The custom of bathing with aromatic leaves on the afternoon of the 30th of Tet

(Baonghean.vn) - For many generations, the habit of boiling aromatic leaf water to bathe on the afternoon of the 30th of Tet has become a beautiful, sacred custom of Vietnamese people every time they prepare to welcome the approaching new year.

Picking aromatic leaves for bathing at the end of the year has become a beautiful custom of Vietnamese people. Photo: Phuong Thao.

According to Vietnamese tradition, bathing with aromatic leaf water on the last day of the year helps people calm down after the fatigue of life, washing away worries to welcome the new year.

Bathing in a pot of fragrant, warm coriander leaves on the last day of the old year is like seeing unsatisfied, incomplete things or lingering sadness in the mind being released.

Commonly used leaves are lemongrass leaves, basil leaves, lemon leaves, betel leaves, grapefruit leaves, soapberry,... Photo: Phuong Thao.

That habit has become a beautiful, sacred custom and an indispensable cultural feature of Vietnamese people during every Tet holiday.

According to medicine, aromatic leaves also help blood circulation, relieve pain, restore health, and make people feel comfortable and relaxed.

The pot of leaves is the crystallization of simplicity and infinite warmth. Photo: Phuong Thao.

The pot of aromatic leaf water is associated with fond memories of the love and care of my grandmother and mother. Photo: Phuong Thao.

The scent of fragrant leaves in the late afternoon, from the plants around the garden, just smelling it makes my heart feel lighter and more relaxed… Photo: Phuong Thao.

The scent of aromatic leaf water sometimes evokes peaceful memories in everyone's mind. It is the scent of care, of love from the warmth of grandmother, of mother. A unique scent of the homeland will forever linger, lingering throughout the year to remind everyone of their origins, of their roots.

It's like a smell of the past, taking us back to what we've experienced, to spend a little quiet time in the last afternoon of the year, to feel what has come and gone./.

Phuong Thao