Offering rites of the Kinh people
Other names: Việt
Culture and belief A record of custom.
- Language family
- Viet-Muong
- Population
- 82,085,826 (2019)
The rites
- Offering incense and praying to ancestors on ordinary daysAny day the family offers incense at the ancestors' altar: ordinary days, the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month, or when the household has a matter to report (marriage, childbirth, building a house, going far away, examinations)
- Cúng tiên thường (cáo giỗ) (offering on the day before the death anniversary, announcing the giỗ)Afternoon of the day before the main giỗ (death anniversary); by custom only performed before major giỗ (giỗ of grandparents, parents, spouses)
- Cúng giỗ thường (yearly death-anniversary offering)The date of death counted by the lunar calendar, from the third year onward; by custom there is a tiên thường (advance offering) rite on the day before
- Cúng giỗ đầu (first death-anniversary offering, Tiểu tường)Exactly one year after the date of death, counted by the lunar calendar; the day before there is a lễ tiên thường (offering ahead of the main day)
- Cúng giỗ hết (Đại tường) (final death-anniversary offering)The second year after the date of death; some accounts give 2 years and 3 months after the date of death. The day before there is a rite reporting to the deities
- Giỗ tổ dòng họ (clan ancestor death anniversary), tế tổ (ancestor sacrifice) at the clan templeThe death anniversary of the founding ancestor, which is also the joint death anniversary of the forebears; each clan has its own day. In Nam Bộ there is the custom of cúng việc lề (offering for the communal affair) around Tết; in the Quảng Trạch and Ba Đồn areas, chạp mả (grave-tending) is held in the twelfth lunar month
- Cúng Bà Cô Tổ, Ông Mãnh (offering to the ancestral young woman and young man of the family line)On the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month, on the death anniversary of Bà Cô, on the first day of the year; if the date of death is unknown, the family line's ancestor death anniversary is used
- Cúng Giỗ Tổ Hùng Vương tại nhà (offering to the Hùng Kings at home)The 10th day of the third lunar month
- Cúng mùng một, ngày rằm (first-day and full-moon offerings)The first day of the lunar month and the evening of the fifteenth day of every lunar month
- Offering on the 2nd and 16th of every monthThe 2nd and 16th of the lunar calendar every month, usually in the late afternoon and evening
- Cúng ông Công ông Táo (Kitchen Gods' send-off, 23rd of the 12th lunar month)The 23rd of the twelfth lunar month; the offering time differs among the three regions.
- Rước ông Táo (ceremony to welcome back the Kitchen Gods)The 30th day of the twelfth lunar month (the 29th in a short month), many places do it at giao thừa (New Year's Eve); some guides record that the central and southern regions welcome them back on the 7th day of the first lunar month
- Bao sái bàn thờ (cleaning and rearranging the altar)In the twelfth lunar month, usually after the offering to Ông Công and Ông Táo on the 23rd and before the year-end offering
- Tạ mộ cuối năm (year-end grave visit and invitation of the ancestors for Tết)Twelfth lunar month, usually from the 20th to the 30th, mostly after the 23rd
- Cúng rằm tháng Chạp (full moon of the twelfth lunar month offering)The 15th day of the twelfth lunar month, can be offered from the 14th day
- Cúng tất niên (year-end offering)The 30th day of the twelfth lunar month (the 29th in a short month), at noon or in the afternoon; some households hold the offering early, from the 28th or 29th
- Cúng giao thừa ngoài trời (New Year's Eve offering, outdoors)The night of the 30th (or 29th) of the twelfth lunar month, at the shift into the hour of the Rat of the first day of Tết
- Cúng giao thừa trong nhà (New Year's Eve offering, indoors)The night of the 30th (or 29th) of the twelfth lunar month, at the shift into the hour of the Rat of the first day of Tết
- Offering on the first day of TếtMorning of the first day of the first lunar month
- Offering on the 2nd and 3rd days of TếtThe 2nd and 3rd days of the first lunar month
- Lễ hóa vàng (rite of burning votive paper)The 3rd day of the first lunar month for most households; in some places the 2nd, 4th, 5th or 7th day
