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TL;DR: Tết Hạ Nguyên (also called Tết cơm mới or Tết Thường tân) is a ceremony held in the tenth lunar month, falling on the first, tenth, or fifteenth day depending on the locality, to give thanks to heaven, earth, and ancestors after the harvest and to offer new rice to the family ancestors before eating the new grain. Tết Trùng thập on the tenth day of the tenth lunar month is a separate festival for healers and spirit mediums; many regions combine the various tenth month ceremonies into one.
The Full Moon of the Tenth Month, Tết Hạ Nguyên: The new-rice festival of thanks to heaven and earth that few still remember
When the northeast monsoon winds arrive, signalling that a harvest season has ended, the Vietnamese of old would turn their hearts toward the full moon of the tenth lunar month. This is not just an ordinary full moon day but also the occasion of Tết Hạ Nguyên, one of the most important traditional festivals, rich in humanistic value and in the spirit of "when you drink water, remember the source". Yet in the rhythm of modern life, not everyone still remembers and fully understands the meaning of this special festival.
What is the origin and the name of Tết Hạ Nguyên?
"Tết Hạ Nguyên" is a concept that originates in Chinese culture, entered Vietnam and was localised over many centuries. According to Daoist belief and folk religion, the year has three important festivals that all carry the word "Nguyên", corresponding to the three seasons of the year:
- Tết Thượng Nguyên (the full moon of the first month): the first full-moon festival of the new year, marking the end of the Tết Nguyên đán (Lunar New Year) period, an occasion to wish for a peaceful and lucky new year.
- Tết Trung Nguyên (the full moon of the seventh month): an occasion to remember the merits of parents and ancestors, and to pray for the release of the deceased, popularly also called the lễ xá tội vong nhân (festival for the pardon of wandering souls).
- Tết Hạ Nguyên (the full moon of the tenth month): a festival held on the full moon of the tenth lunar month every year, when the harvest has ended, to give thanks to heaven and earth for granting a bountiful crop.
In terms of meaning, "Hạ" can be understood as summer, but in this context it also carries the sense of ending, of ripeness. Cultural specialists hold that Tết Hạ Nguyên is an occasion for each person to look back on a year of hard labour and to give thanks to heaven and earth, the deities and the ancestors who blessed the crops so that they flourished.
Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) records that the new-rice festival is also called tết Hạ nguyên or tết Thường tân, and that according to ancient custom, in the Lý and Trần dynasties, after the tenth-month harvest, officials would visit the fields, collect the rice tax and then open the hunting season. Also according to Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001), Daoism and Buddhism hold that on the day of Hạ nguyên, the heavenly court sends the deity Tam Thanh down to the mortal world to examine the good and bad deeds of humanity and report back to the Jade Emperor, so people hold rites to pray for blessings and avoid misfortune. This is a folk religious belief, not something that has been proven.
Its place in the system of Vietnamese traditional Tết
According to the understanding of our forebears from the past to the present, the year has four important traditional Tết occasions, corresponding to the four seasons. These four Tết form a closed circle, closely bound to the agricultural life and the beliefs of the Vietnamese people:
| Season | Name of Tết | Time | Main meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | Tết Nguyên đán | The first day of the first month | The beginning of the new year, family reunion |
| Summer | Tết Đoan ngọ | The fifth day of the fifth month | Killing insects and pests, cầu mùa (prayer for a good harvest) |
| Autumn | Tết Trung thu | The full moon of the eighth month | Honouring the full moon, the harvest season |
| Winter | Tết Hạ Nguyên | The full moon of the tenth month | Celebrating the new rice, giving thanks to heaven and earth |
Tết Hạ Nguyên is the last Tết in that cycle of four seasons. If Tết Nguyên đán is the occasion that opens a new year with all its hopes, then Tết Hạ Nguyên is the moment that closes a cycle of labour, to look back and to give thanks. The existence of these four festivals shows an agricultural culture that values the seasons and the cycles of nature.
What is the profound spiritual and humanistic meaning of Tết Hạ Nguyên?
Tết Hạ Nguyên is not only a religious rite but also a spiritual and cultural activity with many layers of meaning.
Giving thanks to heaven and earth and to the ancestors: This is the core meaning of the festival. After a year of hard labour, the farmer has finished harvesting the crop. They offer to the ancestral altar the new grains of rice, the first trays of rice cooked from the new crop, to express their gratitude to heaven and earth for granting favourable rain and wind, and to the ancestors who blessed and supported their descendants so that they had a year of prosperous work.
Celebrating the new rice, celebrating a bountiful harvest: In the wet-rice agricultural culture, the grain of rice is the most precious asset. Being able to enjoy the new grains of rice after so many months of waiting is a great happiness. The new-rice festival is a widespread ritual in many agricultural cultures, and in Vietnam it is woven into the occasion of Tết Hạ Nguyên.
