A bustling day on the day the Kitchen God ascends to heaven.

(Baonghean.vn) -According to folk beliefs, carp is the means by which the Kitchen God ascends to heaven to report on the household's deeds during the past year. Therefore, on the morning of the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month, markets in Vinh City and even the streets are bustling with people buying and selling offerings for the Kitchen God to be burned as offerings and live carp to be released into the wild.

According to Mr. Thanh, a small vendor selling votive offerings in Hung Dung market, the custom of worshipping the Kitchen God originates from the legend that once a month, the Kitchen God ascends to heaven to report on the affairs of each household to the celestial court. Thanks to this, the celestial court learns about everything in the mortal world, from business matters to daily life, from good to bad. Later, the custom of sending the Kitchen God back to heaven, instead of once a month, was reduced to only the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month each year.

The set of votive offerings for the Kitchen God includes two hats for the male Kitchen God and one hat for the female Kitchen God, three paper robes, and a carp.



Many people begin preparing for the Kitchen God ceremony early in the morning.



The live carp sold on this day are also very popular.

In Vietnam, the Kitchen God is associated with the legend of three deities: the Kitchen God (overseeing the kitchen), the Household God (overseeing the house), and the Market God (overseeing the marketplace). People highly respect these three gods, believing they bring them wealth and good fortune throughout the year. Therefore, on this day, from early morning, every household holds a ceremony to bid farewell to the Kitchen God. Besides incense, flowers, and paper money, live carp are a popular offering for housewives to buy and release. Because of the popularity of this day, the supply of offerings for the Kitchen God is bustling in the market. Many stalls that don't usually sell paper offerings also take advantage of the opportunity to sell some Kitchen God items. Many street vendors, like Ms. Thanh from Thanh Hoa who specializes in plastic goods, also take advantage of the 23rd day of the lunar month to prepare live carp to sell along the streets.

People usually buy two Apple hats.GrandfatherThere are two dragonfly wings and a hat for the Kitchen Goddess, three paper robes, and a carp to serve as a means for the "King of the Kitchen" to ascend to heaven.

After arranging the offerings, lighting incense, and praying, wait for the incense to burn out, then light another round of incense, offer thanks, burn the paper offerings, and release the carp into ponds, lakes, rivers, or streams… so that the fish can carry the Kitchen God up to Heaven.

Thu Huyen