- Cúng khai xuân, mở hàng đầu năm (spring-opening offering and first-day-of-year shop-opening offering)The day for the first shop opening of the year is chosen by the head of the household within the first lunar month; the khai hạ (lowering the nêu pole) offering is on the 7th day of the first lunar month
- Offering to report absence from home during TếtOne or two days before leaving home, or on the morning of departure, in the twelfth lunar month
- Cúng rằm tháng Giêng (offering on the full moon of the first lunar month)On the full moon of the first lunar month of the lunar calendar; the offering to ancestors is usually made at the giờ Ngọ (noon hour)
- Cúng vía Thần Tài (God of Wealth day, 10th of the first lunar month)The 10th day of the first lunar month
- Cúng sao hội mùng 8 tháng Giêng (star worship gathering on the 8th day of the first lunar month)Evening of the 8th day of the first lunar month on the lunar calendar, usually from 21 to 23 o'clock
- Cúng tiết Lập xuân (offering on the Lập xuân solar term)Lập xuân solar term
- Cúng Tết Hàn thực (Cold Food Festival offering)The 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month
- Cúng tiết Thanh minh, tảo mộ (Thanh minh observance and grave tending)Thanh minh solar term
- Cúng rằm tháng Tư (full moon of the fourth lunar month offering), lễ Phật đản (Buddha's Birthday ceremony)Full moon of the fourth lunar month; Buddha's Birthday week from the 8th to the 15th of the fourth lunar month
- Offering ritual for Tết Đoan ngọThe 5th day of the 5th lunar month, at the hour of the Horse
- Cúng rằm tháng Bảy (seventh-month full moon: ancestors and wandering souls)Full moon of the seventh lunar month; the offering to wandering spirits can be done from the first day to the fifteenth; in the South, traders also offer to wandering spirits on the 2nd and 16th of every month
- Cúng rằm tháng Tám (full moon of the eighth lunar month offering), Tết Trung thu (Mid-Autumn Festival)Full moon of the eighth lunar month; offering to ancestors during the day, displaying a tray to watch the moon in the evening
- Tết Trùng cửu and Tết Trùng thậpThe 9th day of the 9th lunar month (Trùng cửu) and the 10th day of the 10th lunar month (Trùng thập)
- Cúng rằm tháng Mười (full moon of the tenth lunar month offering), Tết Hạ nguyên (Lower Primordial Festival), lễ cơm mới (new rice ceremony)The first day, the tenth day, or the full moon of the tenth lunar month, depending on the locality
- Offering to Thổ Công and the household deitiesOn sóc vọng days (the first day and the fifteenth day of the lunar month), on giỗ and Tết days; the largest ceremony is on the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month
- Daily offering to Thần Tài (God of Wealth) and Thổ Địa (Earth God)Daily when opening the shop for business; the first day of the lunar month, the fifteenth day of the lunar month, and the 10th of every month; the major ceremony is the vía Thần Tài (God of Wealth's feast day) on the 10th of the first lunar month
- Lễ Phật ở ban thờ Phật tại gia (Buddha worship at the home Buddha altar)Daily; the first day of the lunar month, the fifteenth day of the lunar month, Buddhist holidays, and Bodhisattva feast days
- Bốc bát hương, chuyển bàn thờ (ritual of filling the incense bowl and moving the altar)When moving to a new house, replacing the altar, replacing the incense bowl, or moving the altar to another place in the house; choosing the date and time by custom
- Offering to Tiền chủ (former owner) and Hậu chủ (later owner)When nhập trạch (moving into a new house), on the fifteenth day of the lunar month, on the first day of the lunar month, at tất niên (year-end offering), when repairing the house
- Cúng động thổ (groundbreaking)Before digging the foundation to build a house, a date and hour are usually chosen
- Lễ đổ móng, đổ mái, cất nóc (foundation-pouring, roof-pouring, and roof-raising ceremonies)Before pouring the foundation; on the day of pouring the roof or placing the ridge beam on the roof
- Cúng nhập trạch (moving into a new home)The day of moving into the new house, usually a day and hour are chosen
- Lễ tân gia (housewarming ceremony)After the nhập trạch (moving into a new house) ceremony, once the family has moved into the new house
