The lunar year festival, or Tet Nguyen Dan, is the largest festival  to take place every year in Vietnam. It starts on the first day of the  lunar year and lasts for entire week.

Tet  is, according to Vietnamese traditional customs, a family-oriented  celebration. The most sacred moment is at midnight on Tet Eve, when it  is time to bid farewell to the past year and to welcome the New Year. It  is also the occasion for people in every house hold to light incense in  remembrance of their late relatives, pluck the plant buds, invite the  first New Year’s visitor, and toast to each other.
The lunar year festival is the occasion for family members to meet  each other. Tet is also the time when every house hold cooks traditional  dishes, such a rice cake, a cake made from of sticky rice filled with  bean paste and pork meat. The Lunar New Year festival is the most sacred  celebration in Vietnam during which people wish each other health and  happiness
Sequence of the Tet Celebration
Do it right. Here’s a step-by-step sequence of the Tet Celebration
Preparation. During the week before Tet,  some families visit the graves of parents and grandparents. Fresh earth  is placed on top, weeds removed from around it and incense is burnt to  invoke the souls of the dead from the other world to return to visit the  family home.
The Kitchen God (Ong Tao or Mandarin Tao)  is also called the Hearth God, the Stove God or the Household God. This  god who was privy to the family’s most private business and intimate  secrets for the ending year, returns to Heaven to make his report to the  Jade Emperor. This report includes the year’s activities of the  household in which he has lived. On the 23rd day of the 12th month, a  farewell and thank you dinner is given to the Kitchen God by the  household. The Kitchen God will need a week for his mission to Heaven.
Folklore has made the spirit of the hearth into a picturesque  character, a buffoon who is the butt of crude jokes. Although he is a  messenger of the Jade Emperor in Heaven, he is depicted as so poor as to  be unable to afford much clothing. He wears an important mandarin hat  but goes about with bare legs because he has scorched his pants in the  hearth fire. Another version tells that he was in such a rush to get  back to Heaven that he forgot his pants and ascended in only his  underwear. Efforts must be made to put him in a proper mood to secure a  favorable report to the Jade Emperor of the family’s activities.  Offerings are made to him. These gifts certainly aim at influencing the  outcome of the report. But no one considers such gifts to be crass  bribery. Such pleasantries merely sweeten the god’s way, as perhaps  cookies placed by the fireplace will please Santa Claus, who might be  tired from delivering so many gifts on Christmas night.
The paper carps, horses and clothing (hats,  robes and boots) will be burned by the family and thus transformed into  a spiritual essence usable by Ong Tao in the world beyond. Like Santa  Claus, the Kitchen God is loved and respected. Both have the capacity to  bring fortune and happiness into the home depending on the previous  year’s behavior. Although beliefs about the Kitchen God have changed  over the years, he remains an important figure in the rich texture of  Vietnamese New Year. The Kitchen God travels on the back of a brightly  colored and powerful paper horse or sometimes a grand bird with great  wings, such as a crane. Or he might ride on a carp with golden scales.  Paper images of these vehicles are purchased at Tet or a living specimen  of fish is bought and later set free. The day of his departure is  marked by the calls of fishmongers from the countryside carrying baskets  of fish hanging from their shoulder poles and calling “Fish for sale,  fine mounts for the Household Gods to make their ride!” Live fish held  in tanks of water and plastic bags are released into ponds, lakes,  rivers and streams to impress the god with the kindness of the  household. In Hanoi, the Sword Lake is a favorite spot for releasing Ong  Tao’s fish-vehicle. In some cases, three fish are released to account  for the possibility that one must please all three Hearth Gods.
Most frequently we hear of only the Kitchen God, but many legends  support the trinity of Kitchen Gods. Ong Tao represents the blending of  all three.
In the old days, and still in some countryside homes, cooking occurs  over clay tripods. Three stones were all that was needed to hold up the  pot over the fire. Few people spend time thinking about the nature of  the Kitchen Gods or the specific meaning of the items that are  associated with them. The three Hearth Gods are represented at Tet by  three hats and shops sell sets of three miniature paper hats: two men’s  hats and one woman’s. These are burned as offerings to Ong Tao. The God  will also need a new pair of boots to wear as he travels to Heaven. Two  favorite gifts for the triad of household deities are gold and wine.

In the central part of Vietnam, cooking tripods or blocks that make  up the family hearth, even if they are still usable, are ritually  discarded when the God leaves. One week later, new blocks will greet his  return or the arrival of his replacement assigned by the Jade Emperor.
