salt: Placed in small cups or jars.
• Votive paper, incense, candles: Prepare these fully for burning incense and burning votive paper (if applicable).

What are the steps for arranging the family altar?

Step 1: How should the altar's location be chosen?

• The altar should be placed in a solemn, discreet spot with little foot traffic. Ideally there is a separate worship room or a distinct worship space; avoid placing it in the living room where many people come and go.
• Avoid placing the altar in the following positions:
• Right next to a bathroom or toilet, or with its back against the wall of these rooms.
• In a walkway, in a noisy place where tranquillity is lost.
• On top of a cabinet or under a roof beam. If no other position is available, a ceiling cover should be installed.
• Above the altar there must be no air conditioner, extractor fan, speakers or radio.
• Facing the Ngũ Quỷ direction (northeast and southwest), or facing east or southeast while looking toward the west.
• The altar should not be placed at the centre of the house, especially the family altar.
• In an apartment, try to create a separate worship space that is airy yet still discreet.

Step 2: How should the altar be cleaned and purified?

• According to custom, the altar should be cleaned after the rite honouring Ông Công Ông Táo (the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month) so that everything is ready for Tết. This is the biggest cleaning of the year. In addition, many families also wipe down the altar on the full moon and the first day of each month, or before death anniversaries and festivals.
• Take down all the ritual objects, wipe and polish them clean.
• Burn down the old incense stubs if the incense bowl is full, keeping only a certain number of stubs.
• After wiping, use fragrant water (five-spice water or ginger water) to wipe once more, a practice called "tẩy uế" (purification).

Step 3: How should the ritual objects be arranged on the altar?

• Central position, innermost row: Place the collective spirit tablet or the memorial photographs of the deceased. If several generations are honoured, place the collective spirit tablet in the middle, with photographs of grandparents and parents on either side according to rank.
• In front of the spirit tablet: Place the incense bowl in the center. If there are 3 incense bowls, the middle one honours the deities, the two sides honour the ancestors and the bà cô ông mãnh. The incense bowl honouring the deities should not have handles.
• On either side of the incense bowl: Place two lamps or candles. Nearby you can place a flower vase or flower holder.
• In front of the incense bowl: Place a small stand (or cup) holding clean water, usually 3 cups. On either side are plates of fruit, betel and areca, or other offerings.
• Five-fruit tray: Placed in a dignified position on the altar, usually in front or to the sides.
• Other ritual objects such as the bronze censer, lamp stands and paired cranes (if any) are placed in front of the incense burner, lower down and balanced according to the principle of "left yang, right yin".
• Arrange everything so that the whole altar looks balanced, harmonious and solemn.

Step 4: How should offerings be displayed and incense burned?

• Put fresh flowers in a vase or on a plate and display them on the altar.
• Arrange the five-fruit tray, bánh chưng (in pairs), betel and areca, and other offerings on plates and offering dishes.
• Pour clean water into the cups.
• Burn incense (usually 1, 3 or 5 sticks) and light the lamps or candles.
• The head of the household dresses neatly, burns incense and prays. When praying, stand facing the altar and pray sincerely.

Step 5: What are the main points of the prayer text?

• The content of the prayer usually includes:
• Stating the name of the household head, the address, and the date.
• Reverently presenting offerings (incense, flowers, fruit, goods) to the ancestors and deities.
• Expressing reverence and gratitude for the merit of giving birth and raising.
• Asking the ancestors and deities to bless the family with peace, health and good fortune.
• Promising to do good deeds, cultivate the heart and accumulate virtue, and maintain the family's traditions.
• Ending with words of hope and thanks.
• You can read the prayer text from a book or pray in your own sincere words.

In what order should memorial photographs and spirit tablets be arranged?

