How to Arrange the Mid-Autumn Festival Offering Tray

How to Arrange the Offering Tray for the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month (Tết Trung Thu)

What goes on the offering tray for the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month?

The full moon of the eighth lunar month, also known as Tết Trung Thu (the Mid-Autumn Festival), is an important traditional celebration in Vietnamese culture. It is a time when people give thanks to heaven and earth for a bountiful harvest, and also an occasion for families to gather and to give special attention to children. Arranging an offering tray on this day is a common custom, expressing reverence toward ancestors and deities.

This article offers detailed, easy-to-follow guidance on preparing and arranging the offering tray for the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month. Note that this is a reference guide based on common custom, and practices may vary by region and by each family's circumstances.

Preparing the offerings

Below is a list of the basic offerings commonly used on the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month offering tray. Depending on their means and local custom, families can adjust the list to suit themselves:

• Mooncakes: baked mooncakes and sticky-rice mooncakes, 2 to 4 of each; popular fillings such as mixed filling, mung bean, and lotus seed are good choices
• Seasonal fruit: usually fruits with auspicious meanings such as pomelo, ripe banana, persimmon, pomegranate, apple, grapes, watermelon
• Betel and areca: one pair of betel leaves and an areca nut to show respect
• Sweet soup and tea: a pot of tea or dry tea leaves, which can be replaced with clean water
• Sticky rice and sweet soup: a plate of mung bean sticky rice or chè trôi nước (sweet glutinous rice balls in ginger syrup), depending on the family
• Fresh flowers: a vase of chrysanthemums, gladioli, or gerberas
• Incense: a bundle of fragrant incense to light while praying
• Candles or oil lamps: two candles or lamps to light on either side of the offering tray
• Votive paper: paper clothes and paper money (if the family follows the tradition of burning votive paper)
• Five-fruit tray: usually five kinds of fruit in five different colours, representing the five elements

For families with young children, the tray can also include sweets, candied fruit, or traditional toys such as star lanterns and lion dance heads to add to the festive atmosphere for the children.

How should the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month offering tray be arranged?

Step 1: Clean the worship space

First, clean the ancestral altar or the area where the tray will be set out. If making offerings outdoors to give thanks to heaven and earth, choose a clean, open spot, and set up a small table or spread a clean mat.

Step 2: Arrange the five-fruit tray

The five-fruit tray is usually placed in the central position at the front. The fruits should be washed, dried, and arranged attractively; they can be stacked in tiers, with larger fruits at the bottom and smaller ones on top. A bunch of bananas is often placed at the very bottom as a base, with a pomelo or other large fruit in the middle and the rest arranged around it for balance.

Step 3: Place the mooncakes

Baked and sticky-rice mooncakes are placed on either side of or behind the five-fruit tray. The cakes should sit on their own plate, or stay in the box if unopened. If both kinds are used, alternate them for a harmonious look.

Step 4: Arrange the other offerings

• Place the plate of betel and areca at the front of or to one side of the tray
• Place the teapot or tea cup next to the mooncakes
• Place the plate of sticky rice or sweet soup (if used) behind or beside them
• Place the vase of fresh flowers to one side or behind the tray, without hiding the main offerings
• Place the votive paper somewhere convenient so it can be taken away and burned after the prayers

Step 5: Light the candles and incense

Place two candles or oil lamps on either side of the tray and light them before lighting the incense. Light an odd number of incense sticks (usually 1, 3, or 5) and set them in the incense bowl or a separate incense holder. Make sure the incense and candles are in a safe place, away from anything flammable.

Conducting the offering and the prayer text

Step 6: Praying

After lighting the incense, the head of the household (usually the eldest or the family's representative) stands before the tray, joins their palms, and recites the prayer text. The content usually covers these main points:

• Stating the name of the person praying and the family's address
• Respectfully informing heaven and earth, the deities, and the ancestors of the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month
• Expressing reverence and gratitude
• Asking for peace, good fortune, and health for the whole family
• Inviting the ancestors to come and partake of the offerings

If the head of the household does not know the traditional prayer by heart, they can pray in their own words, sincerely; there is no need to follow a fixed formula. The most important thing is the sincerity of the person making the offering.