After the Kitchen God has left, preparations for the New Year  festivities begin in earnest. The week before New Year’s Eve is a period  of Tat Nien. Tat Nien (literally meaning the end or ‘to extinguish the  year’) is the celebration of the last session of a period, such as the  last class of school, the last bus home, the last day in the office,  even the last bath, all with parties and great ceremony. There is a  festive holiday atmosphere before New Year’s Eve with dragon dances.
Some families set up a Tet tree in the week before New Year’s Eve.  The Tet tree called cay neu, is a bamboo pole stripped of most of its  leaves except for a bunch at the very top. The Tet tree has Taoist  origins and holds talismanic objects that clang in the breeze to attract  good spirits and repel evil ones. On the very top, they frequently  place a paper symbol of yin and yang, the two principal forces of the  universe. Sometimes a colorful paper carp flag will fly from the top.  The carp (or sometimes a horse) is the vehicle on which the Hearth God  travels to make his report. This tree is more common in the countryside  now than in the city. It is ceremonially removed after the seventh day  of Tet.
Sweeping and scrubbing is done in advance as tradition discourages  cleaning during the holiday itself. During this time, shops and  restaurants close while the cleaning spree proceeds in earnest. On hands  and knees, the floors will be scrubbed; bronze will be polished to a  brand new finish. Closets will be ransacked for old clothes to be tossed  out. Shoppers swarm the streets at temporary Tet stalls that have  sprung up, lit with tiny gaily-flashing lights. Everything needed for  the celebration from food to decorations is at hand and in abundance at  these Tet markets.
Two items required for the proper enjoyment of Tet are flowering  branches and the kumquat bush. For the sale of these and other flowers  and plants, a lively flower market is held in the center of the ancient  quarter of Hanoi on Hang Luoc Street. A massive flower market was  organized on Nguyen Hue Street in Ho Chi Minh City and attracts crowds  who walk up and down the street admiring the flowers, meeting old  friends and making new ones. However, this was moved out of the center  in 1996. Throughout the country on bicycles of roving vendors, flowers  create great splashes of color. In the south, the bright golden yellow  branches of the mai apricot are seen everywhere. In the north, the soft  rose-colored dao peach flowers decorate homes and offices. A truck  driver will adorn his truck with a dao branch to cheer him on a  long-distance run.
Miniature kumquat bushes about two or three feet tall are carefully  selected and prominently displayed. To carefully choose a kumquat bush,  the buyer must pay attention to the symmetrical shape, to the leaves and  to the color and shape of the fruit. The bushes have been precisely  pruned to display ripe deep orange fruits with smooth clear thin skin  shining like little suns or gold coins on the first day. Other fruits  must still be green to ripen later. This represents the wish that wealth  will come to you now and in the future. The leaves must be thick and  dark green with some light green sprouts. The fruits represent the  grandparents, the flowers represent parents, the buds represent children  and the light green leaves represent grandchildren. The tree thus  symbolizes many generations. Guests will caress the light green leaves  about to sprout and compliment the discerning host who chose so  carefully. The Sino-Viet pronunciation of the word for orange sounds  like the word for wealth and the tangerines signify good luck.
Crowds of shoppers at the markets become thicker and more frantic  each night, holding up traffic as they jostle each other to reach the  counters with the best buys. Prices are a bit higher, but then  thriftiness is not considered a virtue at Tet. Everyone is wishing each  other Chuc Mung Nam Moi!
One must purchase the sugared fruits, banh chung and the colorful decorations before the afternoon of Tet.
While shoppers roam the streets, banh chung patties wrapped in leaves  are steaming in giant vats. The outside has taken on a lovely light  green tinge after being boiled inside a wrapper of leaves. Banh chung in  the north is a square patty measuring seven inches and two inches  thick, filled with shreds of fatty pork surrounded by a dense mixture of  sticky rice and mashed ground green beans. In the south, a similar dish  is cylindrical. It is given as a gift at this time of year and has a  similar long life and social significance as the western Christmas  fruitcake. These are frequently called sticky rice cakes, but are unlike  sweet cakes in the western sense. There is however, a sweet version  made without meat but with sugar added called banh ngot (sweet rice  patty).
Suddenly, as if by command of some magic wand, the spree of activity,  the light, the noise, all vanishes. By early evening, markets and shops  are abandoned. Shops, stalls and restaurants are locked leaving a  notice hung on the door announcing the date of reopening. Special dishes  must be completed that are expected to serve the family and its guests  for the first three days of the new year. People desert the outer world  and disappear on the requisite trip to their home villages and inside  their homes for intimate family celebrations.
