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Lễ Đức Thánh Trần (festival of Đức Thánh Trần)

Also called: Ban Trần Triều, Hưng Đạo Đại Vương, Giỗ Cha 20 tháng Tám, Lễ giỗ Đức Thánh Trần, Hội đền Kiếp Bạc

  • Pagodas, communal houses, temples and shrines

Culture and belief A record of custom.

Prayer text for Lễ Đức Thánh Trần (festival of Đức Thánh Trần)3 texts, kept in Vietnamese, with an English summary.

Hưng Đạo Đại vương is honored by folk custom as Đức Thánh Trần, worshipped at Kiếp Bạc temple, the Trần temples, and the Trần Triều altar in many temples and phủ. By custom, the 20th day of the eighth lunar month is giỗ Cha (the death anniversary of the Father), and many places hold death-anniversary ceremonies and festivals.

At a glance

When it is held
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
This year (2026)
Next year (2027)
For whom
Đức Thánh Trần (Hưng Đạo Đại vương Trần Quốc Tuấn) along with his family, generals, that is, the Hội đồng Trần triều (Trần Dynasty Council)

Lunar calendar

Each family and each region may do it differently.

The offering tray

Region:

Nationwide

Mother Goddess worship (Tứ Phủ), At the temple of the one being honoured

When
Throughout the year, when visiting Trần temples or temples and phủ that have the Trần Triều altar
Where the offerings are set
Trần Triều altar: the statue of Đức Thánh Trần in the middle, below or on both sides are the Vương tử (princes), Vương cô (princesses), and family generals
Who makes the offering
Worshipper
OfferingVegetarian or not
Incense, lamps, candles
Incense, flowers, clean water and offerings according to one's heartVegetarian

North

Red River Delta, đền Kiếp Bạc, núi Mâm Xôi, Chí Linh, Village communal-house rites, The whole festival run by the temple board, assembly hall or village

When
The 20th day of the eighth lunar month (traditionally the day Hưng Đạo Đại vương passed away); the Côn Sơn and Kiếp Bạc autumn festival from the 15th to the 20th of the eighth lunar month
Where the offerings are set
The courtyard of Bạc house at Kiếp Bạc temple and the Cửu Thiên shrine on Mâm Xôi mountain behind the temple
Who makes the offering
The festival organizing committee, the people of the two villages Vạn Yên (Kiếp village) and Dược Sơn (Bạc village), the monks performing the ritual; visitors from all directions offering incense
OfferingVegetarian or notNotes
Meat and savoury dishes
Offering trays of the two villages: live pigs, local cakes of various kindsMeat or fishParaded together with palanquins, flags, parasols, bát bửu (ceremonial weapons), unicorns, dragons
Incense, lamps, candles
Incense, flowers, ceremonial offerings of delegates and visitors from all directions

South

Southeast, đền thờ Đức Thánh Trần đường Võ Thị Sáu (TP. Hồ Chí Minh), đền thờ Đức Thánh Trần, 68 Hạ Long (Vũng Tàu), Folk practice

When
The 20th day of the eighth lunar month; temples in Ho Chi Minh City also hold a birth ceremony on the 10th day of the twelfth lunar month
Where the offerings are set
The temple of Đức Thánh Trần in each locality
OfferingVegetarian or notNotes
Meat and savoury dishes
Offering tray of the worshipper: incense, flowers, fruit, xôi (steamed sticky rice), chicken, porkMeat or fishAccording to the article about Vũng Tàu

Steps of the rite

Used across Vietnam, Mother Goddess worship (Tứ Phủ), At the temple of the one being honoured

  1. Offer incense, flowers, offerings at the altar
  2. Pray in remembrance, wishing for family peace and safety

Red River Delta, đền Kiếp Bạc, núi Mâm Xôi, Chí Linh, Village communal-house rites, The whole festival run by the temple board, assembly hall or village

  1. Early in the morning, the two villages parade on foot from two directions, one from Nam Tào temple, one from Bắc Đẩu temple, and together enter Kiếp Bạc temple to offer sacrifices to Đức Thánh
  2. Delegates, local people, and visitors offer incense in remembrance at the courtyard of Bạc house
  3. Pilgrimage up Mâm Xôi mountain to perform the death-anniversary ceremony; the monks perform rituals to worship Buddha, the Saints, and the Hội đồng Trần triều
  4. During the festival days, there is a festive performance of hầu Thánh (spirit mediumship ritual) by the mediums and cung văn (ritual musicians) at the temple (Văn Hóa newspaper)

Southeast, đền thờ Đức Thánh Trần đường Võ Thị Sáu (TP. Hồ Chí Minh), đền thờ Đức Thánh Trần, 68 Hạ Long (Vũng Tàu), Folk practice

  1. Offer incense, flowers, offerings and recall the career of Hưng Đạo Đại vương
  2. In Vũng Tàu: the temple also offers to hậu từ and chúng sinh; the offerings are afterwards divided as lộc for everyone; there is lion dance, no festival part
  3. In Ho Chi Minh City: besides the ritual, there is also lion dance, traditional art performances; the main gate of the temple only opens on the first day of the lunar month, the fifteenth day of the lunar month, and major festivals

What is avoided

  • Some guides note: do not place money on statues, worship objects, artifacts; limit burning votive paper at crowded relics

Communities and regions

Sources

  • Văn khấn lễ Đức Thánh Trần (vankhan.vn)
  • Thành kính lễ giỗ Đức Thánh Trần ở Hải Dương (mekongasean.vn, 22/9/2024)
  • Trang nghiêm lễ giỗ Đức Thánh Trần tại khu di tích Kiếp Bạc (mekongasean.vn, 30/9/2026)
  • Hải Phòng: Lễ giỗ Đức Thánh Trần tại đền Kiếp Bạc năm 2025 (Tạp chí Luật sư Việt Nam, lsvn.vn)
  • Liên hoan diễn xướng hầu Thánh, điểm nhấn của Lễ hội mùa thu Côn Sơn, Kiếp Bạc (baovanhoa.vn)
  • Tập tục thờ cúng trong nghi thức lên đồng (vankhan.vn)
  • Đền thờ Đức Thánh Trần Hưng Đạo (greensm.com)
  • Lễ giỗ Đức Thánh Trần Hưng Đạo của Vũng Tàu (mia.vn)

Part of the open datasets Types of Vietnamese offering rites and Vietnamese offering procedures, licensed CC BY 4.0.

More ritesDeath anniversaries, Tết, the home, business, the life cycle, village and ethnic rites.