- Lễ cúng sửa nhà, sửa bếp (ritual for repairing the house or kitchen)Before major repairs to the house, repairing or moving the kitchen; after the repairs are done there is a lễ tạ (thank-offering ritual)
- Lễ tạ đất (thanksgiving rite to the land)The twelfth lunar month before Tết in many places; in Huế, the second and eighth lunar months; in Quảng Nam and Đà Nẵng, at tất niên (year-end) and the beginning of spring
- Lễ bồi hoàn địa mạch (rite to restore the earth's veins)When digging the earth, filling a pond, or building a wall is considered to have disturbed the long mạch (dragon veins); a date is chosen according to the calendar
- First-of-the-year well offeringOn giao thừa (New Year's Eve) night or the morning of the first day of Tết; in some places, the third day of Tết
- Lễ khai trương (opening ceremony)The day of opening a new shop, company, or workshop; the day of reopening for business after Tết
- Lễ cúng xe (vehicle offering ceremony)The day of receiving the new vehicle; the beginning of the year, the end of the year; people who use vehicles for business make offerings on the 1st and the full moon, in the South on the 2nd and the 16th
- Lễ cúng tổ nghề (offering to the craft patron)On the death anniversary of the patron of each craft; besides, on the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month, festivals, and Tết
- Lễ cúng xóm (village communal offering)Late twelfth lunar month (year-end of the xóm); in some places offered at the start of the year
- Lễ cầu tự (rite to pray for a child)No fixed date; by custom people often go in early spring (chùa Hương: first lunar month, second lunar month) or on the fifteenth day of the lunar month, the first day of the lunar month
- Ceremony to welcome a newborn homeThe day the baby is brought home from the place of birth
- Cúng Mụ đầy cữ, đầy tháng (offering to the Midwife Goddesses on the third-day and first-month ceremonies)Counted from the baby's birth: đầy cữ when the baby is 3 days old, đầy tháng when it turns one lunar month; many places move the day earlier depending on whether it is a boy or a girl
- Cúng thôi nôi, đầy năm (first-birthday ceremony, full-year ceremony)The day the baby turns 12 months old by the lunar calendar; many places move it 2 days earlier for girls and 1 day earlier for boys
- Cúng căn (age-milestone offering) at 3, 6, 9, 12 years oldIn the years the child turns 3, 6, 9 and 12 years old, around the lunar birthday
- Lễ cáo gia tiên khi đổi tên cho con (rite to announce to the ancestors when changing a child's name)When the family decides to change the baby's name, before carrying out the civil registry procedure
- Lễ ăn hỏi (betrothal ceremony)An auspicious day chosen by the two families, after the lễ chạm ngõ (meeting ceremony) and before the wedding ceremony
- Wedding ceremony: yết cáo (announcement) to the household deities and ancestorsOn the days of chạm ngõ (first formal meeting), ăn hỏi (betrothal), and wedding; some households also hold a ceremony on the day of lại mặt (return visit to the bride's family)
- Lễ mừng thọ (longevity celebration)Usually on the occasion of Tết Nguyên đán (Lunar New Year), around the second day of Tết; also held on the birthday of the elderly person
- Ceremony to pray for examinations and official careerBefore the exam day or on the morning of the exam day; at the beginning of the year with the custom of asking for calligraphy
- Tang lễ (funeral rites: common rites, announcing the death, placing the body in the coffin)From the time a family member passes away until burial; the same text is also used at the memorial ceremonies afterward
- Lễ Thiết linh (Thiết linh rite)After the mourning altar has been set up and the linh vị (spirit tablet) has been placed
- Lễ Thành phục (rite of formally assuming mourning)After the body is placed in the coffin, when the mourning garments are fully prepared; in the past, a few days later, nowadays usually done immediately
- Lễ Chúc thực (the rite of offering rice to the newly deceased)Every day, two times, morning and evening, from when the coffin is still at home until the 100th-day ceremony (at pagodas: until 49 days)
