Tomb sweeping (also known as grave sweeping) is the act of clearing weeds, cleaning or repairing the graves of ancestors before the new year.
This is a beautiful cultural feature and custom of the Vietnamese people, expressing respect, remembrance and gratitude to the deceased. At the same time, according to the beliefs of the ancients, this is also an important ceremony for descendants to invite their ancestors to celebrate Tet with their family.
The tomb-sweeping ceremony is usually performed from the day after Ong Cong Ong Tao (December 23) until the afternoon of the 29th or 30th of Tet (if that year is a leap year).
Let's refer to the grave-sweeping prayer (according to Traditional Vietnamese Prayer - Hong Duc Publishing House):
Namo Amitabha Buddha!
Namo Amitabha Buddha!
Namo Amitabha Buddha!
I respectfully bow to:
His Excellency Kim nien Dang cai... (read the name of the Governor of that year), Thai Tue Chi Duc Ton Than... (read the name of the Governor of that year), Chi Than... (read the name of the Judge of that year).
His Majesty the Local Guardian Spirit and Great Kings.
His Majesty the Local God of the Land.
The Five Directions, Five Earth Dragon Veins, Front Vermillion Bird, Back Black Tortoise, Left Azure Dragon, Right White Tiger, and other deities rule over this land.
Dear spirit... Today is the day... We are...
Prepare offerings, flowers, incense, wine, rituals, report to the Gods, respectfully welcome the spirit of our ancestors... whose graves are here back to the family to welcome the new year, so that children and grandchildren can serve them in the spring season, repay their deep gratitude, and show their filial piety.
I bow to the Gods and ask them to bless my promise. The world is separated by yin and yang. A bowl of water and a stick of incense express my sincerity. I bow to them and ask them to witness.
Beware!
Before starting to clean the grave, the head of the family or the oldest person needs to light incense, ask for permission and read the grave cleaning prayer.
While waiting for the incense to burn out, descendants take the opportunity to clean the grave. When the incense has burned 2/3, they can burn votive papers and ask for blessings.
Note, people who visit graves need to bring items such as shovels and hoes to fill the graves, remove all weeds and wild plants growing over the graves, and avoid letting wild animals such as snakes and rats dig holes and make nests because they can offend the souls of the deceased.
