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Lễ khai tâm, nhập học cho trẻ (ceremony to open the mind and begin schooling for a child)

Culture and belief A record of custom.

About this rite: when it is held and for whom

Also called: Khai trường, Nhập học thụ thư, Cúng nhập học

By the old custom as recounted in the press, before sending their child to school the parents prepared an offering tray to worship the ancestors and pray for the child to be bright-minded, then brought a small offering to present to the teacher. No văn khấn (prayer text) for khai tâm, nhập học in Vietnamese has been found online; this type of ceremony currently has only one line of ritual.

When
In the old days, before the day the child began studying with a teacher
For whom
Gia tiên (ancestors); the teaching teacher (according to surviving Hán Nôm books there is also a lễ cáo tiên sư (rite announcing to the ancestral teachers), but no checked Vietnamese source is available)

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
In the old days, before sending the child to study with a teacher
Where the offerings are set
The family altar at home, then the teacher's house
Who makes the offering
The child's parents

Offerings

OfferingNotes
Offering tray for worshipping the ancestorsthe source does not list the dishes
Small offering presented to the teacherof a sincere nature

Steps

  1. The parents prepare an offering tray, worship and bow to the ancestors, praying for the child to study with a bright mind and pass the examinations
  2. Bring a small offering to present to the teacher
  3. Many households send the child to live at the teacher's house in order to study

Sources

  • Ngày Tết, nói về truyền thống tôn sư trọng đạo (baophapluat.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.