The concept of keeping the fire from going out of the Thai community

The kitchen has always played an important role for the Thai community and is not just a place for cooking. There is a god who governs the kitchen, according to the beliefs of the Thai community in Nghe An. Many communities often keep the fire burning red during the Tet holiday, at least from the 30th when Chung cake is boiled until the end of the 3rd day. Traditionally, the Tet holiday lasts until the Lantern Festival on the 15th of January.

The Thai people's kitchen fire in Con Cuong (Nghe An) is usually kept burning from the night of the 30th to the end of the 3rd day of Tet. Photo: Huu Vi

No matter how busy they are, at the end of the year, men often invite each other to go to the forest to collect dry firewood to cook banh chung and other food for Tet, welcome relatives and keep the whole family warm.

From the 30th of Tet, the fire will always burn red until the following days, so the firewood must be large and strong to have a lot of coal and burn for a long time. After finishing cooking, the woman in the family buries it with ash. After the 30th night, wake up early in the morning to remove the ashes and if the coal is still red, the family will have a peaceful new year.

Ms. Vi Thi Huon, Nua village - Yen Khe commune - Con Cuong said: "Our fire keeping custom has been passed down from ancient times, so on traditional Tet occasions we pass it on to our children and grandchildren so that it will not be lost because this is a unique identity of our Thai people..."

The custom of keeping fire is believed to have originated from an ancient habit when people had a hard time conserving energy to keep warm during the long, cold nights. Photo: Ba Hau

The Thai people believe that keeping the fire going is also keeping the family tradition. On the 30th night, everyone in the family sits together by the fire and their grandparents tell them about the village customs. The Thai people believe that if the fire goes out on the 30th night, the family will have an unlucky year. To this day, many villages still maintain this habit.

Ms. Cam Lan, an ethnic culture researcher in Hanoi, believes that this custom of the Thai people in Nghe An may have originated in ancient times, when people were struggling to keep fire to keep warm and cook food. The Thai people in the Northwest have a legend about "muong trai and muong gai" in which men and women take turns keeping the fire.This shows the enduring vitality of community customs.

However, according to Ms. Cam Lan, the custom of keeping the fire during Tet has long since disappeared in the northern Thai communities. "Maybe they had this custom before, but I have not come across any documents that specifically recorded it." - Ms. Cam Lan said.