Bao sái bàn thờ (cleaning and rearranging the altar)

Culture and belief A record of custom.

About this rite: when it is held and for whom

Also called: Xin phép lau dọn ban thờ, Rút tỉa chân nhang, Dọn bàn thờ cuối năm, Sái tịnh bàn thờ, Bao xái

By custom, before Tết the head of the household lights incense to ask permission from the deities and ancestors, then cleans the altar and trims the incense sticks; when finished, lights incense to invite the deities and ancestors to be seated. The prayer text is a request for permission and a notice of completion.

When
In the twelfth lunar month, usually after the offering to Ông Công and Ông Táo on the 23rd and before the year-end offering
For whom
The deities and ancestors worshipped on the altar

Prayer text for bao sái bàn thờ after the offering to Ông Công and Ông Táo (asking permission before cleaning and trimming the incense sticks)

  • Used across Vietnam
  • Folk practice

What this prayer says

Prayer asking permission from the deities and ancestors before cleaning the altar and thinning out the incense sticks, recited during the rite of bao sái bàn thờ after the offering to Ông Công and Ông Táo; the tín chủ (the person making the offering) states name, address, date and asks the deities to temporarily withdraw so the purification may be complete, praying for the incense table to be in its proper place, the household to dwell in peace, the wealth store not to be disturbed and the fortune store not to be depleted.

The prayer below is kept in Vietnamese, the language it is read aloud in during the rite.

Fill in before the rite

Your name and address appear in the prayer below and are kept on this device only.

Your regional custom

Showing the version used across Vietnam.

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Other texts for Bao sái bàn thờ (cleaning and rearranging the altar)

Versions by region, by tradition and for each part of the rite.

Offerings and how the rite is done

As commonly practised and recorded by the sources. Each family and each region may do it differently.

Used across Vietnam, Folk practice

When
After the offering to Ông Công and Ông Táo on the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month and before the year-end offering; performed during the day
Where the offerings are set
The ancestors' altar, the deities' altar, the Táo quân altar
Who makes the offering
The head of the household, bathed and clean, dressed neatly

Offerings

OfferingQuantityNotes
A plate of fruit
incenseone incense stick when asking permission, three incense sticks when finishedRequired
Cleaning water: white rice wine, warm water mixed with ginger, or water boiled with fragrant herbs (clove, star anise, cinnamon)
Cloths and brushes used exclusively for the altarRequired

Steps

  1. Light one incense stick, pray to ask permission from the deities and ancestors
  2. Prepare a clean surface, spread a cloth to place the ritual objects
  3. Wipe from top to bottom; wipe the tablets and statues of deities and Buddhas first, the ancestors' items afterward
  4. Hold the incense bowl with one hand, pull out each incense stick with the other, leaving an odd number
  5. The pulled-out incense sticks are taken to be burned, the ashes scattered in a clean place
  6. Put the ritual objects back in their places, change the water, change the flowers
  7. Light three incense sticks to announce completion, invite the deities and ancestors to be seated

Things to avoid

  • Do not move the incense bowl or the tablets without permission
  • Do not share cloths or brushes with daily use
  • Avoid doing it at midday (12 to 13 o'clock) and in the evening
  • Do not use cold water to wipe the tablets

Where the sources differ

  • Incense bowl ashes: vankhan.vn records the old custom of sifting the old ashes and pouring them back, scooping spoonful at a time rather than tipping the bowl over; docungtamlinh discusses changing the ashes and scattering the ashes of the incense sticks into a river or at the foot of a tree

More about Bao sái bàn thờ (cleaning and rearranging the altar)

Nhật Nguyệt articles on the rite, the custom and how to prepare.

The wording is kept exactly as published by the source. The dotted italic words are blanks for you to fill in.

Sources

  • Văn khấn bao sái bàn thờ sau khi cúng ông Công ông Táo (baohatinh.vn)
  • Dọn bàn thờ trước hay sau khi cúng ông Táo (docungtamlinh.com.vn)
  • Tỉa chân nhang trước hay sau cúng tất niên (docungtamlinh.com.vn)
  • Cách dọn bàn thờ ngày Tết (vankhan.vn)
  • Tập tục truyền thống trong các ngày lễ Tết (vankhan.vn)

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

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