- Lễ cáo Long thần Thổ địa (rite to inform the Long thần and Thổ địa) before digging the graveBefore digging the grave; when lowering the coffin, the earth deity is again offered sacrifice
- Lễ Thành phần (rite after the grave is completed)When the grave has been completed
- Lễ Hồi linh (rite of bringing back the spirit)After the burial, when the portrait or spirit tablet is brought from the grave back home
- Lễ Chầu tổ (ceremony of reporting to the ancestors)One guide gives it after the hồi linh (rite of bringing back the soul); old books and the pagoda place it before the day of the funeral procession
- Lễ Tế ngu (three days), mở cửa mả (opening the grave)Three days after burial: sơ ngu, tái ngu, tam ngu; in Nam Bộ the third day is the mở cửa mả (opening the grave) ceremony
- Cúng 49 ngày (forty-ninth-day rite for the deceased)The 49th day after the death
- Cúng 100 ngày (100th-day ceremony)The 100th day after the death; some places count 3 months and 10 days from the burial
- Lễ Đàm tế, hết tang (Đàm tế ceremony, end of mourning)After giỗ hết (đại tường) by two or three months, choose a good day
- Ceremony of carrying the spirit tablet into the main hall and announcing to the ancestorsImmediately after the đàm tế (end-of-mourning) ceremony; pagodas and many households in Nam Bộ do it after 49 days
- Cải táng, bốc mộ (reburial, exhumation)After the three-year mourning period ends or a few more years; also done when the grave must be repaired or moved
- Prayers to deities and spirits at the graveWhenever visiting the grave: Thanh minh, year-end, death anniversary, when repairing the grave
- Cầu siêu (prayer for the deceased)Within 49 days after death, especially on the tuần thất (weekly mourning days); also performed on other occasions as the pagoda arranges
- Lễ cầu an đầu năm (New Year prayer for peace and safety)From Tết Nguyên đán (Lunar New Year) to the full moon of the first lunar month; in Huế it is held in a spread-out way from the 2nd day of Tết
- Dâng sao giải hạn (offering to the ruling star to ward off misfortune)The day of each star every month according to the lunar calendar; at the start of the year it is usually done together on the full moon of the first lunar month
- Prayer for health, prayer for the elimination of illnessWhen someone in the household is sick; during the cầu an (prayer for peace and safety) service at the pagoda
- Lễ cầu duyên (ceremony to pray for a good match)Early in the year, first day of the lunar month, fifteenth day of the lunar month
- Lễ cầu tài, cầu lộc (ceremony to pray for wealth and fortune)Beginning of the year; the first and the fifteenth day of the lunar month (mùng một, ngày rằm); the festival season of Bà Chúa Xứ in An Giang
- Lễ sám hối (repentance ceremony)Daily, early morning or at night before sleeping; the pagoda's hồng danh sám hối (repentance of the Buddha's names) service
- Lễ phóng sinh (animal release ceremony)All year round; many households do it on the full moon of the first lunar month, the full moon of the seventh lunar month, and the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month
- Going to the pagoda, making offerings to the Buddha at the Tam Bảo (Three Jewels) altarOn the fifteenth day and the first day of the lunar month, on Tết holidays, at the beginning of the year, and when there is an important matter
- Offering at the Đức Ông shrine in a pagodaWhen visiting a pagoda, make this offering before going up to the main hall
- Offering to the altar of Đức Thánh Hiền at the pagodaWhen going to the pagoda to worship
- Offering to Quán Thế Âm (Avalokiteshvara) Bodhisattva and Địa Tạng Vương (Kṣitigarbha) BodhisattvaWhen going to the pagoda to worship
- Lễ Thành hoàng làng (village tutelary deity ceremony) at the đình (communal house) and miếu (shrine)On holidays, Tết, sóc vọng (first and fifteenth days of the lunar month), and village festival days; in the South, it is the Kỳ yên (cầu an) ceremony of the đình
- Going to offer at đền, miếu, phủFestivals, Tết, seasonal observances, first and fifteenth days of the lunar month, and the đền's festival day
- Lễ Tam tòa Thánh Mẫu (ceremony of the Three Holy Mothers), at the Mẫu altarOn the fifteenth day of the lunar month, the first day of the lunar month, at Tết holidays, or when there is a matter needing prayer
