Unique festival on the first day of the year of the Cat in Yen Bai

At 0:00 on February 2 and 3 (ie January 5 and 6), in front of the main gate of Dong Cuong temple, the Spring Prosperity Mother activity took place, people and tourists respectfully prayed for a new year of prosperity, wealth and peace.

Buffalo slaughter to worship Mother Goddess

Right after the buffalo slaughtering ceremony, the bamboo offering ceremony in the early morning of the first lunar month will be the procession of the Mother Goddess across the river. This is also one of the main ceremonies of the Dong Cuong temple festival.

After carrying the Mother Goddess across the river by big boat back to the temple, this is also the time to offer incense to the Mother Goddess.

The Shaman performs the main worship rituals to pray for national peace and prosperity, good crops, growth of all things, and a happy life.

On the first day of the first lunar month, thousands of people and tourists were present and witnessed a special ritual of Dong Cuong temple, the buffalo slaughtering ceremony in front of the temple. This ritual is both ancient and spiritual.

Here, thousands of local people and tourists from all over the world take turns offering incense to pray for good luck for themselves, their friends and family.

Dong Cuong Temple - National historical and cultural relic located in Ben Den village, Dong Cuong commune.

This is a famous sacred temple worshiping the Second Mother of the Upper Realm - the second Mother of the Three Holy Mothers and also the place to worship national heroes who contributed to the resistance war against the Yuan-Mongol army in the 18th century and the Tay leaders who heroically sacrificed their lives in the uprising against the French in the year of Giap Dan 1914.

According to custom, the Dong Cuong Temple Festival begins with a buffalo slaughtering ceremony to worship the Mother Goddess, which is performed at the first moment of the first day of the year. The buffalo used for the sacrifice must be a large, strong, white male buffalo, carefully selected many months in advance.

Prosperity in early spring

Coinciding with the ceremony at the main temple is the Spring Offering to the Mother Goddess activity, which has attracted thousands of people and tourists to worship, enjoy the spring and appear in front of the main courtyard of Dong Cuong temple to receive the Spring Offering to the Mother Goddess from the hands of Mr. Mo - the head of the Dong Cuong temple.

In the bags of Mother Goddess gifts given to people and tourists are rice, corn, beans, and peas with the belief of praying for a new year of good crops, full houses of rice, and a prosperous family.

Ms. Ha Thi Dung in Goc Quan village, Dong Cuong commune, Van Yen district shared: "Mother Mother brings prosperity to the villagers, to the whole village and the surrounding areas, so that the children and grandchildren can enjoy a bountiful new year and have a prosperous business, so the people are very excited."

During the change of watch, coinciding with the ceremony at the main temple, there is a Spring Offering to the Mother Goddess activity so that all people and visitors can respectfully pray for a new year of prosperity, wealth, and peace.

Legend has it that in the beginning of time, Van Yen was a mountainous and beautiful land, filled with storms and wild forests, with summer floods and winter droughts.

The Mother Goddess of the Upper Realm descended from the Heavens to take care of the 81 forest gates and gave orders to the gods to rule over the rivers, mountains, and forests.

The Mother Goddess of the Upper Realm descended to earth to teach the people how to make a living, taught them how to grow rice and raise silkworms, found the sticky rice variety, taught people how to sow rice, plant rice, make terraced fields, and have a bountiful harvest, with the fragrance of the new green rice season.

The Mother Goddess procession across the river is one of the main ceremonies of the Dong Cuong Temple Festival, Van Yen district, Yen Bai province.

People remember the grace of the Mother of the Upper Realm, build temples, and in the new rice season, offer her a tray of fragrant sticky rice, and pray for her to bless them with good weather, a bountiful harvest, and a prosperous and happy village.

The glutinous rice grains offered to the temple for the Mother Goddess to descend and witness her will be given to the people to bring them good fortune and prosperity all year round.

From the realm of the Mother Goddess of the Upper Realm, she returned to Van Yen, to the sacred land with the gods to bless all people, with favorable weather, fragrant flowers and sweet fruits.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/doc-dao-le-hoi-ngay-mao-dau-nam-o-yen-bai-192250203162840591.htm