Hanoi villagers make a mad dash to bring ‘lucky fire’ home for new lunar year

By Manh Cuong   February 26, 2018 | 08:48 pm PT
For these villagers, this new year fire is more sacred than the Olympic flame.
Getting lucky fire and bring it home safe and sound is a long-standing ritual in the 11th day of the first lunar month of An Dinh Village in Hanoi. Locals believe that the fire they get from burning votive paper they offer in the past year at the villages temple will keep them in peace and give them prosperity.

Finding "lucky fire" and bringing it home safe and sound is a long-standing ritual on the 11th day of the first lunar month in An Dinh Village in Hanoi's Ha Dong District. Locals believe that the fire they get from burning votive papers at the village temple will bring them peace and prosperity.

Before burning the paper, villagers gather for a ceremony to worship the gods at the temple as well as Heaven and Earth.

Before burning the paper, villagers gather for a ceremony at the temple to worship the gods and Heaven and Earth.

After setting the fire, people will quickly extract it with incenses or candles and bring it home as fast as they could before its gone.

People light incense or candles from the fire and take them home as fast as they can before they go out.

Some people who live far away from the temple have to make the run on motorbikes.

Some people who live far from the temple have to make the run on motorbikes.

Or a bicycle.

Or bicycle.

Then they put that incense on the altar at their home as a wish for luck in a new year.

The incense is then placed on the family altar at home to wish for good luck in the new year.

 
 
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