Offering prayers at the water's edge after the rooster crows on New Year's Day.

(Baonghean.vn) - After the first rooster crows of the new year, the Hmong people have the custom of worshipping at the water source, the spring that provides water for the community's daily life. Thai children have the custom of going to the stream to fetch sacred water early in the morning on the first day of Tet.

Obtaining water for daily use is a time-consuming task for the Hmong community. Their lifestyle, living at altitudes of over 1000 meters, means they constantly face water scarcity. Because of this, water has become a spiritual object for the community. At the beginning of the new year, the Hmong people go to the nearest stream to offer prayers and sacrifices. Some villages still maintain this custom.

Speaking about this ritual, Mr. Vu Chong Di, from Huoi Giang 3 village, Tay Son commune, Ky Son district (Nghe An province), said: The custom of offering water is part of the Mong people's New Year celebration. After the clan's village worship ceremony, everyone returns home, slaughters chickens, and offers them as sacrifices to each family member, wishing them good health in the new year.

Many Hmong villages now have public water tanks, but this community still maintains the custom of lighting incense and praying for water at the beginning of the new year. Photo: Huu Vi

Around 9 PM, another chicken is slaughtered to create a new "ancestor altar" (xử ca). The ancestor altar is a decorative image drawn on paper, adorned with chicken feathers and blood. This image is considered by most Hmong clans as their place of ancestor worship. On the night of the 30th of Tet (Lunar New Year's Eve), the incense must never burn out on the altar next to the "xử ca" image.

The first rooster crowing after midnight is considered the first sign of the new year. The first person to hear the rooster will wake everyone up, bringing their water containers to the nearest water source in the village to fetch water. People also don't forget to bring incense to light and offer to the spirits, asking for a new, clean, and abundant water supply.

“Now that many villages have self-flowing water tanks, people no longer have to travel far to fetch water like before. They still maintain the old custom of lighting incense next to the public water tank in the village,” Mr. Vu Chong Di added.

The water source is also where the Thai community comes to fetch water early in the morning on New Year's Day. Photo: Huu Vi

In the past, the Thai community also had the custom of going to the stream to fetch water early in the morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year. On New Year's Day, before dawn, children dressed in new clothes would go to the stream to drink the sacred water. According to old beliefs, on the early morning of the new year, the fairies would open the stream to bring good fortune to people. Only those who were persistent and diligent would have the luck to encounter the sacred water.

Huu Vi