According to feng shui expert Nguyen Song Ha, the New Year's Eve ceremony of the Year of the Snake 2025 is an important ritual. At this moment (the hour of the Rat, 12:00 on the 29th of the 12th lunar month), Vietnamese families will hold the Tru Tich ceremony.
Offering on New Year's Eve is called the ceremony of sending off the old and welcoming the new. Usually, the homeowner will prepare two offerings, one for the gods (outdoors) and the other for the ancestors (indoors).
Outdoor offerings
The offering tray will be placed outdoors, to send off the heavenly ruler who has ruled the lower world and welcome the new one to continue this work. According to folklore, the homeowner needs to perform the worship outside before performing the New Year's Eve ceremony indoors.
The traditional New Year's Eve offering tray includes the following offerings: pig's head or boiled chicken, sticky rice, banh chung, betel and areca nuts, flowers, fruit, rice, salt, water, wine and votive paper. On the altar there is an incense burner, two oil lamps or two candles.
For outdoor New Year's Eve offerings, the offering tray can be vegetarian or non-vegetarian depending on the family's conditions. The outdoor New Year's Eve offering tray does not need to be as elaborate as the indoor offering tray, but must be prepared neatly, cleanly, and tidily.
At exactly the hour of Ty (11pm - 1am), families place the offering tray in front of their house. If living in an apartment, the homeowner can place the offering tray on the balcony or in the main hall of the building they live in.
After neatly placing the offering tray, the homeowner performs the ritual of sending off the old god and welcoming the new god, hoping for a new year of peace and prosperity.
Offering tray in the house
The indoor New Year's Eve offering tray also includes the same offerings as the outdoor offering tray. In addition, the homeowner also needs to have a tray of five fruits, betel and areca nuts, votive paper money, candies, and jam. The savory food tray will be placed under the altar or on another table, not on the altar.
The salty tray usually has traditional Tet dishes such as boiled chicken, banh chung, pork roll, sticky rice with beans, mung bean sweet soup, boiled pork, vermicelli soup, etc. Meanwhile, the vegetarian tray has candies, jams, boiled vegetables, sticky rice with sweet soup.
Depending on the family, local culture, and region, the dishes displayed on the tray will be different. But it is necessary to ensure that the tray is neat and clean to show respect.
After setting up the offerings and placing the tray, the oldest person in the family dresses up, lights candles, incense, and respectfully performs the New Year's Eve ceremony in the house, praying to the gods and inviting ancestors to celebrate Tet with their descendants.
The New Year's Eve ceremony must be completed before 1:00 a.m. on the first day of Tet (January 29th). Families should prepare carefully so that the ceremony takes place on time, according to the correct rituals, and together look forward to a new year 2025 At Ty with lots of blessings and peace.