Memorial photographs and spirit tablets should be arranged according to the principle of "male left, female right", counting from inside the altar looking outward, and according to seniority: the highest rank is placed in the middle or in the highest position, with later generations descending gradually. In other words, when standing outside looking in, the photographs of male ancestors are placed on the left and those of female ancestors on the right, while the order of above and below expresses seniority between generations. Photographs should not be placed too close to the incense bowl or block the view of it, because the incense bowl is the most important object on the altar.

Can the family altar and the Buddha altar share the same place?

Yes, as long as the Buddha or deity altar is placed higher or in a more dignified position than the family altar. According to common custom, the Buddha altar is usually placed on the upper level, while the family altar is on the lower level or in front and lower down. If the house is spacious, they can be separated into two altars or arranged as two tiers within the same worship space. What matters is maintaining solemnity and clearly distinguishing the positions of the altars.

What are the safety notes and things to avoid?

• Fire safety: When burning incense, lamps, candles or votive paper, always have someone watching over them. Place them in safe positions, away from flammable objects. Turn off lamps and candles completely before going to sleep or leaving the house. When burning votive paper, burn it in a stove or a safe place, and do not let embers spread.
• Do not display imitation items: Plastic fruit and low-quality plastic ritual objects should not be used. Use fresh fruit and clean water.
• Do not leave savoury offerings or cash on the altar for long periods. After the rite, offerings should be taken down to be shared and enjoyed.
• Do not hang photographs of the deceased higher than the altar or in unsuitable positions.
• Pregnant women, according to folk belief, should not touch, lift the incense bowl or rearrange the altar.
• Do not place things unrelated to worship on the altar.
• If you honour the Buddha as well, the Buddha altar should be placed higher and separate from the family altar.

How was the family altar of the past divided into inner and outer layers?

According to Toan Ánh (2001) and Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001), the ancestral altar of the Vietnamese in the past was usually divided into two layers: the inner layer and the outer layer. The innermost layer, against the back wall, is where the thần chủ (spirit tablet) is placed inside the long khám (or a throne symbolising the ancestral seat); in front of the thần chủ is a tam sơn (three-peaked stand) used for displaying betel, wine, water and fruit during death anniversary rites. The inner layer is separated from the outer layer by a y môn, a red altar curtain made of the, nhiễu or cloth depending on the family's means. The outer layer, counting from the y môn outward, is the hương án (incense table) holding the incense bowl in the center, behind which is a small kỷ (stand) holding three lidded stands for wine cups used during rites.

Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) records that the y môn was only lowered on the day of the death anniversary, after the eldest son had prayed and the children and grandchildren had finished making offerings, when a savoury feast was offered. Toan Ánh (2001) explains, according to custom, that this was done so the ancestors could enjoy the offerings without the descendants looking up at them; this is an explanation rooted in folk belief, not a mandatory rule.

What wood are spirit tablets made of, and for how many generations are they honoured?

According to Toan Ánh (2001), spirit tablets were usually made of jujube wood, taking the meaning of the jujube tree's long life; in the middle of the tablet were written the family name and titles of the deceased, with the dates of birth and death on either side. The book also recounts the custom of honouring only four generations or fewer; by the fifth generation, the spirit tablet of the cao tổ (great-great-grandfather) was taken away and buried, a practice called ngũ đại mai thần chủ (burying the spirit tablet at the fifth generation). This is a custom recorded in the book; today many families honour their ancestors with photographs instead of spirit tablets, and the way of honouring also differs from family to family.

How were horizontal plaques and parallel couplets arranged on the altar in the past?

According to Toan Ánh (2001), a hoành phi (horizontal plaque) was usually hung above the ancestral altar; well-off families might hang two or three, each written in a different script style, chân, thảo, triện or lệ, with the reign year and the name of the donor recorded. Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) records that parallel couplets were hung on the columns or walls of the worship house: wealthy families made them of wood lacquered in vermilion and gilded, or inlaid with mother-of-pearl, while poor families wrote them on pink paper. Both kinds were meant to show reverence for the ancestors and to record and praise the merit of the deceased.