- Lễ ban Công đồng Tứ phủ (offering at the Công đồng altar of the Four Palaces)When visiting a temple (đền) or a phủ (Mother Goddess shrine)
- Lễ đền Bà Chúa Kho (offering at Bà Chúa Kho temple); đền thờ Đức Thánh Trần (temple of Đức Thánh Trần); đền Trình chùa Hương (đền Trình at chùa Hương)Early spring and the festival occasions of each place; the chùa Hương festival from the first lunar month to the third lunar month
- Tế Văn Thánh (offering rite to the Văn Thánh), Võ Thánh (offering rite to the Võ Thánh) of the villageTế Văn Thánh in spring and autumn (on the Đinh day); tế Võ Thánh in autumn; Quan Thánh's birthday celebration in the fifth lunar month
- Cúng cô hồn (offering to wandering spirits)Seventh lunar month, from the 2nd to the full moon; in the South, offerings are also made on the 2nd and 16th of each month
- Cúng thí thực (Mông Sơn thí thực, food-bestowal rite)The pagoda performs it daily and during trai đàn chẩn tế (rites to feed the hungry) and lễ cầu siêu (prayers for the dead); the head of the household can request it to be done at home
- Tế âm linh (offering to wandering souls)In Huế: the 23rd day of the fifth lunar month; at communal houses in the central region: incorporated into the spring and autumn tế ceremonies, the full moon of the seventh lunar month, or Thanh minh
- Lễ Cầu ngư, cúng cá Ông (fishing prayer ceremony, offering to the Whale)Each fishing village has its own day: from the first lunar month to the fourth lunar month in the central region, the eighth lunar month in Cần Giờ; the death anniversary (giỗ) of cá Ông follows each village's custom
- Tế lễ (communal rituals) of the villages of Thừa Thiên HuếXuân tế (Xuân tự, Kỳ an), Thu tế (Thu thường, Thu báo) in the seventh lunar month, Đông chí; lễ kỵ Thành hoàng, Khai canh on the date of each village
- Daily chanting and bowing of Hòa Hảo Buddhist followersDaily at home; on major holidays of the Church, there are communal prayers recited together
- Xuất hành đầu năm (first outing of the new year)The first time leaving the house of the new year, from after giao thừa (New Year's Eve) to the first few days of the first lunar month, on a chosen day and hour; people who work at sea perform the xuất hành rite for the first sea trip of the year
- Groundbreaking ceremony for a construction projectBefore starting construction of a factory, plant, office, or project, after site clearance; choose date and time according to the age of the project head
- Cúng vía Ngọc Hoàng mùng 9 tháng Giêng (offering to the Jade Emperor on the 9th day of the first lunar month)The 9th day of the first lunar month; some guides note the ceremony is held at the hour of the Rat
- Cúng vía Quan Thế Âm Bồ Tát (Quan Thế Âm Bồ Tát's birthday celebration, the 19th of the second, sixth and ninth lunar months)Three vía days by the lunar calendar: the 19th of the second month (birth), the 19th of the sixth month (enlightenment), the 19th of the ninth month (renunciation)
- Offering incense and making offerings to fallen soldiers on 27 July (Gregorian calendar)27 July (Gregorian calendar) (Ngày Thương binh, Liệt sĩ, War Invalids and Martyrs Day) and the days before it
- Year-end nêu pole raising ceremonyKinh people: the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month; Mường people: from the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month; Tày and Nùng people: the afternoon of the 30th of the twelfth lunar month; nêu pole taken down on the 7th of the first lunar month
- Offering at the cây hương (incense pillar) and the outdoor altarOn the fifteenth day of the lunar month, the first day of the lunar month, giỗ (death anniversary), Tết; in the South it is also where offerings are made on giao thừa (New Year's Eve); the Hoa people in Đà Lạt burn incense every morning
- Cúng giải hạn Tam Tai (offering to resolve Tam Tai misfortune)During the three Tam Tai years of one's age; by custom each year has a fixed offering day in the lunar calendar, some households only make the offering at the start of the year
- Lễ trả nợ Tào quan (rite of repaying the debt to Tào quan)One guide gives: ngày Thiên xá (Heavenly Pardon day), the death anniversaries of the ten Diêm vương (Kings of Hell), or combined in a great cầu an (prayer for peace and safety) ceremony at a temple (đền) or pagoda