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Giao Thua. As midnight approaches, all eyes  maintain a close look on clocks and watches. The Giao Thua ritual  occurs at that most sacred moment in time. At midnight on the last day  of the year, every Vietnamese family whispers similar fervent prayers.  Bells ring and drums beat in temples. The old year gives over its  mandate to the New Year. The words Giao Thua (Giao means to give and  Thua means to receive) mean a passing on or a receiving and handing down  of life, and the recognition of that gift by the present generation. It  marks the magical transition time from one year to another. Those who  practice Buddhism will pray in the pagoda.
In the Gia Tien (family ancestor) ritual or calling of the ancestors,  invitations are extended to the deceased relatives to visit for a few  days in the world of the living family. They are lured home and kept  happy until they leave. The head of the household lights incense and  folds hands at heart level in the position of prayer. The prayer may  proceed as follows: “In the year of&. And the date of&. Make  these offerings and invite all of our ancestors to join in eating Tet  with us.”
The past generations are invited to share the family’s joys and  concerns to enjoy a meal with the living, to catch up on the family news  and to lavish riches and honors on their descendants.
“I pray to the Heavenly King, the Jade Emperor, to his assistants and  to the Earth God and the guardian spirit and to any other spirits  present. On behalf of the &family, we offer you incense, gold and  silver, fruit and flowers, alcohol and fixings for the betel quid. We  are all here to make these offerings so that the next year will be free  of disasters and harmful occurrences and that the family will prosper.  Please bless us all, young and old, with happiness, prosperity and long  life. (Here he might mention some events of the past year such as the  birth of a child, someone’s new employment or the successful entrance of  a child into a good school). Please forgive us any transgressions we  may have unknowingly committed against you or others.”
Bowing motions, called Le, are performed at least three times and the  ceremony ends when all have prostrated themselves (or in more modern  families, folded hands and prayed) before the altar. After the “money  for the dead” and other paper gifts are burnt in the courtyard, the  family watches the ashes dance away on warm currents of air, a sign that  the dead have received their gifts. The spiritual presence of the  ancestors will be palpable during the days of Tet.
In recent times, a new tradition has evolved to celebrate the  important evening of the new year. Those who are not at home praying at  this momentous time may be socializing with friends. In the cities,  there will be community fireworks displays that will draw the young from  their homes into the square or park. Although firecrackers are now  illegal in Vietnam, some kind of loud noises will be made. It can be the  banging of cans, the use of electronic popping firecrackers or human  voices whooping it up. People will break off branches and twigs that  contain newly sprouted leaves to bring a sense of freshness and vitality  into their home. This follows a Buddhist tradition of bringing fresh  new leaves and “fortune bearing buds” into the home from the pagoda.
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First  Morning or Head Day is reserved for the nuclear family, that is, the  husband’s household. Immediate family members get together and celebrate  with the husband’s parents. A younger brother, if the parents are not  alive, will visit his older sibling. Faraway sons and daughters journey  to be with their parents on this day. Children anticipate a ritual  called Mung Tuoi, or the well wishing on the achievement of one more  year to one’s life. With both arms folded in front of their chest in  respect, they thank their grandparents for their birth and upbringing.
Reciprocally, the grandparents will impart words of advice or wisdom  to their grandchildren, encouraging them to study seriously, to live in  harmony with others. The promises made by the children are similar to  New Year’s resolutions made during the western New Year. Adults will  make silent promises to themselves to improve their lives, habits and  relationships in the coming year. The children accept small gifts,  usually crisp bills. Ideally, part of the gifts will be saved for future  “investment,” and part spent for Tet amusements. The words on the  little red envelope in which the bill may be tucked read: Respectful  wishes for the New Year. When there was a king ruling Vietnam, the  mandarins of the royal court formally wished the King and Queen,  “Happiness as vast as the southern sea; longevity as lasting as the  southern mountains.” Each trade and professional guild in Vietnam has a  founder or guardian spirit and on this or one of the next several days,  the craft workers will make offerings to their guild ancestor.
The family displays the offerings of food on the altar table for the  first meal for the ancestors since they have returned to the world of  the living. The head of the family, dressed in fresh clothes, steps  respectfully in front of the family altar and presents the offerings of  food, liquor, cigarettes, betel fixings, flowers and paper gold and  silver. He lights three sticks of incense, kneels, joins hands in front  of his chest, bows his head and prays. The names of the deceased of the  family up to the fifth generation are whispered as they are invited to  participate in the feast prepared for them.
After the ceremony, the entire family sits down to enjoy the meal  typically consisting of steamed chicken, bamboo shoot soup, banh chung  and fresh fruits. They reminisce with their ancestors.
The Vietnamese do not say “celebrate” when speaking of Tet; the words  “to eat” are used as in the expression, “Will you eat Tet with your  family?” or “Where will you eat Tet this year?” It does not refer to the  filling of one’s stomach, although in the old days, when hunger was a  constant problem, Tet time was a time of plenty during which one could  eat one’s full. “To eat” here means more to be nourished by, or to  partake in the mutual communion with others, a spiritual eating or being  nourished.
