Year by year, Tết holiday has repeated in the role of the most fundamental and also biggest festival of a year to Vietnamese, from Kinh people to ethnic communities. In this crucial event, Xông đất appears to be one of the indispensable rites. People in Vietnam have appreciated more and more the importance of this culture. It has been modified a lot with a considerable number of rules and requirements, which both preserve the essence of Xong Dat tradition while adapting to the modern life of a Vietnamese.
Give wishes to each other
If one does a survey asking Vietnamese about the origin of “Xông Đất”, a majority of asked people might not be able to answer. Only a few elderly and experts on Vietnamese culture have adequate knowledge to tell the stories about the origin of this traditional rite, but these stories are also different and sometimes confusing.
The custom of “considering age to Xông đất” and the departure direction in the early year is concluded from wishes of people to have a happy and wealthy year.Vietnamese always keep in mind a desire of long last living and fortune for everything they do and seek ways to satisfy their demand.
And with the doctrine of Taoism of the harmony of 5 nature elements (fire, water, earth, metal and wood), Vietnamese began to invite people who are suitable for them, expecting luck and success for the new year. For example, Vietnamese believe that water nurtures trees, so that people with “Water” clause are suitable for the first visiting (xông đất) people with “Tree” clause. The truth is that this harmony belief is also applied to many other affairs of Vietnamese such as building houses or purchasing cars and apartment.
The most important thing when choosing the person to give a first visit to home is a cheerful, generous and kind that the host families will always be lucky and wealthy in a new year. And if the person chosen to give the first visit to our house has the suitable age with the host but he is fastidious that everything doesn’t seem to be good.
The guest invited to give “Xông đất” is also the important person who is the key man in a family. The chosen person normally goes to visit and give wishes in 5 to 10 minutes that they don’t stay long. They are happy because they do a good thing because their families also have fortune in the New Year. So there is a traditional belief that they shouldn’t sweep houses in the New Year until the third day of a new year.