- Lễ cắt tiền duyên (rite to cut the karmic marriage bond)On the ngày vía (saint's feast day), the tiệc (festival) of a saint, or an auspicious day chosen by the master
- Year-end thanksgiving ceremony at đền, chùa, đình, phủIn the twelfth lunar month, before Tết Nguyên đán (Lunar New Year)
- Lễ Đức Thánh Trần (festival of Đức Thánh Trần)The 20th day of the eighth lunar month (giỗ Cha, the death anniversary of the Father); temples in Ho Chi Minh City also hold a birth ceremony on the 10th day of the twelfth lunar month; throughout the year at the Trần Triều altar
- Rite of Diêu Trì Thánh Mẫu (Holy Mother of the Jade Pool) and Cửu Thiên Huyền Nữ (Mysterious Lady of the Nine Heavens)The ngày vía (saint's day) is usually given as the 18th day of the tenth lunar month; some places take the 3rd day of the third lunar month or the full moon of the eighth lunar month
- hầu đồng (spirit mediumship ritual)On festival occasions, on the feast days of temples and phủ (Mother Goddess shrines); most often in the third and eighth lunar months
- Lễ trình đồng mở phủ (rite of presenting the new medium and opening the palaces)The date is chosen by the đồng thầy (medium master) and the tân đồng (new medium)
- Lễ tôn nhang bản mệnh (rite of enshrining the personal incense bowl)Some guides note: usually in spring and autumn, not performed in the seventh lunar month
- Lễ vía Bà Chúa Xứ núi Sam (the Lady of the Sam Mountain festival)From the 22nd to the 27th of the fourth lunar month; pilgrims visit the Lady throughout the year
- Lễ vía Bà Ngũ Hành (ceremony for the Five Lady Ngũ Hành deities)Each place has its own date: the 18th to the 21st of the first lunar month (Long Thượng, Long An), the 16th to the 18th of the tenth lunar month (Vũng Tàu, Côn Đảo), the 14th of the second lunar month (Tu Lễ, Hội An)
- Cầu siêu for the spirit of a fetusAt home: 3 to 7 days before the ceremony at the pagoda; at the pagoda: according to each pagoda's schedule (one pagoda on the 19th day of the sixth lunar month and on the 14th and 30th days of the lunar month; Tây Thiên during the Vu Lan season)
- Lễ giải trùng tang (rite to resolve trùng tang)After a death in the household, when the date and hour of death are counted as phạm trùng
- Ceremony of sending the ashes and inscribing the hương linh (spirit of the deceased) into the pagodaAfter the funeral, usually right after cremation
- Cúng hạ thủy tàu thuyền (offering at the launching of a boat)When launching a newly built boat, when beginning the fishing season; in some places the boat is offered to before every sea trip and on the last day of the year
- Lễ khao lề thế lính Hoàng Sa (ceremony to thank and substitute soldiers for Hoàng Sa)The second and third lunar months every year
- Cúng việc lề (communal lineage death-anniversary offering)Each lineage has its own day in the year, by their custom
- Lễ hạ điền, thượng điền (rice-planting and harvest thanksgiving ceremonies)Hạ điền before planting (in Nam Bộ in the 4th and 5th lunar months; in Phú Thọ and Quảng Ninh in the 5th and 6th months); thượng điền when the crop is finished (in Nam Bộ in the 11th and 12th months); cầu bông when the rice is in the milk stage or at the beginning of the year
- Lễ cầu mưa, tạ mưa, cầu tạnh (rain-praying, rain-thanking, and rain-stopping ceremonies)When there is drought or by the yearly custom at the start of the planting season: the Thái in Mộc Châu on the full moon of the second lunar month, the Black Lô Lô in the third lunar month, the Gia-rai in the fourth and fifth months
- Lễ rước sắc, mừng sắc phong (procession of the royal edict and celebration of the conferment)At the beginning of the communal house festival (in Nam Bộ: the first day of the Kỳ yên festival); Phú Gia (Hà Tĩnh) on the 7th of the first lunar month
- The village's cầu an (prayer for peace and safety) ceremony to ward off epidemicsCần Thơ from the 12th to the 14th of the first lunar month; Chánh Mỹ (Bình Dương) in the third lunar month; Nam Ô (Đà Nẵng) on the full moon of the first lunar month
- Lễ khai tâm, nhập học cho trẻ (ceremony to open the mind and begin schooling for a child)In the old days, before the day the child began studying with a teacher