Prayer text invoking Thổ Thần, Táo Quân, Long Mạch and the deities before giỗ đầu

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)

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

Culture and belief A record of custom.

What this prayer says

Prayer text to the deities, recited before the giỗ đầu (first death anniversary) ceremony, bowing to the Buddhas, Hoàng thiên hậu thổ, Táo quân (Kitchen Gods), Thổ Công (Earth God of the house), Long mạch, Thần Tài (God of Wealth) and the deities governing this area; the tín chủ (the person making the offering) presents incense, flowers and offerings and asks for witness and protection so that the whole family may be secure and well, and also invites the ancestors and the spirits of the clan to come and partake.

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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Offerings and how the rite is done

Offerings, steps and things to avoid for Cúng giỗ đầu (first death-anniversary offering, Tiểu tường)

Other texts for Cúng giỗ đầu (first death-anniversary offering, Tiểu tường)

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

Sources

  • Văn khấn Thổ Thần, Táo Quân, Long Mạch và các vị Thần Linh Lễ Tiểu Tường, trước ngày giỗ đầu (tuvi.vn)

Part of the open dataset Vietnamese offering prayers (văn cúng), licensed CC BY 4.0.

More prayer textsDeath anniversaries, Tết, the home, business, life-cycle rites and regional rites.