Prayers to Ông Công and Ông Táo (Kitchen Gods) and the rituals according to folk culture.

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - When offering sacrifices to the Kitchen God and Goddess, homeowners need to pay attention to several points regarding the timing, the offering tray, the offerings, and the prayers to the Kitchen God and Goddess to ensure the ceremony is solemn and in accordance with traditional customs.

Offerings for the Kitchen God and Stove God

The ritual of worshipping Ông Công and Ông Táo (Kitchen Gods) is an important ceremony for the Vietnamese people. This ceremony not only carries spiritual significance in bidding farewell to the Kitchen Gods as they ascend to heaven, but also contains profound educational meaning.

During the ritual, the homeowner sincerely reflects on the past year, reminding themselves of any wrongdoings or mistakes infamily life in order to self-examine, repent, and vow to correct themselves, thereby praying for blessings and peace in the new year.

Offering tray for the Kitchen God and Stove God (Photo: Pham Thanh Ha).

The Kitchen God and Stove God worship ceremony in 2026 falls on Tuesday, February 10th (the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month of the Year of the Snake).

According to folk beliefs, when offering sacrifices to the Kitchen God and the Stove God, homeowners need to pay attention to several points regarding the timing, the offering tray, the offerings, and the way the ceremony is performed.

Accordingly, the offering to the Kitchen God and the Stove God is usually performed before noon (12 PM on the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month). However, nowadays many families can flexibly perform the ceremony earlier, as long as it is within a suitable timeframe and maintains solemnity.

Families should arrange the offerings before 12 PM on the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month. According to folk beliefs, after the 23rd, the Kitchen God has returned to heaven, so offering the sacrifices later would no longer have much meaning.

When preparing the offering tray, families don't need to buy anything too elaborate. The host can prepare a vegetarian or non-vegetarian tray, depending on their circumstances. The offerings usually include incense, flowers, betel nuts and leaves, candles, sweets, a tray of rice, votive paper money, and carp (live or paper carp).

Feng Shui expert Pham Cuong notes that carp is indispensable on the offering tray because it symbolizes the means by which the Kitchen God ascends to heaven. Vietnamese people usually offer paper fish or real fish.