Knowledge / Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnamese beliefs, festivals, ancestor worship and taboos: where they come from, how they are practised in each region, and the culture behind them.
Classical allusion
“Ta thường tới bữa quên ăn, nửa đêm vỗ gối, ruột đau như cắt, nước mắt đầm đìa.”
Translation: I have often forgotten to eat at mealtime, struck my pillow at midnight, my gut cut with pain, my face drenched with tears.
Trần Quốc Tuấn (Hưng Đạo Vương) · Proclamation to the Officers
Vietnam articles
Star Offering and Misfortune Aversion at the Start of the Year: Where the Custom Comes From and What the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha Says
Year-start star offerings follow Cửu Diệu annual stars, not Buddhist doctrine; a 2019 Sangha directive limits pagodas to cầu an.
When to Clean the Ancestor Altar at Year's End? Order of Cleaning and Folk Taboos
Year-end altar cleaning runs from the 23rd of the 12th lunar month to before New Year's Eve. A guide to the cleaning order, the incense bowl, and folk taboos.
Chợ Viềng on the Night of the 7th of Tết: Buying Luck, and How Chợ Viềng Chùa Differs from Chợ Viềng Phủ
Chợ Viềng opens on the night of the 7th into the 8th of the first lunar month (12 Feb 2027). How Chợ Viềng Chùa and Chợ Viềng Phủ differ, and what is sold.
How cồng and chiêng differ in the Tây Nguyên cultural space
Cồng has a central boss, chiêng does not; both are brass gongs forming the Tây Nguyên cồng chiêng cultural space UNESCO inscribed in 2005.
What Is Hoàn Giáp and Does the 60th Birthday Longevity Ceremony Count Lunar or Western Age: The Case of Someone Born in the Đinh Mùi Year 1967 Meeting the Đinh Mùi Year 2027 Again
Hoàn giáp is when the birth stem-branch year returns after 60 years. Born Đinh Mùi 1967: 60 by reckoned age in 2026, hoàn giáp and 60 by Western age in 2027.
What Happens at the Bái Đính Pagoda Festival Opening on the Sixth Day of Tết? The Rituals and the Difference Between the New Pagoda and the Ancient Bái Đính Pagoda
Bái Đính Pagoda's mùng Sáu Tết opening features incense and lục cúng offerings, a palanquin procession to the ancient pagoda and spring festivities.
Bà Phi Yến's death anniversary in Côn Đảo: who she was, An Sơn Miếu and how the rites unfold
Bà Phi Yến's death anniversary falls on the 18th of the tenth lunar month at An Sơn Miếu, Côn Đảo. The legendary figure, the rites and the heritage debate.
The Nguyễn Công Trứ death anniversary in Nghi Xuân: who was Uy Viễn tướng công and how is the ceremony held
Nguyễn Công Trứ's death anniversary, 14th day of the Eleventh Lunar Month in Nghi Xuân, Hà Tĩnh: 22 Dec 2026, rites, his life and the founding of Tiền Hải.
Chùa Ông Cù Lao Phố Festival and the Quan Công Worship of the Hoa People in Đồng Nai
The Chùa Ông festival on Cù Lao Phố (Thất phủ cổ miếu, Đồng Nai), 9th to 13th of the first lunar month: Quan Công worship, rites, national heritage in 2023.
Who Is Worshipped at the Cờn Temple Festival and How Is the Palanquin Procession Held? The Four Holy Ladies and the Fishing Prayer
Cờn Temple festival, Nghệ An, 19th to 21st of the first lunar month, honours the Four Holy Ladies of the Song: the legend, the procession and 2027 dates.
Kỳ yên Hạ điền Festival at Bình Thủy Communal House (Cần Thơ): What Is Kỳ yên, and Why Do Southern Communal Houses Hold Two Rites at the Start of the Year and the End of the Crop?
Kỳ yên at Bình Thủy communal house, Cần Thơ: Thượng điền on the 12th-14th of the fourth lunar month, Hạ điền on the 14th-15th of the twelfth. Rites explained.
Amitābha Buddha's Day on the 17th of the 11th Lunar Month: Why This Date and How Vietnamese Pagodas Observe It
Amitābha Buddha's Day, 17th of the 11th lunar month (25 Dec 2026): why this date was chosen, what the sutra says, and how Vietnamese pagodas observe it.
What Is the Rước Cộ Bà Chợ Được and Who Is Bà Chợ Được? The Festival on the 10th and 11th of the First Lunar Month in Đà Nẵng
Rước Cộ Bà Chợ Được honours the Lady of Chợ Được with a sắc procession and cộ parade at her Đà Nẵng festival, 10th and 11th of the first lunar month.
Tết Trùng Thập on the 10th day of the Tenth Lunar Month: What It Is, Its Origin, and How to Conduct the Ceremony
Tết Trùng Thập, mùng 10 tháng Mười âm lịch, is the holiday of physicians and spirit mediums and the new rice festival. Its origin, where it survives.
What Do La Hầu, Kế Đô and the Moon's North and South Nodes Have in Common?
La Hầu and Kế Đô in Cửu Diệu are the Moon's orbital nodes, the North and South Nodes, which Indian, Vietnamese and Western traditions read differently.
What's on in Vietnam in November 2026? Festivals, lunar dates and where to go
November 2026 (23rd of 9th lunar month to 22nd of 10th) brings the Thái Nguyên Tea Festival, Gia Lai Gong Festival, Ok Om Bok, Kathina and more.
What Genres Does Vietnamese Folk Music Include? An Overview of Quan Họ, Ca Trù, Chèo, Xẩm, Hát Văn, Đờn Ca Tài Tử and Nhã Nhạc
Quan họ, ca trù, chèo, xẩm, hát văn, đờn ca tài tử and nhã nhạc, together with regional folk songs, form the mosaic of Vietnamese folk music.
Đào Nhật Tân and Hanoi's Tet Flower Market: What Makes Them Special? Peach Varieties, Growing Craft, and the Tet Peach Tradition
Đào Nhật Tân is prized for its thick-petaled đào bích and đào phai. Learn the varieties, Nhật Tân growing craft, and Hanoi's Tet peach tradition.
What Is Duyên Phận and How Does It Differ from Nhân Duyên in Buddhism?
Duyên phận is a folk way of speaking about meetings as if preordained. Nhân duyên in Buddhism means conditions that give rise to phenomena, not fate.
Who was Huyền Quang, the third patriarch of the Trúc Lâm Zen school?
Huyền Quang (Lý Đạo Tái), third patriarch of the Trúc Lâm Zen school after Trần Nhân Tông and Pháp Loa, is profiled via his life, deeds and surviving poetry.
How do Vietnamese and ethnic minority soul-calling and spirit-calling rituals work?
Soul-calling rites after illness, a fall, fright or a long journey: who performs them, the offerings, how the calling is done, and how ethnic groups differ.
What is the meaning of the buffalo celebration on the 6th day of the 6th lunar month among the Tày and Nùng peoples?
The Tày and Nùng buffalo celebration on 6/6 lunar honors the buffalo after transplanting and prays for healthy herds and a bountiful harvest.
Vietnamese Buddhism Through Periods of Development: From Luy Lâu and the Lý Trần Era to the Lê Nguyễn Period and the Revival Movement
Vietnamese Buddhism over nearly twenty centuries: the Luy Lâu centre, fusion with local beliefs, the Lý and Trần flourishing.
What Is Kim Hoàng Painting and How Does It Differ from Đông Hồ and Hàng Trống?
Kim Hoàng paintings are Tết folk prints on red paper, lost after the 1915 flood. They are set apart from Đông Hồ and Hàng Trống.