Step 7: Wait for the incense to burn down and burn the votive paper

After praying, wait until the incense has nearly burned out (about 15 to 20 minutes) before taking down the tray. The votive paper is then taken to be burned in a safe, clean place, away from homes and other flammable objects. Prepare a metal basin or bin for burning the votive paper, and make sure the fire is completely out before leaving.

What are the important things to keep in mind when making offerings on the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month?

• Fire safety: always have someone watching when lighting incense and candles and burning votive paper. Do not burn votive paper near curtains, drapes, papers, or other flammable materials. After burning, wait for the ashes to cool completely before cleaning up.
• Regional variations: in the north, the tray often includes sticky rice and sweet soup, with emphasis on the five-fruit tray; in the south, it may include tropical fruits and bánh ít (small sticky-rice cakes); the central region often has local specialty cakes.
• Timing: offerings are usually made in the morning or in the evening of the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, when the family is gathered.
• A joyful atmosphere: after the ritual is complete, the whole family can share the feast, enjoy mooncakes, and talk under the moonlight, creating a warm, together atmosphere.

Arranging the offering tray for the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month is not only a spiritual ritual but also an occasion for family members to show their closeness and their reverence toward their ancestors. Whether the tray is simple or elaborate, what matters most is sincerity and the family's togetherness during this celebration.

What did Vietnamese people of the past offer at Tết Trung Thu, and how did they arrange the feast?

The book Việt Nam phong tục by Phan Kế Bính (1915) records that during the day people prepared a feast to offer to the ancestors, and in the evening they set out a feast to enjoy the moon. According to the book, the leading item on the feast tray was the moon cake, alongside many kinds of cakes, fruits, and flowers dyed in all colours: green, red, white, and yellow. Young women from the shop streets vied to show off their skill: carving papaya into flowers, shaping dough into shrimp and fish. This is a record of custom, not a rule that a proper offering tray must include any particular item.

In Tục thờ cúng của người Việt, Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) also uses the names tết trông trăng (the festival of watching the moon) and tết trẻ con (the children's festival) for Tết Trung Thu, since on this occasion people buy toys for children to admire the moon. The author holds that the Mid-Autumn feast tray, beyond the traditional offerings made to the ancestors according to each family, consists mainly of fruits such as custard apple, pomelo, and persimmon along with baked and sticky-rice mooncakes, so that the children can share the feast when the moon has risen high and shines brightly. In the towns of the past, people often organised dragon processions and lion dances, combined with cheerful, bustling drum music. Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) also notes that many people took the occasion to give their parents mooncakes and cốm (green rice flakes).

On the legend of Đường Minh Hoàng ascending to the Quảng Hàn Palace, Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) recounts according to tradition: the emperor dreamed that a Daoist priest took him up to wander the moon palace, where he was enchanted by the beautiful scene of fairies dancing the Nghê thường melody; on waking he was filled with longing, and so established Tết Trung Thu for watching the moon. This is a legend recorded in books, not a verified historical event.

The books mentioned above mainly describe the customs of the Kinh people of the north, so one cannot infer from them how the Mid-Autumn feast is arranged in the central region, the south, or among other ethnic groups. Toan Ánh (2001), Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001), and Song Mai and Quỳnh Trang (compilers, 2006) contain many passages copied from one another; for this reason this article cites only one book for each piece of information, and does not treat these books as independent sources verifying one another.

Overview article on the topic: What Festivals and Tet Occasions Are There in Vietnam Throughout the Year?

A summary table of the offerings and how to arrange the Full Moon of the Eighth Lunar Month tray, by group.