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Vietnamese Lunar New Year
Lunar new year (Tết – Tết Nguyên Đán) is the Vietnamese New Year. It marks the coming of spring and the new lunar year. The celebrations last three days. Tet shares many of the same customs of the Chinese New Year.
- Preparations:
- Many people are on streets to buy new clothes, candies, flowers and decorations for their homes.
- Offerings of food are mad to Ông Táo (the kitchen guardian spirit)
(According to legend, Ông Táo will return to heaven on the 23rd day of the last month of the lunar calendar and report to the Jade Emperor about matters in that house/family. Vietnamese families often smear honey over the mouth of the image of Ông Táo to ensure that he will say only sweet things.)- Speial holiday foods such as Bánh Chưng and Bánh Dày are prepared and cooked.
- New year’s Eve
- Each home is swept and decorated in red and gold, with yellow “Apricot Blossom” – Hoa Mai (in southern Vietnam) or Peach Blossoms – Hoa Đào (in the northern part of Vietnam) and with woodcut prints of the new year’s zodiac animal.- Traditionally, each home displays a 5-6m long bamboo pole, stripped of its leaves except the top. It is decorated with greeting cards and symbols for good luck and protection from evil siprits.
- Food offerings and burnt offerings to ancestors
- At midnight, Ông Táo will come back.
- The New Year
- The first day is reserved for the nucleus family. Children wear their new clothes and give their elders the traditional Tet greetings. The elders give them red envelopes containing money. Children are free to spend the money on toys or games.
- The Vietnamese believe that the first visitor to the home on the first day will determine their fortune for the entire year. A person with wealth or an auspicious name is usually invited first into the home.
(However, the owner of the house may step out of the house before midnight on New Year’s Eve and come back just after midnight – this is to avoid unexpected arrival of a guest (the next day) who might potentially bring bad luck to the family. It is taboo for anyone who had experienced a recent loss of a family member to visit anyone during Tet.- Sweeping during Tet is also taboo as it symbolizes sweeping luck away.
- Over the next few days, the Vietnamese visit an extended circle of teachers, friends, colleagues and business associates.
- Sweeping during Tet is also taboo as it symbolized sweeping luck away.
- Over the next few days, the Vietnamese visit an extended circle of teachers, friends, colleagues and business associates. They also visit local Buddhist temples to give donations and to get their fortunes told.
- Dragon dances are performed throughout Vietnam during Tet.
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