Praying for health and peace: Besides giving thanks, people also take this occasion to pray for the health of the members of the family, especially the elderly and the young, so that they can pass through the cold winter safely and prepare for a good new year.
What customs are practised on the day of Tết Hạ Nguyên?
Depending on each region, the customs of welcoming Tết Hạ Nguyên have their own distinctive features, but overall they still revolve around the following main activities:
The offering tray to the ancestors: On the full moon of the tenth month, families usually clean the altar and prepare a proper offering tray to present to the ancestors. The offering tray usually has traditional dishes made from the new produce, such as new sticky rice, bánh chưng, bánh dày, various fruits, and indispensably incense, flowers and candles.
Going to the pagoda for cầu an (prayer for peace and safety): Many people also go to the pagodas in their area to offer incense, listen to the sutras and pray for national prosperity and peace for the people and happiness for the family. This is also an occasion for everyone to turn toward the compassionate and joyful values of Buddhism.
Offering to the deities and the thổ địa (local earth deity): Besides offering to the ancestors, many families also hold rites to the deities and the thổ địa within their own grounds, to thank the deities who have watched over and protected the land and the house throughout the past year.
How do the new-rice festival and the Tết Trùng thập of the tenth month differ?
The new-rice festival (also called tết Thường tân) is the rite of offering the newly harvested rice, held on the first, the tenth or the full moon of the tenth month depending on the locality, while Tết Trùng thập is the day of the tenth day of the tenth month, in the past mainly kept by herbalists and spirit mediums. The two are not the same festival, but many regions merge them with the Hạ nguyên festival into one because they all fall in the tenth month.
According to Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001), the new-rice festival is held by each family: the newly harvested rice is dried, husked and pounded, then cooked and steamed as sticky rice to offer to the ancestors; only after that rite do people begin to eat the new rice. Also according to Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001), on this occasion children and grandchildren buy gifts, new glutinous rice and autumn-winter specialities such as ngói cuckoo birds to present to their grandparents, parents and respected elders. He also records that the ethnic peoples of Việt Bắc, Tây Bắc and Tây Nguyên all have a new-rice festival, held on different days after the harvest.
On Tết Trùng thập, Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) states that this festival falls on the tenth day of the tenth month and is usually organised by herbalists, spirit mediums and people who practise divination; the general public takes little interest, and many regions merge tết Thường tân, the Hạ nguyên festival (the full moon of the tenth month) and tết Trùng thập into one because they all fall in the tenth month. Usually those who have recovered from illness, or who have faith in mediumship and divination, hold the larger rites; the household giving the festival also prepares a lavish feast to thank the deities and to entertain the disciples and business associates.
In the North, Phan Kế Bính (1915) recorded in more detail: "The tenth day of the tenth month is tết trùng thập", mainly used by spirit mediums and physicians, though many villages also have this custom, and some places organise it on a large scale, for example the phủ Hoài area makes bánh giầy, cooks chè kho, offers to the deities and ancestors first and then brings gifts to acquaintances. In the Thanh Trì area, Phan Kế Bính (1915) records that people keep Tết Trùng thập on the 21st day of the tenth month, roughly because the harvesting is done, so they offer sacrifices in remembrance of the merits of the ancestors in farming and to console themselves for a day of hardship, while most only offer to the ancestors. These are records of the customs of the Kinh people in the North in the early twentieth century, and should not be generalised to other regions or other peoples.
Its connection with the weather and the cosmological view
According to the lunar calendar, the full moon of the tenth month usually falls around the time of transition between the two solar terms Tiểu tuyết and Đại tuyết in the system of 24 solar terms. The Tiểu tuyết term means "snow appears", signalling that winter is beginning to grow deeply cold. Right after it, the Đại tuyết term, meaning "thick snow", begins; this is the 21st solar term of the year, when the weather is very cold, some places see thick snowfall, and it directly affects the crops.
Holding Tết Hạ Nguyên at this time carries a profound cosmological meaning. People recognise the operation of nature, knowing that a cycle of production has closed and a period of rest and accumulation of energy is beginning. Giving thanks to heaven and earth on the threshold of winter is also a way for people to merge with the rhythm of nature, expressing humility and respect toward the supernatural forces.
Is Tết Hạ Nguyên still held in the modern context?
In modern society, when the agricultural economy no longer plays the leading role, Tết Hạ Nguyên is gradually fading and is little known to young people. Many people regard it merely as an ordinary full moon day, and do not even remember its name, "Tết Hạ Nguyên".
However, in terms of cultural and spiritual value, this festival still retains its meaning. In a year of hard and stressful work, setting aside a day to pause, to look back at one's roots, to give thanks for what one has and for those who have passed away is a beautiful trait well worth treasuring and preserving. Even though it is no longer directly tied to the harvest, the spirit of "giving thanks" in Tết Hạ Nguyên remains a profound humanistic lesson for each person in today's busy life.
Overview article on the topic: Which festivals does the Vietnamese year include?
