Water-wharf offering ceremony of the Ê-đê people
- Rites of ethnic communities
- Offerings and steps
Culture and belief A record of custom.
About this rite: when it is held and for whom
Also called: Cúng bến nước, Lễ cúng bến nước của người Ê Đê, Lễ cúng bến nước của người Êđê
A ceremony of thanksgiving and prayer for the village's water source, performed by the ritual master, village elders, and the water-wharf owner; by custom it lasts three days: offerings at the water-wharf owner's house and at the water wharf, the village is closed, and the village gate is opened.
- When
- End of the twelfth lunar month, after harvest (Đắk Lắk); first lunar month (Ninh Tây, Khánh Hòa)
- For whom
- Thần Nước (Water God), the Yàng; ancestors of the water-wharf owner
Offerings and how the rite is done
As commonly practised and recorded by the sources. Each family and each region may do it differently.
Central Highlands, Ê Đê (Rade), buôn Ea Nur (buôn Nur), xã Pơng Drang, Krông Búk, Đắk Lắk, Folk practice
- When
- Cuối tháng Chạp, sau thu hoạch; ba ngày (năm 2013 bắt đầu ngày 17 tháng 1 dương lịch)
- Where the offerings are set
- The long house of the water-wharf owner, the water wharf, the village gate
- Who makes the offering
- Ritual master, village elders, water-wharf owner; the whole village contributes labor and goods
Offerings
| Offering | Quantity | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Black male pig | 1 | Required. first day |
| Rượu cần (rice wine) jars tied in a row along the long house | 7 or 9 | Required. A 2020 article records 7 jars (3 for the water wharf, 2 for the host, 2 for guests); a 2013 article records 9 jars (3 for the water-wharf owner, 3 for the host, 3 for guests) |
| Pork cut into small pieces arranged in five dishes on a winnowing tray; pig blood mixed with wine in a bronze cup | Required | |
| Betel leaves and areca nuts, rice, xôi (steamed sticky rice), tobacco | ||
| White-feathered rooster, one jar of rượu cần (rice wine), a string to tie the rooster's feathers | Required. second day, day the village is closed | |
| One jar of rượu cần (rice wine), one rooster, loincloth, shirt, scarf, shield, knife, water gourd, bronze trivet, bronze cup, hoe, rice in a winnowing tray | Required. third day, opening the village gate |
Steps
- Before the ceremony: village meeting, young people clean the water wharf and repair the path to the wharf
- First day: offerings are set at the water-wharf owner's house, gongs play the piece Gọi Yàng (Calling the Yàng); the ritual master carries a bowl of pig blood mixed with wine, five bundles of meat, and a bottle of wine in front, village elders carry shields and knives behind, five girls carry dried gourds and five boys carry bamboo water tubes to the wharf
- At the wharf: offerings are set, the ritual master prays; the ritual master uses a shield to poke the water source; the girls catch water and bring it back to pour into the rượu cần jar
- Back at the host's house: a ceremony for the host's health; the ritual master hands the rượu cần straw to the water-wharf owner, then villagers drink, women before men
- Second day: the village is closed, a string tied with rooster feathers, white cotton, and a bamboo ring is hung at the gate
- Third day: the ritual master, village elders, and water-wharf owner open the village gate, return home and perform a ceremony to report the ritual is finished
Things to avoid
- Three days before the ceremony a cây nêu (tall bamboo pole) is erected to announce it, no water is taken from the wharf
- On the day the village is closed: no entering or leaving the village, no carrying water, washing clothes, or chopping firewood; anyone who violates is fined according to customary law
Central Highlands, Ê Đê (Rade), buôn Ky (Buôn Ma Thuột), buôn Ea Yông A (Krông Pắc), Đắk Lắk, Folk practice
- Where the offerings are set
- The village communal house and the water wharf at the head of the village
- Who makes the offering
- Ritual master; the water-wharf owner (the person who found the wharf, succeeding through the maternal line) presides
Offerings
| Offering | Notes |
|---|---|
| Each offering portion includes one chicken or one pig along with one jar of rượu cần (rice wine) | Required. buôn Ky |
| Offering to ancestors: one ché rượu cần (jar of rice wine drunk through straws), one boiled chicken, one plate of xôi nếp (steamed glutinous rice) | Required. Ea Yông |
| Offering at the water landing: one pig, rượu cần (rice wine drunk through straws), one plate of xôi nếp (steamed glutinous rice) | Required. Ea Yông |
Steps
- Gather at the communal house, set up the rượu cần (rice wine) jars, slaughter the pig and chickens, hang the gongs
- The ritual master says the prayer announcing the work and invites the ancestors of the water landing keeper and the deities to attend
- Go to the water landing: the shield dance troupe leads the way; the ritual master thanks the Water God, smears the blood of the sacrificial animal on the bamboo pipe that carries the water, and reads the prayer
- The women fetch water and carry it back to fill the rượu cần (rice wine) jars; thanks are offered on the way back; the earth god of the buôn (village) is worshipped
- Offering for the health of the water landing keeper (or the village elder)
Where the sources differ
- Number of offering parts: the account about buôn Ky tells of three parts (inviting the ancestors, offering at the water source, offering for the health of the water landing keeper); the account about Ea Yông tells of five rites (offering to ancestors, offering at the water landing, offering to the earth god of the buôn, offering of thanks on the way back with the water, offering for the health of the household head)
South Central Coast, Ê Đê (Rade), xã Ninh Tây, Ninh Hòa, Khánh Hòa, Folk practice
- When
- Every year in the first lunar month; nowadays it is packed into one day, formerly three days
- Where the offerings are set
- The house of the village elder, then the water landing in the buôn (village)
- Who makes the offering
- The ritual master, the village elder, the whole buôn (village)
Offerings
| Offering | Quantity | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pig | 1 | Required |
| The rượu cần (rice wine) jars | Required | |
| A bowl of pig blood mixed with rice wine | the ritual master carries it at the head of the procession |
Steps
- Gather at the house of the village elder and contribute the offerings
- Carry the offerings to the water landing: the ritual master goes first, the village elder and the young men carry the offerings behind
- The ritual master reads the prayer
- A young man holding a shield and a sword jumps into the water, playing the role of one who drives away the forest spirits guarding the water source
- Return to the house of the village elder to feast, drink rượu cần (rice wine) and play the gongs
Things to avoid
- For three days after the ceremony no one may go into the water or do anything that affects the water source; anyone who violates this is severely punished
Sources
- Lễ cúng bến nước của người Êđê ở buôn Ea Nur (baodaklak.vn)
- Lễ cúng bến nước của người Êđê: Từ ý nghĩa tâm linh đến ý thức bảo vệ sinh thái (baodaklak.vn)
- Nét đẹp văn hóa trong lễ cúng bến nước của người Ê Đê (vnbusiness.vn)
- Độc đáo lễ cúng bến nước của người Ê Đê ở Đắk Lắk (dantocmiennui.baotintuc.vn)
- Đắk Lắk: Phục dựng Lễ cúng bến nước của người Ê Đê (baodantoc.vn)
- Xôn xao bến nước đại ngàn (nhandan.vn)
- Lễ cúng bến nước của người Ê đê (thanhnien.vn)
Part of the open dataset Types of Vietnamese offering rites and Vietnamese offering procedures, licensed CC BY 4.0.
More prayer textsDeath anniversaries, Tết, the home, business, life-cycle rites and regional rites.Open