Lễ cáo Long thần Thổ địa (rite to inform the Long thần and Thổ địa) before digging the grave

Culture and belief A record of custom.

About this rite: when it is held and for whom

Also called: Cáo Long thần Thổ địa, Tế thổ thần, Tạ thổ thần, Lễ phá thổ, Khấn đào huyệt

By custom, before digging the grave the tang chủ (chief mourner) prays to the earth deity of the place where the burial will be made, to ask for a resting place for the deceased; when lowering the coffin there is again a rite of sacrifice to the earth deity. The pagoda calls it the rite of tạ thổ thần (thanking the earth deity), praying also to the hương linh (spirits) of the surrounding graves.

When
Before digging the grave; when lowering the coffin, the earth deity is again offered sacrifice
For whom
Long thần, Thổ địa, Hậu thổ at the place where the grave is set

Prayer text for the Lễ cáo Long Thần Thổ Địa (before digging the grave)

  • Used across Vietnam
  • Folk practice
  • Address to the deities

What this prayer says

Prayer text in the rite reporting to the Long thần (Dragon God) and Thổ địa (Earth God) before digging the grave, in which the chief mourner offers offerings and reports that the family is in mourning, asking the deities to let the deceased rest in peace and to protect the descendants; recited before digging the grave.

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 Lễ cáo Long thần Thổ địa (rite to inform the Long thần and Thổ địa) before digging the grave

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, Address to the deities

When
Before digging the grave; when lowering the coffin, the earth deity of that place is again offered sacrifice
Where the offerings are set
At the plot of land where the grave is set
Who makes the offering
Tang chủ (chief mourner)

Offerings

OfferingNotes
Offerings listed in the prayer textthe prayer text leaves a place for the tang chủ to state himself

Steps

  1. Pray to Long thần and Thổ địa to ask for land for the deceased
  2. The thầy địa lý (geomancer) phân kim (determines the compass directions), aligns the orientation
  3. Wait for the giờ hoàng đạo (auspicious hour), then lower the coffin

Used across Vietnam, Buddhist, Address to the deities

When
Before lowering the coffin
Where the offerings are set
At the grave

Steps

  1. Sái tịnh (sprinkle purifying water), trị huyệt (treat the grave) with cam lồ water
  2. Tạ thổ thần (thanking the earth deity): pray to the earth deity and the hương linh (spirits) of the surrounding graves, announcing that a new hương linh has come to reside together

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

Sources

  • Văn khấn trong lễ tang (vankhan.vn)
  • Văn khấn Long Thần Thổ Địa trước khi đào huyệt (tuvi.vn)
  • Việt Nam phong tục, thiên I chương IX Tang ma (vi.wikisource.org)
  • Nghi thức tang lễ theo truyền thống Phật giáo (phatgiao.org.vn)

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

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