There is a Vietnamese saying related to ancestor worship: “Trees have  roots; water has a source; when drinking from the spring, one must  remember the source.” Thanks are offered to those ancestors who labored  long ago to dig irrigation channels and remove mountains for this  generation to have an easier life. The present is only one link in the  cycle of coming back to the past as one looks to the future.
The second day of Tet is for visiting the wife’s family and close  friends. Some shops have opened and a few lottery stands are busy  selling chances to people who feel lucky. Everyone is out on the street  parading around in their new clothes.
On the third day of Tet, the circle of connections becomes larger and  is extended to the broader community outside the family by visits to  teachers, bosses or a helpful physician. The Vietnamese visit teachers  and physicians although long out of school and long cured of their  illness. This may be the time to have one’s fortune told to see what the  coming year will bring. These days in Vietnam, there are fortunetellers  using computer software. People are also especially interested in the  significance of their first dream of the new year.
The evening of the third day marks the departure of the ancestors by  burning votive objects such as gold and silver, for them to take with  them on their journey back to Heaven.
Now the connections to the world beyond the family can take place.  The non-family member who will be the first visitor is carefully chosen.  The “first footer” is an auspicious guest who is considered to be good  luck for the family. The first non-family visitor to the house brings in  the year’s luck. This figure’s karma will charm the household for the  entire year and determine the luck of the family. It is customary to  invite a respected person to visit at that time, so that this turn of  luck is not left to fate. This person, whose aura is believed capable of  promoting the fortune of the household in the following year, is  usually someone healthy, successful and prosperous. Some Vietnamese lock  their doors to all chance visitors until after the visit of the chosen  “first footer.”
On the fourth day, banks and shops reopen. Transactions, although  slower, will be conducted more cheerfully than usual. Offices open and  work resumes. Careful attention is paid to the resumption of activities.  The first outing is the first time in the New Year that a family leaves  their home. A propitious time is chosen in advance for this outing and  one sometimes asks the advice of fortunetellers.
Formerly, scholars initiated their new brushes and paper with a small  ceremony with the wearing of new clothes. This also requires an  auspicious hour. The theme of the proverb or poem is considered  carefully and newly purchased high-grade paper was used. Today’s  students are less formal in their initiation rites, but most enjoy a new  pen and a fresh notebook for the New Year. Everyone determines to do  what he or she can to help fate along to make the next year most  successful.
In the countryside, there are rituals to enliven the land out of its  winter’s rest. The Rites of Dong Tho activate the soil to bring it alive  from its sacred rest. When there was a king in Vietnam, he symbolically  initiated the harrowing of the first furrow of the planting season in a  royal rite.
A hundred years ago, on Hang Buom Street, a ceremony was performed  right after Tet called the Beating of the Spring Ox. This ceremony  initiated the breaking open of the agricultural land and chased away the  winter cold. A ceramic image of the ox was beaten with sticks until it  broke into pieces. Everyone scramble to grab and take home a piece of  the sacred ox.
On the fifteenth day of Tet (called Ram Thang Gieng), the first full  moon, there are ceremonies in Buddhist temples. This is considered the  most auspicious day of the Buddhist year. “Paying homage to Buddha all  year long is not as effective as praying on the 15th day of the first  lunar month.” The devout flock into pagodas, their eyes stinging with  the blue haze of incense. After prayers, shared blessed offerings from  the temple keeper are stuffed into bags carried with them for that  purpose. Over the years, this Buddhist sacred day has transformed into a  holiday of other cults.
It is also called Tet Trang Nguyen or the feast of the first  laureate. There is a legend associated with its beginnings: the emperor  once staged a banquet on the full moon to which the most prominent  scholars of the kingdom were invited. They drank exquisite liquor and  each man composed a formal poem on a theme chosen by the emperor. On  that day, many families celebrate Tet all over again by eating banh  chung.
This is also called the Little New Year or full moon New Year and  celebrated by farmers following an indigenous practice of welcoming  Spring at the first full moon. Later, it became infused with Buddhist  meanings.
The Vietnamese traditionally celebrated Tet from the fifteenth day of the twelfth month to the fifteenth day of the first month.
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<em>Excerpted from Tet: The Vietnamese Lunar New Year by Huu Ngoc and Barbara Cohen</em>
* Source: <a href="http://www.vietnam-culture.com/articles-19-13/The-Vietnamese-Lunar-New-Year.aspx" target="_blank"><em>vietnam-culture.com.</em></a>