New Year's Eve worshiping ceremony is an important moment during the Lunar New Year. At the moment of transition between the old year and the new year, Vietnamese families will offer offerings, recite prayers and perform rituals to welcome good fortune.
According to feng shui expert Nguyen Song Ha, the New Year's Eve worship ceremony will be held outdoors and indoors. The offering tray does not need to be prepared too elaborately but still has enough offerings including incense, lamps, candles, tea, flowers, fruits, vegetarian or savory offerings. Food must be prepared cleanly and arranged neatly.
New Year's Eve worship is performed at the moment of transition to the new year, so it should be performed at exactly the hour of Ty (11pm-1am) on the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month. New Year's Eve worship can be performed before 11pm on the 29th day of the 12th lunar month, but it should not be performed after 1am on the 1st day of Binh Ngo Tet.
For outdoor offerings, homeowners need to place them in front of the house. People living in apartments and high-rise buildings can choose balconies or large, airy halls to worship New Year's Eve. After carefully arranging the offerings, they begin to perform the ritual of sending off the old god and welcoming the new god back to the family.
New Year's Eve worship in the house is carried out after the outdoor worship has been completed. Therefore, outdoor New Year's Eve worship should be done before 0:00 to have enough time to prepare for indoor rituals. Offerings and items must be fully arranged before the Rat hour.
The indoor offering tray has similar offerings to the outdoors, but adds five-fruit trays, betel and areca nuts, gold coins, cakes, candies, Tet jams... The savory offering tray must be placed under the altar or prepare another table to arrange offerings.
The person performing the ritual should be the oldest person in the family, wearing neat, tidy and discreet clothes. When worshiping, they must light candles, burn incense, read prayers and express their respect to the gods, and invite grandparents and ancestors to celebrate Tet.
