Buying votive offerings: The important thing is sincerity

(Baonghean.vn) -With only a few days left until the full moon of the seventh lunar month, every household has prepared a sincere offering to “pardon the sins of the deceased”. However, in times of economic stagnation, along with people’s awareness of saving, this year’s offerings to the deceased are more frugal.

Originally a wholesale place for retail markets, Vinh market is usually bustling with buyers and sellers these days, but on the 10th of the lunar calendar, the atmosphere here is still quiet. There are few buyers, sellers leisurely come and go, whenever they meet customers, they greet them warmly, "My child, what do you want, I'll get it for you, I have everything and the prices are reasonable!" Buyers only buy a few sets of clothes, fabrics, and a few gold coins, which is a little more than a week. Ms. Hien, a customer, said: "This year, I only buy normal offerings, as long as I have enough clothes and fabrics for my ancestors, and I shouldn't burn too much now, it's basically up to my heart."

The votive paper stall at Vinh market is sparsely populated.

According to Ms. Tam - a small trader with nearly twenty years of experience in selling votive offerings, said: "If last year, from the first day, people came to buy in large numbers, I had to mobilize my two daughters to help, each day I had to sell tens of millions, but this year, by the 10th day, I only sold a few million worth of goods, it was so unsold." Asked if she would lose money this year because the typical Vu Lan goods had been imported and if they could not be sold, she said: "The goods have been ordered for more than a month now and there is no way to return them, but the good thing is that if these goods are not sold out, they can be left for next year or if I know someone who is a shaman, I can ask them to help me get them, but I have to accept a lower price, so I still lose money." According to Ms. Tam, this year the import price has increased slightly by about 5-10% but the selling price has to be kept, because everyone wants to sell cheap to stimulate demand.

Like previous years, the votive paper money is very diverse, a plate of cheap votive paper money costs only 2,000 VND, but a nail of votive paper money including hell money, hell dollars, 500,000 VND bills costs up to 40,000 VND. As in the afterlife, the votive paper goods used for burning on Vu Lan festival are very diverse. Each set of clothes costs about 20 to 30 thousand VND on average, with all kinds of office dresses, jeans... Household appliances such as gas stoves, rice cookers cost about 20 - 40,000 VND; Normal motorbikes cost from 70 - 100,000 VND, with newer, more beautiful models costing 150,000 VND. But besides that, there are also simple motorbikes with small frames that cost only about 20 - 40,000 VND. Cars are more expensive, each one costs from 150 - 300,000 VND depending on the type. Same goes for houses, some are just over or under 200,000 VND.

However, due to economic difficulties, people's awareness has also changed, thinking that the heart is important, so expensive luxury items such as cars, airplanes... are rarely asked to buy. Complete sets that include almost all necessary items in the house such as beds, wardrobes, tables, chairs, bowls, chopsticks, teapots... and are cheaper are chosen by many people. Many small traders have also predicted in advance, so they only buy a full set of offerings, in case someone asks but they don't have it, they will lose their prestige.

Not only are there records from wholesale and retail markets, but this year at temples and pagodas, the burning of votive paper to “pardon the sins of the deceased” by visitors is also more modest than in previous years. At Hong Son Temple, visitors who come to burn incense often present an offering including gold coins, five directions, fabric and some sweets. If a family has a deceased person who for some reason is sent to the temple, they prepare a more complete and practical offering. Ms. Phuong from Do Luong went to the temple to ask the monk to present the offering and pray for the soul of her little daughter to be liberated. Her offering includes items such as: multi-layered dresses, pillows, and dolls to express her love and regret for her unfortunate daughter.



Most people only buy offerings out of sincerity.

She shared: “My grandchild died when he was too young. People said that if you leave him in the temple, he will be liberated and become a maid, so every day on this day, I go to the temple to leave him some things. Last year, I bought him a lot of things, including a pink horse and a multi-story house, but this year the master only allowed me to burn a few offerings. Besides, I think it is a waste for him to rely on the temple, so why would he need a house...”

Looking around, people coming and going in the Temple today are also busy but no one is carrying as many offerings as every year. Mr. Nguyen Cong Tien - Hong Son Temple Management Board said: "The Temple is implementing the document of the Department of Culture, so it requires monks not to let visitors bring too many offerings with votive paper. If any monk violates, they will be strictly punished, so you see, the Temple only has one cremation furnace but from morning to afternoon the ashes have not been collected."



The furnace at the Temple is not overloaded.

If in previous years, on these days, people were seen competing to burn paper houses, televisions, and refrigerators on the streets and alleys, this year that phenomenon has decreased significantly. Mr. Tran Van Loc, head of Tan Hop - Hung Dung block, said: "A few years ago, starting from the 10th, many households burned a lot of paper for their ancestors. Small households had a tray full of green and red papers, small and large, while large households left them all over the yard, houses, cars, and so on, it was so red that I was shocked and had to announce and ask people to water it to avoid fires. But why haven't people burned much this year?! " Mr. Loc also said that for the past three days, every morning on the radio news of Tan Hop block, there was an announcement: to prevent waste in burning paper money and warn of the risks of fires if people were careless.

Thanh Nga