The Vietnamese custom of erecting a pole on Tet holiday has existed for a long time. The pole erection ceremony is also known as the Thuong Tieu ceremony.
Traditionally, the pole is erected on the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month - the day the Kitchen Gods are sent to heaven. The pole is also considered a symbol to prevent evil spirits from disturbing the homeowner during the days when the Kitchen Gods go to heaven. After Tet, the pole is lowered on the 7th day of the first lunar month.
Bamboo chosen to erect the pole must be healthy, with all the large branches below cut off, leaving the branches and leaves on the top.
At the Vietnam National Village for Ethnic Culture and Tourism, the pole-raising ceremony is held as an annual activity, with the aim of praying for a new year of favorable weather, national peace and people's well-being.
"The custom of erecting a pole on Tet holiday contains many cultural values, expressing the depth of human philosophy. The pole is made from bamboo - a common plant in the Vietnamese countryside, and also symbolizes many good ideas such as inheritance, "When the bamboo is old, the young bamboo will grow."
The pole in the village has 54 segments symbolizing 54 ethnic groups across the country. Using bamboo to make the pole connects heaven and earth, to express good wishes, praying for favorable weather, good crops", shared a representative of the Vietnam Ethnic Culture and Tourism Village.
In the book Festivals and Holidays of the Vietnamese, Nguyen Van Huyen describes the Tet pole: It is a bamboo pole five or six meters long, stripped of all its branches, but with clusters of leaves left at the top or tied to it a bunch of rooster feathers, a bunch of banyan leaves or leaves of the evergreen tree. Near the top hangs a bamboo ring, with small fish tied to it, small bells and gongs made of baked clay that make a light and soft sound when the wind blows.
Below this circle is tied a magic hat, gold bars made of paper, pieces of betel, pandan leaves or prickly cactus branches. At the top is also hung a lamp that is lit at night. The pole is made like this to show the right way for ancestors to return home for Tet.
Phan Ke Binh's book Vietnamese Customs states: In many places, people cut bamboo to erect a pole, tie three strips together, and tie a bundle of gold. Or they use banyan branches and coconut leaves to hang outside the gate. Or they sprinkle lime powder in the yard outside the gate, draw a chessboard, a bow, a crossbow... also with the intention of warding off evil spirits, lest evil spirits come to disturb their homes in the new year.
According to the National Archives Center I, depending on the customs and practices of each locality or ethnic group, the erection of the pole and the hanging of items on the top of the pole take many different forms. Regardless of where the pole is erected on a festival day, the pole is still mainly associated with the Lunar New Year.
Nowadays, the custom of planting a pole on Tet holiday has faded away as people tend to display peach blossoms, apricot blossoms, kumquat trees, ornamental flowers, and ornamental plants... to decorate their houses. However, in some localities, the custom of planting a pole is still practiced as a symbol of the wish to welcome a good new year, instead of the original meaning of exorcising evil spirits in the past.
